Les Exclusifs de Chanel

Boy Chanel 2016

7.9 / 10 538 Ratings

A popular perfume by Chanel for women and men, released in 2016. The scent is fresh-powdery. It is still in production.

Main accords

Fresh

Powdery

Floral

Fougère

Citrus

Fragrance Notes

Lavender

Lemon

Musk

Heliotropin

Coumarin

French geranium

Grapefruit zest Moss

Moss

Orange blossom

Sandalwood Vanilla

Vanilla

Rose

Perfumer

Olivier Polge

Ratings

Scent

7.9538 Ratings

Longevity

7.3464 Ratings

Sillage

6.8464 Ratings

Bottle

8.2431 Ratings

Value for money

6.3184 Ratings

Submitted by OPomone, last update on 07/02/2025.

Interesting Facts

The fragrance is part of the "Les Exclusifs de Chanel" collection.

Smells similar

What the fragrance is similar to

Helmut Lang (2014) Eau de Cologne

Brut Eau de Toilette

Dans Tes Bras

Lavanda Ambrata

Helmut Lang (2000) Eau de Cologne

Absolue Pour le Matin (2010)

Reviews

11 in-depth fragrance descriptions

01/10/2022

6
Pricing 9
Bottle 8
Sillage 7
Longevity 10
Scent

Adimus009
5 Reviews

Adimus009

Helpful Review 6

Pour Monsieur's metrosexual adventurer offspring

My love affair with Boy began when I, ironically, purchased a bottle of Sycamore and was given a generous amount of samples including 'Boy'. Sycamore no longer resides in my cabinet but is proudly being consumed by a vetiver lover friend of mine.

'Boy' on the other hand, where do I start? This has been an 18 month sampling bonanza. I promised to limit full bottle purchases to 'LOVE LOVE LOVE' having religiously stuck to venturing only on sampling journey of various houses. I have so far gone through 8 samples of 'Boy' having savoured every last bit of it through spring, summer and autumn. Winter is not for 'Boy', certainly not here in the UK.

Boy starts off with a very Chanel-esque aldehydes, aromatic lavender, grapefruit concoction that is oh so Chanel and a class above their regular line. On my skin this phase lasts about an hour whilst the florals, particular the heliotrope, vanilla and musk make their presence known. Afterwards this is a sexy, musky, slightly vanillic, powdery goodness tempered by a gentle dose of Sandalwood to stop it leaning feminine and kept unisex. Given the notes mentioned, ones thoughts might venture towards Musc ravegeur? No no no, that is a darling for the evenings (and wintery days), this is slightly similar in notes only but the symphony is played out with completely different instruments.

The overall scent and sillage are just 10/10 sexy to my nose. I regularly double back on myself to catch wafts of the trail which is mesmerising. Spring and summer is the height of this fragrances sexuality which is slightly subdued in autumn and practically libido-less in winter.

So whats the catch? Price tag and longevity. The Les Exclusifs are certainly priced more dearer than CD ,and previously, Guerlain. I still think for the right 'Les Exclusifs' fragrance, it is worth it purely for the scent. Longevity is a slight let down as this fragrance lasts 6-7 hours max if one is generous with the sprays, projects for the first 2-3, weather dependent.

This fragrance is a sexy aromatic fougere for those who want to venture a little further than the traditional concoctions. Where Pour Monsieur is your elegant oxford shirt, full windsor knot tie wearing gentleman chypre (EDT not the EDP), 'Boy' is a carefree, open buttoned short sleeve shirt wearing adventurer currently enjoying his/her scent trail through their travels through Venice/Paris/Florence/Vienna/Edinburgh/Amsterdam/Lisbon/Athens and other great European cities yet to be visited. Boy only travels and trails in warmer weather. Boy hibernates in winter. I can't wait for spring and summer...

06/12/2022

BrianBuchanan
351 Reviews

BrianBuchanan

3

Poor show from the boy Polge

Innocuous sweet musky citrus in the manner of Polge senior's Allure Homme series.
The departure is fine: citrus, aromatic, metallic, musky, sweet; but after an hour or so, Boy is weaker than the odour coming from a paper strip on my desk - which holds just one dab of Thé Matcha 26 ... from yesterday.
If I'd bought this there and then in the boutique, I'd think I'd been sold a pup.

