Davidoff Davidoff 1984 Eau de Toilette

we are heartily taught at the end of the 80s in Loriot's wonderful first film 'Ödipussi' by Mrs. Mengelberg, one of the 'patients' in Dr. Tietze's (diploma) psychological group, in whose open-plan office two ladies and eleven gentlemen work. And every time she goes from the customer registration to the purchasing department, she has to pass through accounting. And there, Mr. Wegner touches her - from behind. Well, that's surely the most primitive and...

Over the years, I have experienced that the specific fine humor for which my generation and the generations before love Mr. von Bülow's work is perhaps less timeless than I thought. For many born after 1990, it hardly evokes enthusiasm anymore. (And it is probably also a very German humor - yes, it seems to actually exist! - because even most Swiss or Austrians find it only moderately funny.)

And it's a bit like Loriot's humor with fragrances. Often, those from the past work best for those who already knew them in that past. Undoubtedly, there will also be aficionados of younger generations who are passionate about scents like Davidoff, but the general taste has changed significantly since then. For many noses that have been socialized only recently, one like this will probably seem intimidating, over-processed, perhaps outdated. Davidoff's Hellgrüner is like an old bachelor of uncompromising, archaic masculinity: basil, mugwort, thyme - along with patchouli, incense, castoreum - my goodness, who does such things today? A splash is enough to fling open the olfactory gate to the 80s - decades before the aquatics and sweet disco scents dominated the men's segment of the (mainstream) fragrance world. I find it almost more beautiful today than back then - in the 80s I was still too young for perfume, let alone for a fleet of Davidoff's dimensions - and today I can better appreciate its qualities. But I also laugh at Loriot.

In conclusion, in the words of Dr. Giesebrecht: 'You’ll get one right on the back, Mrs. Mengelberg!'