Bogart
Jacques Bogart (1975)

Bogart Signature reminds me of another vintage oakmoss bomb, R de Capucci, which came out eleven years after Bogart. They are both dry, uncompromisingly masculine leather chypres and share lemon and leather as well as moss. Where Bogart relies on spices like clove and nutmeg in its heart notes, R de Capucci uses florals such as jasmine, carnation and rose to round out its middle notes. Why compare them at all? Because to me, they are very closely related but Bogart is better. I once described the much-admired R de Capucci as a beautiful woman without sex appeal. If that is the case, Bogart is her sexy male counterpart; similar smells but this one you want to lean into. Bogart Signature blazed the trail for all the Jacques Bogart powerhouses that followed and is a lesson to us all that excellence does not always have to come at a high price. The fountain pen image, with its nib signing the house’s signature, is fitting. That pen should live in the breast pocket of a beautifully tailored suit next to the crisp white shirt and rich silk necktie.

I bought 8 Bogart fragrances at the same time (for about $180!) and mowed through one per day for two weeks. My nose was pretty inexperienced at the time. Story Blue, Story Green and Silver were immediate hits, Pour Homme, One Man Show and One Man Show Oud Edition grew on me, but "Signature" and Arabian Nights left me a bit cold. I back-shelved Signature and Arabian Nights for almost a year.

Recently the "Signature" has popped up in some threads I have been reading, and I decided that perhaps my maturing nose and maceration warranted giving it another shot. Two chest sprays and one of the arm engulfed me in a somewhat cloying cloud of clove/rose and hairy-chested man scent, which confirmed my earlier impression. (I hate rose, and don't love clove)

But...

I gave it time, and was rewarded nicely. The scent cleaned up and became much dryer, with a scent reminiscent of Paco Rabanne Pour Homme's soapy-ness with a fresh leather/incense accord alongside the lavender barbershop. I would love to say that I know what oakmoss smells like, but I don't, though many other reviews say this is loaded with it. If so, I guess I am a big fan.

This will never be a lady magnet, and probably not a compliment-getter (because the type of guys who would like it would not be the kind of guy who would compliment another man on his cologne). This is a scent designed to be smelled primarily by the wearer, because it is a bit uncompromising. Good outdoors scent for a hike in autumn with the dogs. Maybe for office if you keep to 2 sprays. I think you have to be at least 40 to pull this off, but if you click with it, it is a major keeper at $22 for 100 ml.

Another solid classic from the J Bogart fragrance house. A very well crafted classic spicy leather scent perfect for wearing in the formal setting. If you liked One Man Show or Puig Quorum (or even Chanel Pour Monsieur!)you're going to love this juice as it shares a lot with the two aforementioned classic masculine bad boys!
John Wayne in W S Liberty Valance comes to mind.

Scent: 8/10
Quality 8/10
Performance 6/10
(Based on 2011 bottle/batch )

I spray this, close my eyes, and see myself walking through a deep dark forest where bad shit might happen. A bit of a rosemary bomb, but I enjoy its smooth leather quite a bit. It's One Man Show's more mature, no-nonsense brother who came back from Vietnam with PTSD.

Warning: don't use on hot Summer days or you'll choke out the neighborhood.

Masculinity Level: James Woods as the high class hitman in Best Seller.

Powerhouse masterpiece. There is nothing sporty, aquatic, sweet or unisex about vintage Bogart. Leather, moss and greens. Through and through. Old school but new school at the same time. It is a wonderful masculine outdoorsy fragrance: a walk in a fragrance forest. From my perspective, Bogart is neither pretentious nor pretender. It is not a Drakker Noir, nor an Aramis. Yes it shares their DNA of being a powerhouse; a uniquely made powerhouse all onto itself. Nothing very realistic but it doesn't scream synthetic. This fragrance reminds me Vita Corleone, the mafia boss, intrigued and enigmatic but at the same time hard and fearless.

When you first pop the top with Bogart you're hit with a super strong odour guaranteed to take you back in time. There are no subtle careful blends here just an in your face typhoon of a dark green, bitter, earthy blast of herbs, evergreen notes and soapy freshness. As the day goes on, it dries down to this ultra mossy, leathery tobacco smell. I don't think there is a specific tobacco note in this, but rather the combination of oakmoss and leather create an accord that smells like tobacco. In fact, the woods and leather in it's composition give to this magnificent fragrance the dry chypre base for a strong oakmoss / tobacco finish that only can be smelled in the dry down. Giving the feeling of walking by a forest of wet lands washed by the dew of a cold day. Makes masculinity, maturity and self - confidence, all that a man can be. Totally macho leathery.

TLDR: Very Good (3.65/5). A classy classic fougere.

On my left back-of-hand is this fragrance. On my right is Jacomo di Jacomo. I am trying both tonight to decide which I'll wear tomorrow. I love these old school scents on cooler spring days.

Bogart is elegant. The scent elements are beautifully blended. There is a surprising similarity between Jacomo and Bogart, but whereas the Jacomo is a tightly packed blend of smells where one note is essentially indistinguishable from those around it (the clove excluded, it stands out), Bogart seems to have space between the notes, allowing each of the notes listed in the pyramid above to have a moment in the spotlight and perform to maximum effect. The overall composition is elegant. this fragrance is like a well dressed gentleman who knows that if his suit and tie are of sufficient quality and well coordinated, adding an aggressively patterned shirt is usually just too much. So many of Bogart's competitors are a bit overwhelming and as such they lack the class of this fragrance. The aforementioned Jacomo, like so many other scents of the era, is like a guy with a nice stripped suit and a well chosen patterned tie who just cannot resist adding a checked shirt to the ensemble. If perfectly executed (and Jacomo comes very close to pulling it off), this strategy can be great, but more often, it all comes off as a bit of a mess.

Perhaps it is because Bogart chose tasteful restraint in formulating this scent that it still works so well today.

I think the notes and performance of this scent are well described in other reviews here, So I will not repeat them in this post. I will just mention that at the prices at which this scent is sold, it is a great blind buy for those who appreciate a classy classic fragrance.

For those of you who didn't follow what I was talking about when discussing pulling together an elegant business outfit, or who think that Adidas make the best business attire, this fragrance most likely isn't for you.

I think I will wear Bogart Eau de Toilet Pour Homme tomorrow. I want to smell elegant.