Perfume Review: Acqua di Parma Colonia

Review by Tom

Debuting in the 30's (or as far back as 1916, depending to whom you listen), this is a classically elegant scent that can be easily worn by men or women, any time of the year. This is my go-to scent when I just want to smell nice, not showy, avant-garde or in-your-face. It splashes on with a burst of citrus, but not the demure lemons of Eau d'Hadrien: this is heady, slightly candied and full of the peel, almost immediately cut by rosemary, making the first of its many appearances. This is not the soapy rosemary that sometimes one finds in scents from that era, it's just the right amount to add what in music would be called "contrapuntive interest". Rosemary shows up again to tame the middle notes of Bulgarian rose and jasmine, without which those flowers could easily become heavy, and shows up in the woods of it's base, where the rose and the citrus barely whisper but the verbena starts to show more.

Colombina once wrote of Daim Blond that it smells "expensive". I can only say that I think Aqua di Parma smells "elegant". It reminds me in a way of a Maserati automobile- meant for a gentleman, but so elegantly finished and with such exquisite detailing that it's almost feminine, and perfectly suited to the woman who wants one.

Aqua di Parma is available at better department stores like Neiman-Marcus, Barneys, Bergdorf Goodman and Saks Fifth Avenue. It's available in several sizes, ranging from the 1.7 ounce travel spray for $62 to the whopping 6 oz splash for $107. I consider the splash to be a great bargain indeed.