Cologne Intense (Eau de Parfum) by Houbigant

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Cologne Intense Houbigant 2015 Eau de Parfum

7.6 / 10 143 Ratings

A popular perfume by Houbigant for men, released in 2015. The scent is citrusy-spicy. It was last marketed by Perris Group.
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Main accords

Citrus

Spicy

Fresh

Green

Woody

Fragrance Pyramid

Top Notes

Moroccan neroli

Paraguayan petigrain

Sicilian lemon

Tarragon

Calabrian bergamot

Lavender

Pink pepper

Heart Notes

Frankincense

Jasmine absolute Maté

Maté

Base Notes

Labdanum absolute Oakmoss

Oakmoss

Patchouli

Musk

Amber

Perfumer

Luca Maffei

Ratings

Scent

7.6143 Ratings

Longevity

7.2124 Ratings

Sillage

6.5126 Ratings

Bottle

8.4123 Ratings

Value for money

6.935 Ratings

Submitted by OPomone · last update on 09/04/2025.

Source-backed & verified

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What the fragrance is similar to

Cologne Intense Extrait

Colonia Intensa Eau de Cologne

Iskander

Salt

Rising Cologne

Reviews

9 in-depth fragrance descriptions

05/10/2025

6Scent 6Longevity 6Sillage

Sn0wr1n
8 Reviews

Sn0wr1n

Helpful Review 2

Pretty strong

The opening of Cologne Intense is like a citrus based soap with a mix of green and herbal aromas. The mate tea not gives it that herbal feeling and kind of levels out the citrus notes and doesn’t allow them to become too acidic.

The petitgrain is pretty strong at first and definitely give this Houbigant cologne, it’s green sort of element.

After a few minutes, the tarragon note starts to emerge as one of the most dominant notes in this fragrance. It adds a bit of spiciness to the scent to go along with the citrus/soapy/herbal feel that has already been established.

The spiciness never feels all that ‘intense’ to me (nor does the cologne in general) and I think it gets tempered a bit by the lavender.

It does have a dryness to its scent, especially in the latter stages. Dry, greenish, spice, with like a post-shower soapy clean scent on skin, versus a rich lather.

10/26/2024

9.5Scent 7Longevity

MKramer
11 Reviews

MKramer

1

Cologne Intense

This perfume, like all the others of House of Houbigant, is amazing. The scent is in my opinion breathtaking, I could not get enough of the fragrance. Unfortunately, this fragrance is discontinued by Houbigant. Even though it is still available on sites like Vinted or Ebay, I won't be buying it.

Cologne Intense smells rich. When I close my eyes I see a manor in front of me, an old classic manor surrounded by hills, trees, with horses galloping in the meadow while the sun is shining in the early spring. This is most definetly one of my favorite fragrances. The fragrance smells fresh, spicy and classic. Unfortunately, I do not have the fragrance anymore so I will not be able to describe the notes, well I could do it from memory, but I will not.

The scent of Cologne Intense is in my opinion 70-80% similar to Patchouli Sauvage, also by Houbigant. Which is also an amazing fragrance. However Cologne Intense has more green spicy notes, and smells sweeter. The longetivity, etc, I have not tested or compared with each other. For the people who want to buy a fragrance similar to Cologne Intense, because it is not available anymore. Patchouli Sauvage by Houbigant is a great replacement!

05/26/2018

10Scent 8Longevity 7Sillage

Yatagan
415 Reviews

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Yatagan

Top Review 51

Black Cologne

I am fascinated by scents that seemingly combine hard-to-reconcile opposites: jasmine or tuberose fragrances for men, oriental vetivers - and dark, heavy Eau de Colognes.
As I explained in my blog about Eau de Cologne, a classic Cologne typically includes the following components: neroli (possibly orange blossom, which is usually too sweet), lemon, bergamot and/or: petitgrain, mandarin, lime, grapefruit (i.e., hesperidins), cedar (as a light, airy wood), lavender (as the freshest and brightest of all florals), rosemary (and/or comparable light herbs).
Furthermore, I assert in my blog that the absence of dark, heavy, oriental notes such as patchouli, sandalwood, oud, vanilla, amber, larger amounts of musk, labdanum, tonka, civet, and castoreum (possibly in the smallest doses) is equally important. The green-woody and earthy base note vetiver (in all its derived variants: vetiveryl acetate, vetiver oil) should also be avoided, as it can quickly stamp a fragrance with a vetiver signature, thereby unjustifiably altering its fundamental character. The list could be expanded with other prominent green-resinous notes (mint, resins, moss) (quoted from my blog "Kölnische Wässer - 1709 und heute").

