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Does Rive Gauche Actually Smell Like Barbasol?

post #1 of 32
12/26/10 at 10:41am
Thread Starter 
Hello, fellow BN'ers. I know RG is compared to shaving cream a lot, most notably Barbasol. Does it really smells just like Barbasol? The original Barbasol is the only shaving cream that I really like the smell of. Although generic, it doesn't smell like any other shaving cream. More importantly, I have never smelled a fragrance that smells identical to Barbasol, though I have smelled many that smell like shaving cream in ways. Like Paco Rabanne pour Homme.

Sorry to be repetitive, I just wanna know, because I may blind buy it online. If somebody has some original Barbasol, and RG and would like to compare them side by side, that'd help tremendously. Thanks guys, and Happy Holiday's!
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post #2 of 32
12/26/10 at 10:50am
Very similar. Rive Gauche is my 2nd favorite "shaving cream" scent, behind Roger & Gallet's OPEN.
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post #3 of 32
12/26/10 at 10:55am
It absolutely does. It's not a bad blind buy either because it is relatively inexpensive.
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post #4 of 32
12/26/10 at 11:47am
I don't know how Barbasol smells like but RG (which I love) has a dominant Star Anise note throughout top-heart-base. So if that is how Barbasol smells like than the answer is yes.
You should blind buy it anyways - its awesome .
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post #5 of 32
12/26/10 at 11:51am
I don't know how you could tell they smell the same since RG is about 100 times as strong. Barbasol is OK, but RG is too much. Don't blind buy; you may like it, but then again, you may have the opposite reaction (as I do).
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post #6 of 32
12/26/10 at 12:11pm
personally i see small resemblance like you can smell them being similar, but its not VERY similar.
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post #7 of 32
12/26/10 at 12:46pm
Not just Barbasol, but I immediately associate the scent of Rive Gauche PH with the smell of various mid-range and even high-end male grooming and/or shaving products, from various eras and manufacturers, I guess this may all be due to the soapy/barbershop/shaving cream note
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post #8 of 32
12/26/10 at 12:57pm
Doesn't smell like Barbasol to me.
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post #9 of 32
12/26/10 at 1:02pm
I can understand the resemblance people make to Barbasol, but Rive Gauche is more like a classic fougère along the lines of Canoe or Azzaro, with a prominent patchouli note and it's a bit more "modern" smelling.
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post #10 of 32
12/26/10 at 1:35pm
RG smells a lot like Barbasol to my nose.
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post #11 of 32
12/26/10 at 1:38pm
I actually bought a can of Barbasol in 2009 to confirm the comparison. It is true. They smell alike. However, while the common association that one would make with RGpH is Barbasol, RGpH has other things going on so it is rightly referenced with Canoe and Azzaro (also fougeres)
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post #12 of 32
12/26/10 at 2:05pm
Very much so...I think it's somewhat similar to Azzaro PH as well (to a lesser degree)
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post #13 of 32
12/26/10 at 2:54pm
Yes it does. I layer them fairly frequently. Buy both, enjoy.
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post #14 of 32
12/26/10 at 3:48pm
It's a lot stronger than Barbasol, but the scents are similar. The top notes aren't the same, but the drydown is spot on.
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post #15 of 32
12/26/10 at 8:29pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ken_Russell View Post

Not just Barbasol, but I immediately associate the scent of Rive Gauche PH with the smell of various mid-range and even high-end male grooming and/or shaving products, from various eras and manufacturers, I guess this may all be due to the soapy/barbershop/shaving cream note

Totally agree
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post #16 of 32
12/27/10 at 3:50am
Unfortunately, I tossed my Barbisol can after I switched to electric shaving. I was more reminded of vintage Brut myself, but I can't really remember the smell of Barbisol so well. I recall you saying you hated Safari because of the eucalyptis note. So, hard to say. Maybe you'd still like RG, but I have a hard time seeing someone loving RG and hating Safari.But I don't believe Safari has the eucalyliptis note, so for a classic shaving cream smell, you should be alright I guess.
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post #17 of 32
12/27/10 at 6:36am
i have no idea what barbasol smells like but i find rive gauche gag-inducingly horrible.
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post #18 of 32
12/27/10 at 7:09am
I`ve never shaved with Barbasol, but my Nivea For Men Hypoallergenic shaving foam (white can) smells alike RGPH YSL.
True.
And I like to layer them.
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post #19 of 32
12/27/10 at 11:24am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ken_Russell View Post

Not just Barbasol, but I immediately associate the scent of Rive Gauche PH with the smell of various mid-range and even high-end male grooming and/or shaving products, from various eras and manufacturers, I guess this may all be due to the soapy/barbershop/shaving cream note

+1, with the added bonus of more complexity, depth, and of course, longevity. There's more than a little Iso E Super in RG, but unlike many other fragrances in which Iso E Super is prominent, It seems to actually work for me in RG.
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post #20 of 32
12/27/10 at 1:32pm
RGPH is not only a barbershop style fragrance. Its drydown is fantastic,expecially in summer, and you can't stop to smell your self.
Not the same effect in winter, imo.
Buy it blind without problems.
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post #21 of 32
12/27/10 at 7:48pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by paolo74 View Post

RGPH is not only a barbershop style fragrance. Its drydown is fantastic,expecially in summer, and you can't stop to smell your self.
Not the same effect in winter, imo.
Buy it blind without problems.

I like it more on cold rainy days! It's always good.
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post #22 of 32
12/27/10 at 7:50pm
There is a similarity, however saying Rive Gauche smells like shave cream is not doing the frag justice.
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post #23 of 32
1/20/13 at 2:15am
I don't think Barbasol smells like Rive Gauche Pour Homme, but my dryer sure smells good right now.

When y'all say it smells like RGPH, do you mean back before they took all the alcohol out of it? Cuz I read online somewhere that this stuff gets ink stains out, because of several alcohols present. I should have checked the ingredients *before* I bought, because the only solvent I see in there is 'butane.' The rest is mostly sodium laurel sulfate.

Smells good. But not RGPH. I *do* like RGPH but in very small doses because to me, it is intensely soapy, and has a lot of projection. Barbasol, not so much. Unless you put your head in a dryer full of it.
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post #24 of 32
1/20/13 at 7:14am
The whole shaving cream fable is just another cargo on the hype-train.

Seriously, this smells nothing like shaving cream.
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post #25 of 32
1/20/13 at 8:02am
Smells like barbesol to me.
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post #26 of 32
1/20/13 at 9:27am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Scentologist View Post

Smells like barbesol to me.

Having always read that about Rive Gauche is what has kept me from wanting to try it.
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post #27 of 32
1/20/13 at 9:30am


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post #28 of 32
1/20/13 at 9:39am
I blind bought Rive Gauche several months ago. Smells very much like Barbasol to me. Not a fan. Smelling like this seems to be desired by many many Basenoters, but I hardly ever wear it, and when I do, I find it more cloying each time. Not my cup of tea. Or can of cream.
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post #29 of 32
1/20/13 at 9:39am
back when ads had more than 10 words
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post #30 of 32
1/20/13 at 10:04am
No. Has barbasol vibe initially but to me turns anise and nutty.
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post #31 of 32
1/20/13 at 10:18am
No, not to me.
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post #32 of 32
1/20/13 at 10:50am
smells like the talkum powder the barber used to put on my neck when i was
a kid after my hair cut.
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Basenotes › Basenotes Forums › Fragrance Discussion › Male Fragrance Discussion › Does Rive Gauche Actually Smell Like Barbasol?