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Penhaligons Douro Eau de Portugal

post #1 of 34
1/29/09 at 2:19am
Thread Starter 
Well my freebie bottle arrived this morning - thanks to basenotes and penhaligons for this promotion .

The fragrance is absolutely wonderful and - I think - unchanged from its previous incarnation, though it is still to early for me to say for sure. My older one from a mini seems to hit the floral heart a little sooner while the new one holds the citrus longer but I think that is probably just age.
The citrus top on this is really divine, fresh, sharp and green; lovely bergamot and beautifully blended but recognisable notes of lime, mandarin and lemon. The heart is a combination of a very natural smelling neroli and some soft (less natural) muguet. I haven't got to the base yet....

What a refreshing blast to counteract the constant gloom on the radio .

Anyone else receive one yet?

edit - I just read the bottle which says the fragrance is based on "flowers of the cistus tree". Anyone know what that is about? The fragrance does have a resinous, ambery quality to it for sure, but labdanum is not an extract of the flowers as far as I know?
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post #2 of 34
1/29/09 at 5:09am
I don't know about cistus flowers.

The following on labdanum is from Bo Jensen's website:

The leaves of the rockrose Cistus ladaniferus are covered by glandular hairs exuding an odoriferous resin called labdanum. It has a warm, sweet-resinous, woody-ambery odour. It is one of perfumery's classic ingredients.

C. ladaniferus is typical of the dry-land vegetation ('maki') of the Mediterranean countries. In Cyprus, for example, there are large brushwoods of C. ladaniferus. Goats and sheep in the hills get their fur sticky with labdanum. Formerly the shepherds collected this material from their animals and sold it to buyers at the sea-ports. In ancient Egypt, the false goat-hair beards of the pharaohs were impregnated with labdanum to surround these men with an impressive aura of distinction.
The Cypriotes mixed labdanum with styrax and calmus oil, thereby creating an early masterpiece of perfumery. The Crusaders, when they conquered the island, became so enthusiastic about the fragrance that they brought the recipe to the rest of Europe. Known as the 'Chypre'-theme, it is still employed in modern perfumery.
Cyprus, Crete, the Esterel Mountains in southern France, Spain and Portugal are the main production sites of labdanum. Today the crude Labdanum gum-resin is obtained by treating the cut plants with hot alkaline water to catch all the surface waxes, resinous matter and oily parts from the plants. Steam distillation of the gum yields about 2 % of labdanum oil, which is extensively used in perfumery. It has a powerful, diffusive and very substantive odour with strong notes of incense and ambergris. The oil is an extremely complex mixture of mainly oxygenated terpenoid compounds C10-20. Weyerstahl et al. detected more than 300 constituents in a sample of commercial labdanum oil, 186 of which were identified. The main compound was ledene (9 %). Among the constituents having an ambery odour, alpha-ambrinol, ambrox and drimenone were identified [62]. By using GC with sniffing, Ramalho et al. found that 2,2,6-trimethyl-2-cyclohexenone was an important woody-smelling constituent of labdanum oil from Portugal.
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post #3 of 34
1/29/09 at 5:25am
Flowers [sic!] of the cistus tree [sic!]. That's what happens when the trainees get to write the copy, huh?
Never mind the words, glad you enjoy the fragrance.
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post #4 of 34
1/29/09 at 5:38am
rub it in Hirch rub it in...
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post #5 of 34
1/29/09 at 6:02am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by jenson View Post

rub it in Hirch rub it in...


Oh no! I wouldn't want to bruise it.
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post #6 of 34
1/29/09 at 6:12am
Thread Starter 
OOPS. misread that very small type Iit actually says:

"This classic fragrance based on the gum cistus flower which grows wild at Crofts......"

which is also a bit bizarre
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post #7 of 34
1/29/09 at 6:48am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by scentsitivity View Post

I don't know about cistus flowers.

The following on labdanum is from Bo Jensen's website:

The leaves of the rockrose Cistus ladaniferus are covered by glandular hairs exuding an odoriferous resin called labdanum. It has a warm, sweet-resinous, woody-ambery odour. It is one of perfumery's classic ingredients.

