Yardley Gentleman by Yardley, 2001

I bought Yardley Gentleman fragrance because I own, use and love the smell of Yardley Gentleman brilliantine, and wanted that aroma in an EdeT. Well, it's not the same. Not the same at all. Where the brilliantine is a warm yet subtle lavender scented hair pomade that you just want to sniff all day, this is frag that is a hodge-podge of overly aggressive elements that fight each other as well as the wearer. It is plainly and simply off-putting and will soon send you back for your slightly shy but lovely DR Harris "Arlington" (that's what it did to me) for an opportunity to wear something that speaks of subtlety in a classic English fragrance. To make matters worse, it goes a bit "funky" at mid-point in the day, and smells just plain odd, until that stale-thing passes and it moves on to a much nicer spicy clove finish that does not ameliorate the overall experience. I wanted to love this despite the less that positive reviews here, but I am afraid they were correct. I will stay with the wonderful Yardley Gentleman brilliantine and look for the complimentary lavender fragrance to go with it, but this one goes into "the drawer of neglect" for a long rest.

More than a year Later: a follow up, a reappraisal, and yes, a reassessment. First, my initial disappointment with Yardley Gentleman was due to the fact that I had a preconceived notion of what I thought this should smell like, since I love/d the Yardley Gentleman Brilliantine. Second when I first purchased it, I used it too heavily. This is one powerful fragrance! The results were deemed by me not to be good. I tried it for a couple of weeks, but ultimately, thought it was not a good scent. After a long time, I took it out of the "drawer of neglect" where shunned fragrances go for long periods of time. I put it on my swap list, but got no takers, so eventually, I took this out, and tried it again, but with light double-misting doses, After a few days and I few applications, I realized I had made a terrible mistake. This is a charming, unique fragrance with lovely cinnamon, clove and sandalwood notes that are terrific. The light grapefruit was not something I cared for earlier in our relationship, but now I have come to appreciate how nicely it sets off the spices, and and how beautifully this evolves and develops making Yardley Gentleman eminently wearable in all seasons. I would have liked the lavender to have been more prominent, but I didn't design this, and I should, as we all should, appreciate such things on their own merits. This is not a "hip" fragrance; it's not trendy or clubby; but as someone who appreciates Chevalier d'Orsay and Aramis, this is a wonderful complement and counterpoint to those other two. I think it could go well in more casual situations than can the other two. This is a great grown up fragrance, it's fun and fairly light when applied properly, and it's best for guys over 35 or so. I guess you can tell, I really like this a lot now.