Captain Molyneux
Molyneux (1975)

I'm sorry, but I'm going against the tide this time around. The much acclaimed captain, for me, is a nice perfume but nothing unforgettable. I'm now on the third bottle of the vintage version, the original formulation and no, it didn't excite me or, better, it didn't fully convince me, the fault of the really modest performance. Beautiful, elegant, an aromatic masculine scent, sharp opening, creamy and round heart and base, balsamic and aromatic but.... the duration and strength are far below average. Unfortunately it is a perfume that lasts very little and feels even less. As soon as it is sprayed, it projects for the first 30min then it settles very close to the skin and remains there for the (few) following 4 hours or so. Let me be clear, I am not discussing the quality, the ingredients have an exceptional aroma and it is something that cannot be contradicted but, quoting a user from the American forum, the captain is like "a friend who just met you shakes your hand and leaves it goes". Too bad, maybe that's why it has never had a great success ... who knows? final judgement? nice perfume but as I see it it is absolutely not worth the money they ask for the vintage. On the other hand, the modern is a completely different perfume from the original, very chemical and banal, to be avoided absolutely.

Captain Molyneux is the melancholic smile of someone who gazes at the horizon while being in some far-flung exotic place on this earth and knows there's a war going on back home. But while his thoughts are back there, his eyes are here. Beholding all the eye-hurting beauty which lies before them and floods every single grain of his soul's sands. The war is there, beauty and life is here... And he slowly turns his back to the horizon, and chooses life. It scents a rather masculine chypre with powdery/soapy undertones. It reminds me of Chanel Pour Monsieur edt and somewhat of Dioressence.

A strong citrus opening is laced with aromatic accents of lavender, sage, rosemary, and pine. Quickly, however, the opening subsides to a positively breathtaking jasmine, cloves, over a sweet and spicy woody mossy base. The florals last for quite some time as the familiar chypre base unfurls slowly and stealthily. There are a lot of very high quality naturals used here. The drydown is the best part. Oakmoss, vetiver, patchouli, and some other nice things blend. The whole presentation is soapy, clean, and masculine with a devastatingly beautiful and tender heart. Totally Captain Molyneux is somewhat nostalgic, but not a bit old-fashioned. I guess the best descriptor would be classic and timeless, but also remarkable.

When first spraying Captain the first thing I thought was "Hello Paco Rabannes (1973)" they however soon diverge, where PR keeps on its course of a solid aromatic fougere, Captain gradually moves more and more into the airiness of citrus chypres, albeit a very herbal aromatic one (Capucci comes to mind).
Altogether wonderful if for me a bit redundant as I'm well stocked in vintage Paco and have honestly too many (excellent) citrus Chypres. However the longevity, in the iteration I have, is terrible, I'm not a projection beast mode fellow, my passion for the notoriously short lived Eau Sauvage attests to it, but here I'm left wanting more, I will shamelessly steal from a recent review from the good PStoller : The Captain to me "smells like a date that ends in a handshake"

Vintage Captain Molyneux EDT -

“Oh Captain! My Captain!”

Unlike Whitman's poem, Captain Molyneux has nothing to do with the death of President Lincoln and everything to do with classic aromatic fougere goodness.

Captain Molyneux opens with an attention grabbing blast of spicy lavender and dusty oakmoss. There is also an iron-like metallic quality floating around too. Once that tapers off, it begins to remind me of another great fragrance from the same era - Charles Jourdan Un Homme (1979) - with a very well blended anise and sandalwood steadying the ship.

Born in 1975, this one doesn't swing brass knuckles like other powerhouses of its day and just like Un Homme, Captain Molyneux has a classy and restrained quality that stays close to the skin. I personally favor this as I prefer the year round versatility.

Fortunately, vintage is still available online and is reasonably priced for the quality represented here.

4 stars

The best spring / summer ever, it has no equal.
11/10

really a gorgeous classic but not dated.
really belong to its era while today gentlemen can wear it and enjoy its quality and classiness.
spicy herbal soapy mossy.
lavender ginger slightly citrus on patchouli and oakmoss.
my bottle is the vintage one back to late 80s.