Acqua di Parma Colonia Review

It took me a while to take a photo that I really thought captured the fragrance, and I think, well, I hope, I did it.

This fragrance review was and will still be part of a collective round up of some of the world’s best heritage fragrances to get you set for Father’s day 2012, the problem is, I couldn’t wait to get it on the site, some things are just too good to wait and this is certainly one of them.

The notes, and where Colonia came from

This beautifully masculine, fresh citrus fragrance was originally intended to be worn on the handkerchiefs of Italian men all the way back in 1916, making this scent 96 years old. With Sicilian citrus, jasmine, verbena and Bulgarian rose and a base of oriental woods such as cedar, vetiver, and ylang-ylang.

How Acqua di Parma Colonia wears

As well as the mouth watering lemon, the ylang-ylang and vetiver give a stunning pulse old fashioned soap. As the day’s sun begins to set, cedar comes into play and it becomes warm and gentle like an evening at the height of summer. The pump feels a little weighted, so when you press down, you really feel as if you’re doing something and a wide spread fine mist is released.

Despite being an Italian fragrance, it reminds me of being in Spain, seeing old Spanish men, sat lining narrow streets on fold up chairs, chatting, drinking, snacking whilst laughing lengthily and heartily through a Sunday afternoon. It’s a true classic that predates them all and one that no man should be without. Both lighthearted and but demanding of your respect.

Where to buy it, and why that matters

I know this might sound daft but where you buy a fragrance is as important as smelling it for the first time, get the environment right. The places I feel matches this perfectly would be somewhere like John Lewis or Harvey Nichols, somewhere that’s calmer and more beautifully slow paced. When you go in, have a look at the Candles and other complementing products in the range, they’re just as tempting.

If the range is what tempts you, I’ve also written up the Colonia Accord room spray and the citrus-forward Blu Mediterraneo Bergamotto di Calabria. And if it is the older, plainer end of this tradition you are after, 4711 Echt Kölnisch Wasser is where the whole idea of a cologne begins.

What it cost then, and what it costs now

When I first wrote this up in 2012, Colonia was £76 for 100ml. It is now around £156, or about £83 for the 50ml. A little over double in fourteen years, which is worth knowing if you have been buying it that whole time and wondering whether you imagined it. The fragrance itself has not changed, and neither has my opinion of it.