Fougère Royale 
Houbigant (1882)

Green fresh lake in the jungle with woods around and autumn leaves everywhere and you just dived a minute ago in the lake. this is an example of a typically deep masculine fougere.an unmistakable elegant masculine fragrance.it does smell like YSL's Jazz to me.mature and evoking rugged elegance,it is a welcome addition to round out the much sweeter fragrances popular today.

The bright,vivid opening of bergamot and lavender,tinged with chamomile,leads to an aromatic phase that persists over a few hours.it is fresh,delightfully reminiscent of high-quality soap, yet retains surprising crisp dryness.the dry down is uber masculine oakmoss with a hint of tonka bean that makes a scent which still manages to be both fresh and maturely refined at the same time.perfect for formal occasions and a late night encounter.a manly green fougere. well worth a try.

Fougère Royale (2010) is the ur-fougere reinvented for the post-IFRA world, fashioned together by Rodrigo Flores-Roux in the early years of the luxe-niche era as Houbigant sought to move upmarket.

If the word of those who knew the original well can be trusted, it's more polished now than it was in its classic form, though it's hard to say that this blend feels properly modern. It's to Rodrigo Flores-Roux's credit that this revamp of the classic formula belongs to no particular cultural moment: a fougere that straddles a century, but stands outside of time.

And it is that very same timelessness that I so admire about it and makes it my personal favorite of what we might call the Fougere Revival of the past decade or so (2010 saw the emergence of both Fougère Royale 2.0 and Sartorial, signifying the arrival of this new movement, which would carry over into stuff like Bracken Man and the Tom Ford retro-fougeres, which now may possibly work its way back into some true mass-market, mainstream releases if Beau de Jour turns out to be a true smash).

Appropriately, Fougère Royale feels closer to the original brief of the fougere form than most entries in the genre, insofar as it really does feel fern-like. It's fresh, herbal, and dark, with a smooth lavender heart. It doesn't reinvent the wheel, just gives it a new set of tires and puts it back on the road once again, and does so with aplomb.

One of the best "green" opening and mid flavors I've ever tried, but the version I sampled had too much vanilla in the base for my tastes. I prefer the drier "green" fragrances, but YMMV.

High quality product with great blending, would sure love to smell what the original release was like...

6.5-7.0/10

The word “fougere” apparently translates to “fern” in English. However, this doesn't say much to most people. A fougere scent will come across as fresh, woody and distinctly masculine. Some may even use the phrase “barbershop” to describe the genre.

Fougere Royale was the first scent in the genre and this modern remake of the original is a superb rendition of the genre. It is a little hard to comment on how close this is to the original of 1882 as samples are... shall we say, a little hard to come by.

The modern version, released in 2010, starts off bold, citrus-fresh, herbaceous and punchy. It's dry, sour even and lacks any hint of sweetness; perhaps a nod to its origin. There is also a distinct patchouli in the mix and this is apparent right the way down to the base. The fresh woodiness interweaves throughout the development stages whilst still maintaining the patchouli. The scent is particularly reminiscent of Amouage's Bracken Man, although there are plenty of fougere scents out there that would equally compare to it.

Fougere Royale is an Eau de Parfum and lasts well throughout the working day. It can be enjoyed in all sorts of weather, but I can definitely see this being worn especially in warmer weather.

All lovers of fougere scents owe it to themselves to experience this scent.

Rudimentary but influential work that, with its lavender - coumarin - bergamot structure, inaugurated the fougère genre.

Vintage Fougère Royale is not a great perfume; it has moments of charm, but when compared to a modern fougère it feels a bit vague and lacking in direction. This is a structural problem caused but the lack of synthetics that were available to Paul Parquet when he invented the genre back in 1882.

Mitsouko is often thought to be Jacques Guerlain's perfected form of Coty's Chypre - which also invented a new genre; but over the years Fougère Royale has been graced with numerous Mitsouko's of its own. This is, ironically, due to the fact that the fougère has less character than the chypre and hence is more accommodating to the different interpretations that have been imposed on it in the last 130 years.

From a History of Perfume perspective Fougère Royale can hardly be overrated. But when it comes to the version I have worked on, the reality of the perfume doesn't support the mythologising that surrounds it. It's a good - and for a time - lovely scent, but not a masterpiece. For the real greatness of Fougère Royale it's necessary to look to some of its own Mitsouko's.

****

Vintage barbershop hair lotion in a non greasy, alcoholic base. 1950's or possibly earlier.