For Him

This is the first Barbour For Him, launched in 2016 in a heavy cut-glass flacon patterned after the quilted lining of a Barbour jacket, and it should not be mistaken for the later Eau de Parfum in the green tartan bottle. The two smell nothing alike. The Eau de Toilette is an aromatic spicy built for the British countryside: grapefruit opens it with a bitter, slightly sappy citrus lift, and cardamom and black pepper arrive almost immediately to give the top a dry, peppery crackle rather than a fresh one. The heart is where it shows its age, in a good way. Clary sage brings a herbal, faintly tobacco-like quality, cinnamon adds spiced warmth, and violet leaf lays a cool green haze over the top of both, which is the trick that keeps the spice from turning sweet too early. The base is broad and comfortable rather than clever, with tonka bean and amber doing the sweetening, sandalwood and patchouli adding body, and vetiver plus musk holding it to the skin. Projection is moderate and it settles close within a couple of hours, so it works better as a cool-weather everyday scent than an evening statement. Autumn and winter suit it best, and it is easy in an office. Discontinued, so treat any bottle found as a bargain rather than a signature.