Paco Rabanne Pour Homme (1973)
by Paco Rabanne

The cleanest dirty scent I own!

Bottle in reference is 2nd edition splash which puts it into the second half of the 80s.

Opens with a blast of barbershop and floral freshness that was unexpectedly loud. Bright is the best way to put it. Opening a new white bar of soap bright.

Once it’s moved on, you get the beginning of the legendary dry down. With an almost cumin like amber musk that adds the maucho-ness much described elsewhere. The soapy brightness is still the star of the show though, and it melds into a masterpiece battle between musky earthy amber and clean sparkling soap brightness. This constant indecisive theme carries on for hours and sillage I would describe as moderate to strong (this does not turn into a skin scent)

An interesting scent indeed! Two thumbs up. Worth snagging a Vintage bottle without question, an easy but strong wearing and very much complimented masculine classic!

The green feels an appropriate color choice. I haven’t smelled BRUT aftershave in years and year but I want to say this is a supremely nicer version with an orange peel oil spritz around the rim. That could be ...off though. People say soap and powder but I don’t think that’s right AT ALL. I find way less powder than an old spice type clean scent. This stuff goes beyond soap into Windex territory. That doesn’t mean I don’t like it. Air freshener purple flower but not floral. Ever notice rosemary smelling kinda like lemon? My Mom bought it for me and my Girlfriend loves it. So that’s two female votes in favor of this flavor but I think it's a "Dudes Only" scent unless you're a head-to-toe lemon woman. It could layer on one of those overly lemmoned ladies. You know who you are!

I have the small logo r bottle. Seems to last just fine and does make my skin sticky where it lands.

Modern masculines from Paco Rabanne are not something I enjoy. One Million and it’s flankers all choke me out, the Invictus line fills me with the burning fury of a thousand suns and my one bottle of Black XS from my twenties elicited a solid “Meh.”

The original Pour Homme is another story altogether. This is the first aromatic fougere I’ve purchased and it was love at first smell. My bottle is the modern formulation, but it’s still incredible.

The opening is reminiscent of faberge brut... in the most complimentary way possible. The bracing hit of sage and rosemary (And I think bergamot, even though it’s not listed) is gorgeous and the laurel adds a roundness that I really enjoy, it seems to pair up perfectly with the lavender and geranium. The development from the bracing opening through the soapy, powdery phase is gradual, rather subtle and just feels logical and beautifully done.

My favourite element, though, is undoubtedly the tobacco. It initially has a dry, papery quality that reminds me strongly of the note in Guerlain Vetiver and melds really smoothly with the honey, amber and musk in the base to give a sensation that is mostly rich, smooth and clean, with only a hint of sweetness and bitter dryness.

The only complaint one might raise is that this does smell old school. I think there’s enough retro chic in the fougere genre to give this some legs and hipster cred, but even without that, I don’t care. I can live with smelling old when it smells this damn good.

Old school. Mine's an '08 bottle.

Spicy Geranium. Mossy-honeyed-musk to it, remindful of King Kouros at times. Soapy. Versatile.

An undeniable stalwart in masculine fragrance history.

I completely refute the descriptive statement that the scent remains the same .
The current formula is nowhere near the original they are so detached from each other that they are different scents . The original is so classy and refined with beautiful accord of tobacco and honey built on a strong base of oakmoss and musk . So beautifully green .
The modern big logo bottle is weak and synthetic