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Dunhill for Men: A Good Blind Buy?

post #1 of 20
1/18/09 at 7:32pm
Thread Starter 
I'm considering blind buying Dunhill for Men. Parfums1 is having a 20% off sale and they have it in stock at what looks like a good price. I've read a lot about this scent on Basenotes, and it's almost all positive. As a big fan of classic men's fragrances, it seems like the kind of thing I'd like. However...

One of the things that would motivate this purchase is that I'd heard that the scent had been discontinued. Is this true?

There has also been speculation in discussions of the possible discontinuation of Dunhill for Men that the most recent version of the fragrance is rubbish. Parfum1is generally well-regarded, as far as I know. Anyone ever bought Dunhill for Men from them? Would I be getting the right stuff?
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post #2 of 20
1/18/09 at 7:42pm
Bought it last week, very nice scent, low sillage, good longevity. Very gentlemanly and classic. If you are into old school styles, it can be a safe buy. Now, if you are looking into something contemporary, well, just skip it.
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post #3 of 20
1/18/09 at 7:49pm
not really....i've tried it before...and wasn't too impressed. it's a heavy scent....kinda 'old person-ish' in my mind....
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post #4 of 20
1/18/09 at 8:01pm
I'm thinking buying it blind too.

The question is how does it compare with other classics like Van Cleef & Arpels PH, Vetiver Guerlain, BdP by Creed, Givenchy Gentleman, etc ?

I like classics. They are timeless for a reason. Most of the contemporaries will be a "shame" to wear ten years from now --- just look at all the comments on the 80's, 90's hits here on BN
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post #5 of 20
1/19/09 at 6:11am
[QUOTE=abc1234;1411414]I'm thinking buying it blind too.

The question is how does it compare with other classics like Van Cleef & Arpels PH, Vetiver Guerlain, BdP by Creed, Givenchy Gentleman, etc ?

I like classics...QUOTE]

VC&A, VG and GG are stronger compared to Dunhill - can not say anything about BdP since I did not try it.

Take in mind Dunhill was launched in 1934, VG in the 1960s, GG and VC&A in the 70s, this makes it a total different sort of classic: these are strongers, with far more presence, in the sense that their sillage is remarkable, not so in the case of Dunhill. Everso mentions it as heavy, which is true, without the sillage though. He also mentiones "old - personish", it is true.

Still, I like it - especially in the winter time when walking strolling with my dog in the park and wearing a tweed jacket and trousers, a duffel coat, a berret and smoking a pipe and talking with a friend of mine about the Breton Woods agreements
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post #6 of 20
1/19/09 at 6:20am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Pollux View Post

Everso mentions it as heavy, which is true, without the sillage though. He also mentiones "old - personish", it is true.

i should mentioned that i wasn't impressed with it FOR ME, however i do readily acknowledge that it's a well made scent that would smell quite good on the right person....or someone who wears it well.
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post #7 of 20
1/19/09 at 8:03am
Bought this last week, it surprised me a little from the reviews it got here.

I had a good idea of what it would smell like based on the reviews, it proved to be completely different from what I assumed. Yet the unanimous compliments it got are justified.

It is quite a soft scent and almost precious, only noticeable from a distance and perhaps early in its life to a keen nose and only fully appreciated if your nose is against your skin.

It being and EDC could be to blame for this but on the other end of the scale there would be some that overpower parfums. Especially relative to the dose you would have to apply for a sillage to be noticeable after an hour.

However down to the scent itself, it is to use the same adjective twice, Soft, entirely made from flowers it is a beautiful fragrance, suitable for all times of the year. It's summer here and it fits in fine, perhaps it will come into it's strength in winter or colder months. Maybe it will fully bloom in early spring.

It's a fragrance that after smelling you can recognize it is very much technically a product of it's vintage but it has a quality that loses the need for a creation year next to it's name.
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post #8 of 20
1/19/09 at 4:07pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by ++++ View Post

... It's a fragrance that after smelling you can recognize it is very much technically a product of it's vintage....

More even so after comparing it with one of the perfumes that belonged to my Grandmother. Let me explain: my Mother has a big wardrobe inherited from her mother. Thus, we decided to test and compare different discontinued perfumes.

My wife and me came across Heure Intime, by Vigny - extract. The drydown is exactly alike Dunhill's: the base notes in common are that of an amberine talcum powder.

BTW: there is a bottle of "Cuir Russie" extract by Violet whose base notes smell exactly like leather.
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post #9 of 20
1/19/09 at 4:17pm
was thinking of buy this one and after reading all the discussion I will now be picking it up sounds alot like the scents I lean to.
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post #10 of 20
1/24/09 at 12:21pm
Thread Starter 
I ended up getting this and am very pleased.

Some classic fragrances really are timeless, IMO. Knize Ten, Jicky, Eau d'Hermes...each just is what it is, a product of the past, but in no way anchored to its time.

Other classics feel more like time capsules to me. I love Azzaro PH, for example, but it screams 1970s.