10/11/2020

4
Pricing 8
Bottle 6
Sillage 9
Longevity 8
Scent

Pepdal
238 Reviews

Pepdal

Helpful Review 1

Chanel Boy

I really dipped my toes in the Les Exclusifs de Chanel this year with some specific expectations of what i would like. This one was a surprise for me. Thank you for watching and I hope you found the review useful.

05/15/2020

9
Bottle 7
Sillage 8
Longevity 9
Scent

Atanarjuat
25 Reviews

Translated Show original

Atanarjuat

Top Review 83

Snap out lances

I feel very comfortable here with you. And I really do. No other forum that matches my interests has a level like this one. For this in advance a big thank you! But lately I had to read more and more statements and comments that make me think. There was talk of "thigh spreaders" and "can openers", of "pantydropper(s)". Such strange views of the world - here?! Yes, welcome to reality, Atanarjuat! Of course, the social mirror also lives here, does not stop at serving many clichés, stereotypes are considered absolutely real and true. But sometimes people are not these clichés at all, others probably correspond exactly to them.

So for "Boy," I'd like to break a clichéd lance. No. Clichéd
First of all a small one, the lance as a classic Fougére scent. In its fragrance category, "Boy" naturally fits in wonderfully: lavender, coumarin, geranium, something citrusy. Coumarin, which I usually like very much, is noticeable, as is the lavender at the beginning. Not a winterproof, sparse cooling lavender, but rather one that swings back and forth in the sun - carried by the wind. South of France, July, in the morning - it is not so hot yet. The whole beginning gets a bit strange, something stubborn is there, perhaps a nuance of character from Arthur Edward Capel?

"I would now rather marry Diana Lister Wyndham. By necessity, of course. "It's not a love affair, but it's better received by society." The Free Spirit Capel!? Don't make us laugh But there it is again, the appearance and being in the society... An argument with Coco? No, no, this is all going too far now!
This little discord between this nasty nuance and the bare beauty is inherent in this start and that makes the whole thing quite interesting. On the skin you already suspect a vanilla musky sweetness, on clothes the beginning radiates even longer. Finally it becomes powdery-elegant - yes, a quite classic Fougére, nobody who does experiments, just exchanges components. #issara

Mr. Parma recognizes the "Allure Homme DNA quite clearly". As a connoisseur of all Allure-Homme, I can only agree with this. One - with an "n" - immediately feels at home somehow, has been here more than once. A touch of green freshness remains until the end, which has nothing of "grandfather" or anyone else. Clichés? Apparently too many, too little freedom of thought!

There we are already at the next lance that must be broken. Who is the eau de parfum for now? Friends: for all of you. We already had this in the beginning: It. Is. Never mind. Everybody gets to wear it, everybody gets to like it. But it doesn't belong in a corner. Stereotype thinkers? Bye, goodbye! Perhaps Olivier Polge would like to depict exactly this, the ride on the razor blade (#barbershop) of both sexes. Everything for everyone. "Boy" as the image not only of the young man A. E. Capel, but also of the relationship between the two lovers Chanel and Capel? That may be - and this time not so far-fetched at all.

In general, expectations and requirements in society have changed in recent years. The point is to reflect on the liberation of rigid and changing gender roles. Some of us are still overburdened, no one takes it all the way. But a way of thinking that reflects: "Be as you are!" - regardless of gender - can only be the goal. "Boy" is like that! He smells different on every skin. I like it on my wife's, it's a bit powdery on her, but it smells a bit more barber-shopped on mine. Because I want to now? Maybe just a cliché of my brain convolutions, who knows?!

The last lance breaking is quite easy. When do you wear one of these? Whenever you like. Of course, I literally make it easy for myself there, but even here: Freedom, please. Woman and man seem to work in and of themselves with the scent, not because of the scent. "Boy" with its green freshness is very beautiful to wear in warmer climates and, after mutation, later scores points for soapy-creamy warmth in the coolness. Great!

For me, Olivier Polge - once again after weeks of testing and several attempts (I must have had my difficulties with him and had some déjà-vus...) - has succeeded in creating a basic classical best Fougére in the whole wide world. Of course, all this goes herbaceous, spicy, sharp, masculine...no, not the latter. That's what I wanted to prevent...

