Zizanie Fragonard for men

I would say this is a Guy's Guy scent. It just wouldn't match up with a kid trying to be older.

With Zizanie, I have visions of "that Guy" hanging out in a cigar room after he finishes his porterhouse steak. I have visions of him at a house party in Aspen, with a snifter of Courvoisier in his hand....and I see him at a chic barbeque in Laguna Beach.

I DO NOT see "that guy" at a fucking Justin Bieber concert, sorry.

This gets a thumbs up from me.

Brahmsfourth, I concur. My dad wore this in the 60's and it was BEYOND awesome!! We're not talking about a fragrance, but rather an experience. Because it's been so long, I don't know if the version you had 25 yrs. ago, is the one I'm referring to. I read that Frank Sinatra wore Zizanie. All I know is that, if Macy's carried the original version, men would be standing in line. Btw, my dad ordered some a couple of years ago, and suffice it to say that the stuff inside of that bottle WAS NOT Zizanie!

Some great reviews here - weegee, Castor (took words out of my fingertips as I started to type), and a mention to Brahmsfourth for bringing up something key.

I bought this "scent" in current EDT formulation (which it is more of a scent than a "fragrance") as a basis point of knowledge. It is not something I would typically wear in public - but, that doesn't mean you can't. For me, this is an after-shower, evening scent and one that I enjoy the simplicity and harmony of. It is a scent I wear when I want to relax, soothe myself, and for pure olfactory enjoyment. It is wonderful to me, in that perspective.

Brahmsfourth mentions a "soapy baby-powder sweetness". It is there - but to me, not cloying. As a matter of fact (and please take no offense), but I don't think Zizanie would be Zizanie without a powdery effect, as that is how things smelled "back then". The EDT has less of the baby-powder than the cologne...I believe, but it is there for the middle of the composition nonetheless (as the top blast fades, powdery in the heart as the sandalwood comes in, but warming up to nice warm patchouli and just slightly dusty and very nice sandalwood). Truly, great balance...and old-school sandalwood scents can be powdery in feel - that is the nature of it ("dusty" perhaps, sometimes).

This stands proudly next to my large bottle of Caron Pour Un Homme (another "scent", not a fragrance - also from the 1930's) - excellent as well. And, another I wear after a warm shower, around the house - but not typically out in public.

I find it to be that old-school 30's vibe that makes this appealing. Brahmsfourth's old bottle may have been slightly different 25 years ago, but this has stayed relatively the same over the years from others that I know who respect its place in the annals of fragrance history.

This definitely goes on sharp and striking - a slap to olfactory senses. Castor was right...a scent for romantics (and I will add "true" lovers of fragrance, poets, people who like to read hardbound books and love vintage dress, music and vibe). Contemporary fragrances would look at this, snub their noses and say, "You think you're so dapper with your simple two-note composition, and classic silver bottle." And then go jump back onto the shelf at Macy's so the next teenager or office stiff who wants to smell like everyone else chooses them. Like the movie, "Toy Story", but for fragrance. However, then an older gentlemen walks in, walks past all the slick bottles and says - "Here you are, old friend. I missed you." And, he pauses and thinks back to many memories that Zizanie has brought him over the years...

I, unfortunately, will not have those memories as this is a "personal" scent for me - but, I sure do appreciate it.

This could be worn out at night to a swing club with a swagger and a cigarette hanging from the lip (along with a Derby hat) and something with houndstooth - pants, vest, or jacket. So, someone could definitely wear this out...but it has to be someone who gets it.

How to wear this is key as well. Similar to Caron's Pour Un Homme...a light (2-3 sprays or so application) and you get more faint notes and I find that, while it is very refreshing and chic - a little light and the notes do not appear as I they should to my nose. The key - apply liberally and reapply at dry down of the first application. I like to put on 5-6 nice full sprays and then reapply a few (layer the scent) for depth if I plan on staying up, like I am right now typing this review. It will last through the morning - easily 8-10+ hours on skin and the projection is stronger.

If I go to bed after a warm shower - light-to-moderate application is fine. So soothing to drift off to. But, if you want to get a "full" wearing out of this - definitely reapply and layer to get a more complete wear. I, personally, don't find it cloying in the EDT strength even with reapplying - actually, I find that the notes show better - greener, sharper patchouli and warmer, richer sandalwood.

