Original Musk Blend No. 1 Kiehl's 2004

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7.3 / 10 245 Ratings

A perfume by Kiehl's for women and men, released in 2004. The scent is animal-floral. It is still in production.

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Main accords

Animal

Floral

Powdery

Spicy

Woody

Fragrance Pyramid

Top Notes

Orange blossom

Bergamot

Heart Notes

Lily

Neroli

Rose

Ylang-ylang

Base Notes

Musk

Tonka bean

Patchouli

Ratings

Scent

7.3245 Ratings

Longevity

7.4189 Ratings

Sillage

6.7178 Ratings

Bottle

7.1175 Ratings

Value for money

7.983 Ratings

Submitted by DonVanVliet, last update on 06/07/2025.

Interesting Facts

The scent was supposedly created for the first time in the 1920s according to the brand. It was followed by two re-releases in 1963 and 2004, although the latter is described as a modern interpretation of the Original Musk Oil.

Kiehl's Original Musk Blend No. 1 allegedly contains 92,8 % of Galaxolide. Galaxolide was an important musk substance during the 1970's and 1980's. It was not only used for perfume but also, i.e., for hair spray and washing powder. This has been problematic due to its poor biodegradability.

Smells similar

What the fragrance is similar to

Musk for Women

Muscs Koublaï Khän

Carnicure

Musk for Men Cologne

Kanøn Eau de Toilette

Kouros Eau de Toilette

Reviews

15 in-depth fragrance descriptions

07/15/2012

jtd
484 Reviews

jtd

Very helpful Review 6

scalp scent

I think this musk is bought mostly by Kiehl’s shoppers and not so much the perfume hobbyists. Too bad, because this stuff is wonderful. I have 3 musk-based fragrances: Serge Lutens’ Muscs Koublai Khan, Annick Goutal’s Musc Nomade, and Kiehl’s Original Musk Blend No 1 (edt.) I love them all. The Kiehl’s is a nice balance of skin-funk, florals and that sweetness of musk that seems fruity but isn’t. And while MKK is clearly the rawest of the bunch, Kiehl’s is the most skin-like in that it actually smells like your lover’s scalp.

A caveat. I don’t get much ‘dirty’ from most musk fragrances. I could be anosmic to that aspect of musk, or more likely I could just have a different chain of associations than some others do. Many musks have a bodily smell, but it’s largely clean. Not antiseptic. A clean body has a smell. Actually it has a bunch. But musk carries a skin sweetness that has none of the dirty, salty or acidic that I associate with old sweat or uncleanliness. Kiehl’s has more of this body aspect than either of the others to me. And it speaks to that simple intimacy of being physically close to somebody. This is not the scent for people who wear perfume as a masking fragrance.

05/22/2014

Omni
70 Reviews

Omni

Very helpful Review 5

Forrest Gump

Florals, and kak, that bright yellow bowel motion of a fairly newborn breast fed baby. Okay, that's first impression out of the way. It's a bit soupy for a while; the baboon's bottom fights for ascendancy and loses out to soft lemony musks, which are still sexual and smell of a younger woman's natural state. I don't find it disagreeable at all, it's quite nice but I can't see an attachment forming. We doused ourselves in Houbigant in the late sixties, applied Mary Quant makeup, wore halter neck tops (without bra's) that were made of the softest lightest cottons, or muslins and discovered Procol Harem. There's no novelty in this, or animalic musks to me; I guess that's because so many young men back then were tradies, working in construction or in plumbing, gas fitting or roading. We were all quite animalic. Girls had challenges dealing with girl stuff and boys often smelled of creosote and perspiration. I am amused by MKK, Urban Musk or even this gentle soul. I've worn it for a couple of days thanks to a very friendly and informative sales assistant at Britomart. I'll be back, but not for Original Musk

11/11/2012

LiliumLibido
51 Reviews

LiliumLibido

Very helpful Review 6

On a lazy sunday morning...

Kiehl's musk is quite possible the best lazy casual fragrance currently still in production.
Just indolic and animalic enough to suggest the idea of skin that's not freshly showered but is generally clean and healthy, it still retains a slight soapy element without screaming "public bathroom cleanser agent", if you know what I mean.

If you've showered the night before, put on no fragrance for the night, and are still in bed cuddling with your lover past noon on a sunday, that's as close to Kiehl's Musk as you're ever going to smell. This scent is human, intimate and personal. It doesn't scream sex, it just lets you know that it is a possiblity, between the croissants and the newspaper, lol.
It's not a raw fauve smell. It's not a public shocker of overt raunch and rude hiney odors either.

It's a friendly scent that doesn't mind getting friendlier, lol.

02/20/2012

7.5
Sillage 7.5
Longevity 8
Scent

Missk
1357 Reviews

Missk

Very helpful Review 4

Musk the way it should be

This is possibly one of the most delicious musks I've ever tried. Forget Narciso Rodriguez for Her, Kiehl's simplistic musk takes the cake.

Opening quite feminine and fragile on the skin, Kiehl's Original Musk is a mixture of soapy powder and delicate florals, with only a subtle spiciness underneath it all.

It's sexy in a very clean and crisp sense. I imagine it to be something you'd wear while curled up near a fire on a warm rug next to your lover who whispers sweet love poems into your ear. To put it in basic terms, Original Musk is sexy in a strict, conservative way, that tends to be more romantic than wild or exotic.

There's something somewhat animalistic about musk despite its clean and soapy feel. It blends perfectly with your own natural chemistry, making it very personal and inoffensive. I find it in some ways, highly addictive.

I can be anosmic to musk at times, however in the case of this fragrance, I was able to smell it throughout the duration it stayed on my skin, which was well over six hours.

I'm a little dubious to see this fragrance listed as a unisex fragrance, simply because it's so feminine and subtly sweet on my skin. However I won't rule a man wearing this out of my mind completely, because I haven't had the chance to smell this on a man's skin just yet.

11/03/2023

10
Pricing 6
Bottle 8
Sillage 8
Longevity 9
Scent

Philyrae
21 Reviews

Philyrae

Very helpful Review 2

Classic musk

A chypre musk, but while there is powderiness in the drydown, it’s hardly your grandmother’s rose soap. It’s animalic with hints of warm bourbon and tobacco inside the patchouli and a full bodied rose. It’s not too sweet and not soft or youthful, despite the white florals. It can be easily worn by men or a woman with confidence and self-assurance. This would be amazing to smell in wool sweater weather. Bonus point for being so well priced.

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