C. ladaniferus is typical of the dry-land vegetation ('maki') of the Mediterranean countries. In Cyprus, for example, there are large brushwoods of C. ladaniferus. Goats and sheep in the hills get their fur sticky with labdanum. Formerly the shepherds collected this material from their animals and sold it to buyers at the sea-ports. In ancient Egypt, the false goat-hair beards of the pharaohs were impregnated with labdanum to surround these men with an impressive aura of distinction.
The Cypriotes mixed labdanum with styrax and calmus oil, thereby creating an early masterpiece of perfumery. The Crusaders, when they conquered the island, became so enthusiastic about the fragrance that they brought the recipe to the rest of Europe. Known as the 'Chypre'-theme, it is still employed in modern perfumery.
Cyprus, Crete, the Esterel Mountains in southern France, Spain and Portugal are the main production sites of labdanum. Today the crude Labdanum gum-resin is obtained by treating the cut plants with hot alkaline water to catch all the surface waxes, resinous matter and oily parts from the plants. Steam distillation of the gum yields about 2 % of labdanum oil, which is extensively used in perfumery. It has a powerful, diffusive and very substantive odour with strong notes of incense and ambergris. The oil is an extremely complex mixture of mainly oxygenated terpenoid compounds C10-20. Weyerstahl et al. detected more than 300 constituents in a sample of commercial labdanum oil, 186 of which were identified. The main compound was ledene (9 %). Among the constituents having an ambery odour, alpha-ambrinol, ambrox and drimenone were identified [62]. By using GC with sniffing, Ramalho et al. found that 2,2,6-trimethyl-2-cyclohexenone was an important woody-smelling constituent of labdanum oil from Portugal.

Great info, thanks scentsitivity
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post #8 of 34
1/29/09 at 7:35am
Quote:
Originally Posted by hirch_duckfinder View Post

OOPS. misread that very small type Iit actually says:

"This classic fragrance based on the gum cistus flower which grows wild at Crofts......"

which is also a bit bizarre

This purty one?
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1074/...10d317dc_b.jpg

Is that for real or just a nice way of saying its some Symrise white floral note?
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post #9 of 34
1/29/09 at 8:37am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by the_good_life View Post

This purty one?
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1074/...10d317dc_b.jpg

Is that for real or just a nice way of saying its some Symrise white floral note?

Actually I think it probably means labdanum but is just badly expressed. The frag has labdanum, smells pretty natural to me.
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post #10 of 34
1/29/09 at 9:13am
Quote:
Originally Posted by the_good_life View Post

Flowers [sic!] of the cistus tree [sic!]. That's what happens when the trainees get to write the copy, huh?
Never mind the words, glad you enjoy the fragrance.

Cistus Ladaniferus is not the only variety of cistus. In fact the cistus family has many members ranging from small low growing shrubs up through larger shrubs. Calling any of them a tree might be stretching it a bit. And yes they do flower.... why do you think they are called rockroses? They are quite nice flowers, 5 petals in shades of red/pink or white with bright dots near the center.
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post #11 of 34
1/29/09 at 9:20am
Quote:
Originally Posted by surreality View Post

Cistus Ladaniferus is not the only variety of cistus. In fact the cistus family has many members ranging from small low growing shrubs up through larger shrubs. Calling any of them a tree might be stretching it a bit. And yes they do flower.... why do you think they are called rockroses? They are quite nice flowers, 5 petals in shades of red/pink or white with bright dots near the center.

I guess I wonder if the rockrose flower is used in fragrance. I can't find anything on it.
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post #12 of 34
1/29/09 at 11:17am
I also received my bottle this morning, if only everyday could begin this way. Every stop on the journey from the opening to the base has been a new joy. I will certainly replace this bottle when it empties in about 3 months. Like a a good drug dealer, Penhaligon's have given us a taste for free, in order to gain a lifetime of addiction.
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post #13 of 34
1/29/09 at 12:52pm
I got mine today and had to try it. I had planned to give it to my daughter's boyfriend as I did not think it was my husband's style of fragrance. But I sprayed it on the back of my hand and he was definitely intrigued and wants to try it himself. However...I have enjoyed it for a couple of hours now and would actually wear it myself. I love the light lemony scent but the bergamot gives it a slight edge, and it keeps changing...

