Cologne du Parfumeur
Guerlain (2010)

Just tried this one at a Guerlian boutique and it was the surprise winner. In the classic cologne style but in addition to having that green, refreshing citrus also had some modern depth, something usually lacking in the eau de colognes.

Clean, refreshing citrus aromatic cologne from Guerlain!

Starts out with juicy Amalfi lemon plus citrus fruit note, with gorgeous African orange flower adding a softening touch. Nice mint and rosemary spiciness fills in the heart of this scent, capped off with smooth lavender and crisp tones of cut green grass. (I detect cedarwood too, which is not mentioned in the above triangle of notes.)

Overall, I really enjoy this expertly crafted potion; Cologne du Parfumeur is prestige, and I enjoyed every bit of its elegance and quality construction. Thierry Wasser, the "nose" behind CdP, is to be commended for making a masterpiece that stands proudly in the already crowded aquatic scent arena.

I'm not entirely sold on Cologne du Parfumeur. It goes on heavy with the expected orangey bergamot, but there's an outsized blob of petitgrain that makes this skew much more woody than most traditional colognes. I understand the point of colognes enough to generally not mark down for lack of longevity, but without the orange blossom or white musk usually used to make these last, Guerlain simple fades away on my skin after a mere hour or so. I guess I think of the cologne recipe as a clever interplay of bergamot, orange, lavender, and herbs, extended with petitgrain and orange blossom, and Guerlain disappoints with its clunky, forward petitgrain not leaving room for the rest of the elements I was hoping for.

In conversations of the great traditional colognes (Eau de Hadrien, Acqua di Parma, Chanel, etc), this seems to turn up often, but I can't help but feel like that has more to do with Guerlain fandom than the scent itself. Certainly not terrible, but a bit of an unimpressive showing in a field full of winners.

Lemon - restrained, bergamot - discreet, orange blosson - not intense; this olfactory triad is combined into what is not a strong and fresh opening blast, but more of a pleasant and positive array of aromas. Not special at all though really.

The main addition later on is galbanum, which in the earlier stages of the drydown is paired with a very convincing note of lovely freshly cut grass. The galbanum lacks colour and vividness, but the grass impression hits the spot very nicely.

I get moderate sillage, good projection and an impressive ten hours of longevity on my skin.

This is much less directly refreshing a Cologne than 4711, and less well produced than, for instance, Penhaligon's EdC, and miles below the quality of the ingredients that Chanel's EdC prides itself of. Quite agreeable in some parts, but overall never special. 2.75/5

Just lovely!

I am planning to experiment with layering under a multitude of scents, as I've been told the effect is rather amazing.

On its own, though, it is quite refreshing and a "happy" scent, if you will. As Orange Blossom is a favorite of mine, this is easily a favorite. FBW.

I really wasn't expecting something so linear. It's brief opening was the highlight, with a burst of complex green notes that included a very subtle and pleasant grassy one. But that was gone in minutes leaving little but a vertical green affair that didn't evolve a great deal on my skin.

To me, it leans very strongly on masculine side of unisex. And I can't help shake the notion that the longevity (which is considerable) is the only thing that distinguishes it from being an average entry in a Comme des Garçons series.