But what if one enriches a fragrance that initially meets all the criteria of a classic Eau de Cologne with darker, oriental, or warm accents? Then something very fascinating can emerge, ideally a scent like Cologne Intense by Houbigant.
Looking more closely at the list of ingredients, nothing unusual stands out in the top notes (and one could argue that a Cologne has nothing else). Everything is there: neroli, bergamot, petitgrain, lemon, lavender, the light herbs (tarragon), but then surprisingly also a decent portion of incense (the only downside here: they could have been a bit more sparing with this ingredient), labdanum / resin of the rockrose (which smells: resinous, almost animalic, as I always perceive labdanum). The labdanum gives the fragrance a chypre twist that suits it well and lowers its pitch by a few semitones. The incense adds an oriental touch, which remains very bright. I can’t consciously isolate patchouli and amber, and while I can imagine the moss that many have detected, I don’t see it in the foreground. Rather, it’s musk that enhances the sparkling tones of the incense in the base note.

All in all, Cologne Intense is a good example of a bold creation that uses a basic scheme but varies it significantly. Oriental colognes would be worth a blog of their own; at the very least, I want to mention Eau de Memo, which varies the Cologne theme with leather, the chypre-cologne men’s classic Pour Monsieur by Chanel - or point out some Acqua di Parma fragrances as well as the Déclaration series by Cartier. But this is just a first, very rough outline. Here’s the suggestion for a collection ("Black Colognes"):
https://www.parfumo.de/Benutzer/Yatagan/Sammlung/Cust19

For getting to know such an experiment, testing Houbigant’s second major creation after Fougère Royale is highly recommended, but I would strongly advise against blind purchases: a black Cologne.

12/01/2019

9Scent 8Longevity 8Sillage

Torfdoen
41 Reviews

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Torfdoen

Top Review 28

A Summer Thunderstorm

The air trembles with anticipation. A flash of lightning. The last rays of citrus-orange light cut off and hidden behind dark clouds. An interval of cooling incense, a slightly ethereal breeze approaches. All just imagination. On the dusty streets, rain lazily draws an increasing pattern. The ground reacts and releases an intense aroma of dominant kitchen herbs. Caraway, fatty, coarse leather, but also vital, sprouting tobacco. Noble compost material that radiates a dark mustiness. Everywhere, the remnants of human activity have surfaced. Powerful flowers act from the shadows, enticing with a captivating greeting of life. The combination of these scent masses weaves into a dirty sultriness, sheltered in the light summer rain mist. Better than the relentless, dust-dry heat. Much better. There is an orange earthiness after the shock and a bit of sweetened licorice snail gummy for comfort.

Crouching in the puddle on the street. Blissful splashing in the murky herbal water. No fear of dirt and grime. Memories of Azzaro Homme, although no lavender soap in sight, just dirty-orange indulgence. And that in autumn. Probably the best season for this thunderstorm.

06/12/2021

9.5Scent 8Longevity 8Sillage

Salva
77 Reviews

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Salva

Top Review 30

A classic Cologne - And yet completely different

What are the characteristics of a classic Cologne? Fresh, citrusy, and generally of short duration. This is how most would roughly describe a Cologne.

However, there are also Colognes that are interpreted quite differently, like this Cologne Intense from Houbigant, which I would like to write a few sentences about.

[...]

Houbigant is a historically significant house from Paris, founded as far back as 1775. Its current headquarters, however, is located in the city-state of Monaco.

Jean François Houbigant, the founder of the company, had perfumes, bridal bouquets, and gloves manufactured. To make his business appear less dreary, he hung a painted sign with a flower basket next to the door, which quickly earned his shop the name “A la Corbeille de Fleurs” (translated: In the Flower Basket).

His products were particularly sought after and popular among the affluent. Among his customers were Queen Marie Antoinette and Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte.
Other prominent figures who frequented this house during his time included Queen Victoria of England and the Russian Emperor Tsar Alexander the Third.

[...]

The Cologne Intense is not a classic Cologne in the sense that one might typically know. It is a wonderfully and fantastically refined Cologne infused with dark notes, which I had not encountered before.

The scent starts off citrusy-aromatic, but I immediately perceive initial herbal and, as it develops, slightly smoky-spicy nuances. Here, the slightly smoky aspect combined with a spicy touch truly dominates the fragrance.
Interestingly, as it settles, green accords replace the tones of incense, lavender, and tarragon, blending with the aromatic citrus notes still detectable in the background into a bitter-herbaceous and mossy classic gentleman's scent.

One quickly realizes that this fragrance is not an ordinary Cologne, but in my opinion, indeed - due to this unique composition - an excellently intriguing classic scent.

I attribute the designation Intense to these darker notes, but regarding the H&S, I personally cannot speak of an intense character, which does not bother me at all. On my skin, it lasts about 4-5 hours, which is more than sufficient for me; the sillage is noticeably present in the first hour, after which the scent becomes more intimate.

In my eyes, the fragrance is wonderfully wearable throughout the year and for any occasion, preferably in spring and autumn and on not too hot summer days.

The bottle, made of limited porcelain, also appears incredibly high-quality and reflects the classic aura of the fragrance very well, in my opinion.

[...]

Conclusion:

For all lovers of Colognes, I can warmly recommend this scent. In my eyes, the Cologne Intense is a brilliant fragrance that one likely does not encounter too often in this form.

It is a precious, subtle, noble, and classically stylish men's Cologne, enriched with modern elements. I ordered it blind and was immediately very taken with it.

[...]

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