Eau de Verveine Penhaligon`s for women and men

Pure nostalgia in a sample vial. For me, Eau de Verveine captures the mood and the smells of a mature man in the time between his shower and leaving for work.

I'm smiling as I sniff with my eyes closed while my brain tries to convince me that I'm 5 years old again and my grandfather is just down the hall in his room getting ready to go to work on the night shift at Kodak. He shaved with a straight razor that he sharpened on a leather strop and applied his shaving foam with a badger brush. Imagine how exotic that seemed to a little kid!

As EdV opens, the bitterness of sage elbows the lavender to the background -a good thing- while bergamot's brightness keeps the sage bitterness from becoming sour, as it often can on my skin. Petit grain adds the tang that makes this feel more masculine than unisex. Any clove here is too subtle for me to detect, and I like clove, so I was hoping to pick up just a little.

In the end, though, this is all about the cedar and musk. Hours after application this dries down to pencil shavings, also a nice, clean smell that's woodsy by definition. Alas, it's also the smell of elementary school for me, when it was a treat to be allowed to empty the pencil sharpener. Getting to shake the container over a wastebasket was somehow set up as a reward! (Now kids get stickers and candy!)

Although EdV is a lovely scent that transports me to lovely places in my memory, ultimately I've got to call this one unwearable. It's perfect, however, if you want to time travel to Floyd's Barbershop in Mayberry, North Carolina circa 1959, and wait your turn after Sheriff Andy and Deputy Barney have a little taken off the sides.

Smells masculine, petrolly. Don't like it at all.

I'll paraphrase Kterhark's very accurate statement: this is a scent I like but not one I will buy.

My first whiff of Eau de Verveine made me ask out loud, "Grandpa, is that you?" This one has a touch of the old school barbershop men's scents, somewhat along the lines of Clubman Pinaud or vintage Avon. One of my grandfathers had a shaving soap or aftershave that smelled a lot like this one.

Which is not to say it is strictly for men. Like an eau de cologne, this would be a refreshing scent for either sex. I found it got softer and a little more feminine and sweet after a few hours.

I think most people would find Eau de Verveine a pleasant scent to smell on others, or as an environmental scent. It's just not quite what I'm interested in putting on my skin these days.

I wore this in the evening, slept in it, and I can still smell it this morning. So good longevity!

This is a scent that i like, just not a scent i would add to my wardrobe. Everything is nicely done and it opens crisp, edgy and vibrant. There are two notes that i tend not to like on myself: lavender and clary sage. on me these always feel 'out of place', as if someone put a basket of brightly colored, well coordinated, aesthetically thistled weeds on the head table of a wedding reception.

The dry down is very nice, i should add. There is a nice 'kick' to it. I do recommend trying, its not at all a 'bad' fragrance, just one that doesn't mesh as well with my chemistry.

Penhaligon EAU DE VERVEINE opens with a somewhat odd smell to my nose--it might be the coriander and clary sage which together impart a slightly offputting dirtiness. Shortly thereafter, however, the composition smooths out as the lavender, vanilla, and cedarwood all reveal themselves in a delightful unfurling and swirling of notes, which includes just a touch of clove.

The drydown of EAU DE VERVEINE is rather rich and complex, certainly much more so than I would have predicted from a fragrance with this name. EAU DE VERVEINE also has good staying power, thanks probably to the musk. All things considered, this is a well-crafted aromatic woody fragrance which I can recommend to gals and guys alike for warm-weather wear.