The men in my life might find they just get a decant of it rather than the FB.
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post #14 of 34
1/29/09 at 1:50pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by surreality View Post

Cistus Ladaniferus is not the only variety of cistus. In fact the cistus family has many members ranging from small low growing shrubs up through larger shrubs. Calling any of them a tree might be stretching it a bit. And yes they do flower.... why do you think they are called rockroses? They are quite nice flowers, 5 petals in shades of red/pink or white with bright dots near the center.

Yes, but I've never come across cistus blossoms as a perfume material. I suppose they key word in that description is "based on," which can mean "derived from" as well as "inspired by" . Anyhow, in the old Douro description it's just good old labdanum (resinoid).
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post #15 of 34
1/31/09 at 9:23am
Thread Starter 
Just to say that my final conclusion was that the formulation hasn't changed at all from the previous packaging.
Anybody else have a view on this?
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post #16 of 34
2/1/09 at 2:54am
I tried a 4 year old bottle on one arm, and the new one on the other. In my opinion, they are identical. I just prefer the newer one as I did not need to pay for it
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post #17 of 34
2/1/09 at 9:34am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Inselaffe View Post

I tried a 4 year old bottle on one arm, and the new one on the other. In my opinion, they are identical. I just prefer the newer one as I did not need to pay for it


Yes, my thoughts exactly . Thanks for the confirmation. It is good that they don't seem to have messed with it.
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post #18 of 34
2/2/09 at 3:58am
Received mine on Saturday so I wanted to thank both Penhaligon's and Basenotes.

For those who have not seen the Douro, this is what the bottle with its' very nice little bow tie and packaging look like. Hope it's alright to share these pictures.


Sleeve with cellophane removed








It is a classic cologne with fresh floral notes of spice, lemon, herbs and a very classy appeal. Not inexpensive at GBP50 for a 50ml bottle, nevertheless Penhaligon's will get a closer look by me next time I go fragrance shopping. It deserves nothing less.


Have a nice week ahead everyone
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post #19 of 34
2/2/09 at 4:10am
I like it, it lasts well enough but it doesn't have much presence. It also smells a bit like bleach at the start, but it will be nice for the summer!!!
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post #20 of 34
2/5/09 at 2:53am
Just like to add my many thanks for my free bottle too! Apologies for the lateness. Currently having my bathroom done so staying at parents. Only discovered the parcel yesterday, as the plumbers had buried under a load of junk mail. Think i'm going to enjoy this after the initial trial.
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post #21 of 34
2/5/09 at 7:32am
I too would like to extend my belated gratitude to Basenotes and Penhaligon's PR for this really generous gift, which I only received from the post office depot yesterday.

Having only tested from a sample vial until now [those little ten-pack tins of assorted 2ml vials are excellent!], I was surprised to observe from a full-on wearing that there's a little bit of soft spicy warmth going on at the low end of this fragrance which I hadn't picked up on before.

I still think it's too classy for my everyday wear, but it'll be in the running next time I choose to hang a suit around myself, I reckon.

Thank you again, Grant and co.
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post #22 of 34
2/12/09 at 4:11pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by simisker View Post

I too would like to extend my belated gratitude to Basenotes and Penhaligon's PR for this really generous gift, which I only received from the post office depot yesterday.

Having only tested from a sample vial until now [those little ten-pack tins of assorted 2ml vials are excellent!], I was surprised to observe from a full-on wearing that there's a little bit of soft spicy warmth going on at the low end of this fragrance which I hadn't picked up on before.

I still think it's too classy for my everyday wear, but it'll be in the running next time I choose to hang a suit around myself, I reckon.

Thank you again, Grant and co.

