Spanish Leather
Geo F Trumper (1902)

This is a debonair little number. Refined, reserved, but not tight-lipped, Spanish Leather is all earnest charm, no pretense.

I will concur with other reviewers that it is reminiscent of saddle soap, but also freshly brushed suede, with tastefully applied rose and geranium accents to round off the edges of the leather.

What a super fragrance! A classic, old fashioned Fougere with Lavender, Geranium and Bergamot; spices, moss and musk. It reminds me of the wonderful Heno de Pravia. I don't find it in the least leathery, but reading other reviews it isn't supposed to.

My only, slight, quibble is that I wish it were stronger, and lasted longer.

Another review said that the current version of this fragrance is a mere shadow of the original, and I can quite believe it. Moss heavy fragrances, which this would have been, cannot survive current legislation unscathed. I never smelled the original version, and in a way I am glad as I am sure I would have been disappointed with the current. However I am more than glad to buy this. It is a far better Fougere than Trumper's excellent Wild Fern. I have been looking for something like this for a long time, and I am so glad to have found this.

It's nice and clean in a soapy way with a hint of leather saddle soap which does smell like Imperial Leather that people talk about. Though this aspect is low key.

At the start there is some rose and geranium which soon disappears leaving a clean soapy smell. It's very nice in a barbershop way and clean but a bit underwhelming. It could have been more distinct with that Imperial Leather smell that I like been a bit more louder on the skin.

All in all I like it and it's my third favourite choice from the house behind Eucris Edp (truly wonderful scent) and their Sandalwood fragrance.

I think it's worth mentioning that classic "Spanish leather" perfumes aim to recreate the smell of the herbs and flowers that leather was scented with back in the 1800's, thereby creating an illusion of leather to people familiar with what it smelled like back then, but aren't intended to actually smell like leather or contain any of the modern leather ingredients. So if you approach this expecting something like a Knize Ten or Tuscan Leather, you're probably going to be disappointed. Instead, it's a wonderful old-school smell, largely clove and geranium and vinegar, but lifted with white flowers and powder and kitchen herbs and darkened with a pinch of gasoline, kind of like a greener, darker take on Diptyque's Vinaigre de Toilette.

It's a wonderful combination that very much smells old, but has a weird sort of timeless rough familiarity that transcends trends. In terms of Spanish Leather perfumes, I personally prefer Santa Maria Novella's, because it has a crazy animalic petrol raucousness that I think is fun in a wild way, while Trumper's is more staid and practical (I would wear this to the office, but never SMN's). Thumbs up, even if this is a close second when it comes to my personal choice.

This is a nice, clean, well-behaved take on leather. NOT animalic or dirty at all, Spanish Leather goes on with a blast of lavender and soap, with a well worn piece of dry leather thrown in for good measure. This is a suit and tie fragrance, appropriate for any formal or semi-formal event. It behaves itself, a little too much b/c despite being a leather, it sits close to the skin. Projection is only fair, but the scent is very well done.

I used this for a while about32 years ago and liked it then. However, I recently purchased a 50ml bottle and it bears no resemblance to what I had three decades ago. I suppose Trumper as well as MANY others has seen fit to REFORMULATE. Too bad, as this rendition is not even a mere shadow of what once was.

This is what gentlemen would wear to the berni inn with the family I reckon ..imperial leather soap in concentrated form is what I get ..floral, extremely soapy and a classy scent from a time gone by.

I love the idea of "Spanish Leather" - treating leather with perfume to rid it of most of the evidence of the tanner's trade - and I like this iteration as well the Truefitt namesake; a shame I didn't think to compare them directly. This one has the obvious cologne genealogy, but has its point of departure in warmth and spice. Essentially, it is a light leather, with at least the notes listed. However, I feel there must be more in there - something like cardamom, perhaps, as I can't think that the leather and patchouli alone have provided that level of spice.

There is little by way of development, but I find this to be a trustworthy masculine with good longevity and sillage, and at the prices it is sold at, an interesting and good value addition to a collection.

Spanish Leather opens with lavender, bergamot, light aldehydes and a nice leather accord, soft, dense, tasty, played on a blend of oak moss, woods, cloves, perhaps sandalwood and some flowers (carnation?). I appreciate the effort to use an "old-school" approach to recreate leather instead of the infamous 2-3 aromachemical delivering nowadays' trendy dry-rubbery straightforward leather note. A simple and noble scent indeed, refined and bright, a bit close to Equipage at the very beginning, but more light, more soapy and also a bit more metallic. Sadly however the leather accord vanishes soon, leaving only the soapy-clean accord with a slight green-earthy base. Basically a normal (and even a bit plain and slightly artificial) "eau de cologne" formula. Decent but a bit disappointing.

5,5-6/10

A discreet, decently executed but "fragile" take on leather. This fragrance was finally a disappontment for me and a lost occasion. After a promising strongly leathery/smoky, aromatic and seasoned beginning indeed, Spanish Leather morphs in to a vague soapy rose-geranium (more geranium than rose in my opinion) and in to a more conventional, slightly barber-shop and powdery mossy-musky chypre with just a vague reminiscence of the true realistic leather. The note of patchouli stands at centrum of the stage, especially at the beginning which is strongly centered over an heady and masculine leather/patchouli accord. As well as it happens with the other scents of the brand (at least with those i personally tested) the aroma has a short durability even close to the skin.

Well maintained recipe, i can easily imagine this type of scent in the streets of early 20th century London.
Mid strength with the scent vapour lastin 2-3 hours, long enough until freshening up at lunch.
Authentic, "new car" leather smell that fades to a more subtle "10 year old leather jacket" scent after half an hour or so.

I purchased the gorgeous splash bottle trio of this, plus Eucris and Ajaccio Violets.

Spanish Leather: not what I expected, no leather, no churchy-barbershoppy vibe, but still very nice nonetheless. Just not what I expected, but that doesn't detract from its obvious quality and suitability for other people who, well, are not me.

I like it, but don't love it. It reminds me precisely of Imperial Leather soap (by Cussons), and smells far more like it that does the horrible Imperial Leather aftershave lotion available cheaply at supermarkets (it and the equally reprehensible Imperial Leather deo spray are huge disappointments).

Though, like Imperial Leather soap (which I remember as child was much, much, much creamier in lather and gentler on the skin, with a richer, stronger, more lingering fragrance), it lacks the character it had even a few years ago. It goes on just as strong, and in much the same way as Lagerfeld Classic (no connection), quickly (very) peters down to a mere imitation of its former, superior self.