No score to be given. Like Caron Pour Un Homme - who am I to give a rating based on a number over 10? I am simply thankful to have this scent in my wardrobe and can enjoy something that has such a classic, old-school French vibe. Timeless.

The sandalwood and patchouli in this reformulation are surrounded by a soapy baby-powder sweetness. It is lighter and more cloying than I remember; I had a bottle of this over twenty-five years ago. It smells nice, albeit dated. It should be reformulated again to add some modern refined notes. I still like it, but it used to be so much more elegant and heady.

My college roomate had a bottle of this i sprayed some and it really smelled nice, i honestly think its the perfect guy scent because its more masculine than MOST of the other stuff out there and the patchouli, sandalwood merge perfectly and whatever musk is in this makes it even better

I dont know why older people wear junk like english leather when this scent is WAY better

Powdery Sandalwood, Patchouli, Orris, Vetiver, and others - dominated by a powdery Sandal-Patchouli accord with perhaps some Cedar, Lemon, Bergamote, Sage, Jasmine...The indolic aspect recalls Jasmine; its not floral, but nor are the traditional Hindu blends consisting of Patch, Santal, and Jasmine I've smelled on my travels through the sub-continent. Very much of its era, with something ageless about it. Mature, sophisticated, elegant, and above all, sober - something at odds with the very French meaning of its very French name.

Fragonard ZIZANIE reminds me of a light, pared-down, de-aldehyded version of a certain stage of ARPEGE, which also contains patchouli and sandalwood, but a whole lot more. My suspicion is that ZIZANIE contains some small subset of the lengthy list of notes in ARPEGE which is why I was immediately reminded of that great, timeless, magnificent classic upon spritzing on ZIZANIE.

This composition is much less complex than ARPEGE and absolutely unisex. Smooth and subtle with low sillage in the drydown (slightly bigger in the opening), ZIZANIE is not at all flowery but it is a worthy woody oriental that lovers of that category should not miss. As is typical of Fragonard in my experience, the quality of the components is top notch. I believe that this house, while not extravagant at all, really knows what they're doing. Among other things, they do not indulge in overdilution, a problem I've found with a couple of other venerable houses from centuries past...

ZIZANIE is a pleasure to wear without being overwhelming at all and would be suitable for casual settings of all kinds. A very nice cologne which seems closer to edt strength. Recommended!

can't go wrong with this stuff its the ABSOLUTE BEST woodsy masculine scent and the patchouli and sandalwood are PERFECTLY balanced to give a nice drydown. its cheap, stood the test of time and definately a good buy

The top notes give the wearer the impression that Zizanie is a relative of Old Spice, for they share strong and spicy accords; to my nose, these notes are on the limit of comfort. But one has to remember that men, when Old Spice and Zizanie were released, used scents with enormous initial sillage settling into very intimate mid and base notes. In this sense, Zizanie is such kind of fragance. So don't let this top notes fool you for they don't do justice to the way it is.

I would not suggest Zizanie for those into contemporary scents, it is rather for romantics - those who regret things lost, the ones wanting to sense the way things smelled years ago, or just for those on a whim to recover the past: it would be the perfect scent to wear while reading Proust's "A la Recherche des Temps Perdue". Dated? No way, rather a classic for the self assured.

Now, if your into bland present-day, generic aromas, forget it. This is not for you.

Zizanie is Frank Sinatra classy... Not Frank in a tuxedo, microphone in hand; no, this is Frank relaxing in a designer wool sweater, shot glass full of bourbon in one hand, cigarette in the other. When Frank wore this in the 1930's it was avant garde. When he wore it in the 1940's he oozed class and refinement. When he wore it in the 1950's he was retro cool.

Can this really be "just" sandalwood and patchouli? Hard to fathom actually, but if so, then this is truly the definition of synergy as 1 + 1 = 3, the 3 being something much, much more than the combination of its two separate ingredients. Herbal green notes meld into autumn gold and orange spice notes, with both zest and powder to tickle your nose and heighten your senses.

Zizanie is warm, yes, but in a very sexy, very cool jazz age way. Hot spice and cool jazz, that's Zizanie. Oh, Frank... surely this is what you wore when Ava Gardner fell in love with you.

Oddly enough, also very much suitable for a woman. A woman wearing a gray cashmere sweater and thinking about lighting up a cigarette. Shot of whiskey optional.