I wore it again on Wednesday and was impressed by the prominent and very nice oakmoss.
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post #23 of 34
2/13/09 at 8:54am
FINALLY today i will get my hands on my bottle - i entered the competition whilst staying with my parents over christmas, and foolishly used their address when entering - a 'mystery chunky package' (as described by my mother!) has been waiting at her house ever since. currently en route to visit again, can't wait to smell it!
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post #24 of 34
2/13/09 at 4:10pm
and it's in my hands at last.

the opening is clear, bright aromatic citrus, classic and with a strong masculine character, rather traditional, quite formal, big rounded clean lemons with a lavender soapy character, softening after an hour or so as a floral heart begins to appear, lily-of-the valley continuing the tradional feel. i don't particularly identify neroli, although perhaps the citrus/muguet transition posseses this and i'm just not sensitive enough to discern it. that's as much as i get from it so far. i'm not sure if this is particularly suited to my everyday dress, but for formal day occasions i can see this being an ideal discreet, gentlemanly cologne.
there's also something starting to appear which reminds me of the base of mitsouko, though not remotely feminine - almost like a pale, greenish vetiver - is this oakmoss?

the full drydown is yet to come, i'm intruiged.

thanks again to everyone involved in this giveaway, it's so wonderful to get something for nothing!

Guy
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post #25 of 34
2/13/09 at 4:15pm
would it be possible to trim that new ribbon style so that it just looks like the old way they tied it? (and not like the head of a penis)
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post #26 of 34
2/13/09 at 4:49pm
How'd you guys score a free bottle? Did I miss summat?

I just received a generous package of free samples of Elixir and Hammam Bouquet (they were out of LP No.9 for Men) from their US outpost in Jersey. I also just bought Opus 1870 so Penhaligon's has been preying on my mind lately.
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post #27 of 34
2/14/09 at 9:53am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Scentronic View Post

would it be possible to trim that new ribbon style so that it just looks like the old way they tied it? (and not like the head of a penis)


Now, I had not even thought of it, until you mentioned it......now I can't escape that image
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post #28 of 34
2/14/09 at 9:55am
Im afraid I had to pay it forward with this one and gave it away , not my cup of tea at all ......
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post #29 of 34
11/14/10 at 12:53pm
Douro is marketed as -Douro Cologne- Is Douro a traditional eau du cologne fragrance? Or is it actualy a edt? What do you think about the sillage and longevity? I have only tried it from a sample, and I love it! I would like to order a bottle, but if it`s an eau du cologne, I`m afraid it will not last on my skin.. Endymion is also marketed as an Cologne..
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post #30 of 34
11/14/10 at 4:09pm
Thread Starter 
It is an EDT strength eau de portugal which is an edc type fragrance based around orange notes. But this one has lots of labdanum which gives it some longevity.
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post #31 of 34
11/15/10 at 1:48am
Quote:
Originally Posted by hirch_duckfinder View Post

It is an EDT strength eau de portugal which is an edc type fragrance based around orange notes. But this one has lots of labdanum which gives it some longevity.

ok. But on the Penhaligon`s homepage it is a menu on the left side where you can chose between Edt, eau du parfum, and cologne. Douro and Endymion are listed under cologne..
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post #32 of 34
11/15/10 at 5:06am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Oslo-Fjord View Post

ok. But on the Penhaligon`s homepage it is a menu on the left side where you can chose between Edt, eau du parfum, and cologne. Douro and Endymion are listed under cologne..

I think this is anglo-american english for "suitable for wear by straight men who are worried that weraing fragrance may make some people think they are gay/not real men". It fits on the bottle more easilly...
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post #33 of 34
11/15/10 at 12:22pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by hirch_duckfinder View Post

I think this is anglo-american english for "suitable for wear by straight men who are worried that weraing fragrance may make some people think they are gay/not real men". It fits on the bottle more easilly...

he he.. ok.
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post #34 of 34
4/27/11 at 9:31am
I bought this on a whim today. I wanted something so different than what i normally wear and own. A typical manly man's cologne. This (marketed as Douro Cologne now - not eau du Portugal) and the Colonia by Acqua di Parma are the best colognes IMO.
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