Dunhill for Men definitely fits into that latter category. This is very much a mid-20th century masculine that openly advertises its age. But it's beautifully put together and very wearable, in an old-fashioned, barber-shoppy kind of way. I don't much like the top notes --the citrus and florals seem to be unproductively jostling for attention--but DfM pretty quickly settles down into a lovely floral fougere. It's simultaneously fairly heavy (as everso notes above), but also fairly close to the skin. Good longevity for me, but not a lot of sillage. It smells to me like a distant, soapier ancestor of Caron's 3rd Man. I'm definitely glad I bought this!

Does anyone have any idea who designed Dunhill for Men?
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post #11 of 20
1/24/09 at 6:02pm
Yeah, I agree with the previous remarks.

There are many "classics" that smell like they could have been made yesterday. But while I own and like Dunhill, it's sadly a dated scent.
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post #12 of 20
1/25/09 at 11:36am
It may be dated, but if applied correctly, it is not overly heavy. Not if you compare it to VC&A which is very hard to apply without it being too heavy. VC&A is therefore much more dated than Dunhill 1934, which by the way is not a good blind buy because some places are selling bottles that are past their "sell by" dates, i.e., they are stale. Only Dunhill in NYC (for US buyers) has the last fresh stock that there will ever be.
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post #13 of 20
1/25/09 at 11:59am
Quote:
I'm thinking buying it blind too.

The question is how does it compare with other classics like Van Cleef & Arpels PH, Vetiver Guerlain, BdP by Creed, Givenchy Gentleman, etc ?

I like classics. They are timeless for a reason. Most of the contemporaries will be a "shame" to wear ten years from now --- just look at all the comments on the 80's, 90's hits here on BN

I don't know I would never wear Givenchy Gentlemen nor anything that you mentioned, for me that would be a shame to wear. I think lots of stuff from the 80's is unwearable now for youngsters. BUT I agree they are great on 45+ men...Yeah yeah age does not matter, I don't agree with that...So maybe in 20 years contemporary fragrances will be a shame for future youngsters, but will be great on the more mature crowd that's young now.
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post #14 of 20
1/27/09 at 1:53am
I think the fragrance itself is great, but with very low sillage.
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post #15 of 20
1/27/09 at 6:08pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by PhinClio View Post

I ended up getting this and am very pleased.

Some classic fragrances really are timeless, IMO. Knize Ten, Jicky, Eau d'Hermes...each just is what it is, a product of the past, but in no way anchored to its time.

Other classics feel more like time capsules to me. I love Azzaro PH, for example, but it screams 1970s.

Dunhill for Men definitely fits into that latter category. This is very much a mid-20th century masculine that openly advertises its age. But it's beautifully put together and very wearable, in an old-fashioned, barber-shoppy kind of way. I don't much like the top notes --the citrus and florals seem to be unproductively jostling for attention--but DfM pretty quickly settles down into a lovely floral fougere. It's simultaneously fairly heavy (as everso notes above), but also fairly close to the skin. Good longevity for me, but not a lot of sillage. It smells to me like a distant, soapier ancestor of Caron's 3rd Man. I'm definitely glad I bought this!

Does anyone have any idea who designed Dunhill for Men?


PhinClio: Glad you liked it! Nope, no idea who designed it.

I love it, but as it gets absurdly hot in S. Ca I can't wear it year round.
I suppose it goes better with tweeds and pipe This is, I think, a good thing, as the economy is collapsing but my addiction to frags is not. So should we find ourselves homeless, pushing a shopping cart full of junk while wearing our tattered tweeds; it's a solace to remember that while most people will say: " There goes a bum. " If we sport a pipe, they will say instead: " Aha! There goes a philosopher! "

Btw, I've no problem wearing Eau d' Hermes with blue jeans--another of my favorite frags.

Folks, before you die, do yourselves a favor and try out the following old fart's mega-macho uber elegant frags as well:

Vintage Tabarome
Jean Patou Pour Homme
Versailles Pour Homme
Richard James ( 2003? Ancient!)

And if you're still enjoying the show, go down a tier and continue with
Egoiste, Blenheim Bouquet, Eucris and Habit Rouge.

-------------------------------------------------------
I really must start a thread on what bad boys should wear . . .

Cheers,

Mario
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post #16 of 20
3/20/09 at 6:06pm
Thread Starter 
Just bumping this to say that Dunhill for Men has proven to be one of those frags that I like more and more with each wearing (though I liked it from the first time I tried it). It was my SOTD today and I've really come around on the topnotes, which had previously seemed kind of discordant to me.
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post #17 of 20
3/29/09 at 1:37pm
A masterpiece. More sophisticated and smooth than colognes that sell for twice as much.
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post #18 of 20
3/29/09 at 2:13pm
My favourite of the Dunhill line is Edition which I wore all through the late eighties and into the early nineties. Lovely, elegant and distinctive.
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post #19 of 20
3/30/09 at 12:38am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Uppercut View Post

A masterpiece. More sophisticated and smooth than colognes that sell for twice as much.

Seconded! A classic. Considering it has been around since 1934, it obviously has transcended times and trends. It will always have its place in the pantheon of great frags.
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post #20 of 20
3/30/09 at 8:59am
Oops - let's clarify. I'm talking about the Dunhill men's cologne in the slender curved bottle with a tannish tint. Has a basenote of musk and tonka bean.

Are you referring to the 1934 original? . . is the one i'm speaking about a re-working of the original scent?
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