"The bravest action is still to think for oneself. Out loud."
(Coco Chanel)

03/16/2019

8
Bottle 7
Sillage 7
Longevity 8.5
Scent

Versailles
4 Reviews

Translated Show original

Versailles

Top Review 55

A classic Fougère

In Les Exclusifs there are currently two fragrances named after personalities: "Misia" and "Boy". Fans of the Chanel brand are already aware that Arthur Edward "Boy" Capel (1881-1919) from 1908 until his death in 1919 was Coco Chanel's lover and financial supporter. How big the influence the Englishman Boy really had on Coco Chanel's life and thus on the fashion house Chanel, however, is less known to many. Boy is still omnipresent at Chanel. He was the man who finally turned the young woman "Coco" into Coco Chanel. It is therefore fitting when Coco Chanel himself later said about him: "He gave birth to me". Boy met the then 26-year-old seamstress in 1908 with her mutual friend, horse lover, polo player and her lover at the time, Etienne Balsan. In contrast to Balsan, Boy's family was considered 'nouveau riche', the family fortune was hardly a generation old. His British father had made his fortune with the shipping of coal, his mother, a Frenchwoman, Coco Chanel was not unlike Coco Chanel, which, apart from the similar temperaments of Coco and Boy, was probably the reason for the attraction between the two. Boy was the first to discover that Chanel was an excellent businesswoman. He quickly became not only her lover, but also a teacher and transformer. It was he who introduced Chanel to the world of the arts, philosophy, politics, music and literature, it was he who awakened her business sense, inspired her fashionably and dared to openly criticise the already scratchy Coco ["You acted badly", "You lied", "You were wrong"]. It was he to whom Chanel owed her lifelong passion for collecting the artfully crafted Asian wooden fans, the so-called Coromandeln. It was he who had Chanel's first designs from Jersey re-cut by a tailor made of tweed. It was he who opened the boutique with her in the luxury bathing resort of Deauville. It was he who brought her new customers through his social contacts. As progressive as Boy was in his thinking for that time, he ultimately subordinated his feelings to professional ambitions and his own principles. He never married Coco Chanel and maintained further relationships during the relationship and married an Englishwoman, Diana Wyndham, 'according to her rank'. During the short marriage of the character incompatible couple, Boy "shone" most of the time in absence, preferring to devote time to his lovers or professional ambitions.]

Fragrance:
If you look at the reviews of "Boy" here in the Forum, you will inevitably come across the term fougère. The first fragrance to bear the word fougère in its name was the "Fougère Royal" by Houbigant in 1882. In this family of fragrances, lavender is classically the top note, while coumarin or oakmoss are contained in the base. Coumarin is a synthetic component that can be obtained from tonka beans, for example.
How does the scent smell now? The lavender note is easily recognisable from the start and is the main protagonist throughout the fragrance. She doesn't smell old-fashioned or too woody. The fragrance, like the other fragrances in the house, has the 'typical Chanel note' that gives it elegance. The scent is embedded in sandalwood and vanilla, which make it softer, so that although it is marketed by Chanel as a men's scent, it can also be worn with ease by a woman. The coumarin note is often compared to "freshly mown grass" or "hay". In fact, it has a slightly sweet smell, which later turns into an intense, spicy aromatic fragrance. In addition, the oak moss in the base gives a slightly green undertone. When I wear the scent, I also notice that it is circulating, which means that it always returns to its original notes, repeats itself. I have compared the ingredients and structure of the historical "Fougere Royal" (1882) and "Boy" (2016). It is noticeable that "Boy" has more in common with the historical "Fougère Royale" than with other fragrances listed as modern Fougère today (e.g. Kouros, Armani Code, Eternity for Men, Azzaro Pour Homme). In this respect, the fragrance is rather a return to the roots of Fougère. Maybe the real Arthur Capel even wore the "Fougère Royale". However, this remains speculative. In summary, it can be said that "Boy" is elegant, powdery with vanilla and green undertones, spicy aromatic and smells of lavender.

Chanel: "1919, the year I woke up famous and I lost everything". Chanel mourned a double loss in 1919. She not only lost Boy in a car accident, but also suffered a miscarriage shortly before his death, as a result of which she could never have children of her own again. With the generous inheritance bequeathed to her boy in her will, she acquired the last traces he had left on this earth: the Bel Respiro holiday home, the interior of which she had painted in the company colours characteristic of today [beige and black for the roller shutters as a sign of mourning]. In summary Chanel said about him: "He was the only man I ever loved. He died. I have never forgotten him. He was the great chance of my life...He was for me my father, my brother, my whole family".

More reviews