Monsieur Lanvin Lanvin 1963 Eau de Toilette

When I opened the bottle, I only heard a distantly noticeable sweet astringency. Upon application, green leaves, bergamot, fruity notes and a subtle aroma of zest immediately began to be felt. In the middle it starts to smell like cinnamon, sandalwood, jasmine, cloves and a little rose. The perfume becomes woody, oily, spicy and, in the distance, floral. And I got the feeling that the aroma has a note of essential oil that adds freshness to the composition. And at the end vanilla, leather, moss, myrrh and tonka bean are revealed. This fragrance ends on a sweet leather composition with the addition of herbs.

Trigger alert: if you have sensitivities to lemon, green notes, clary sage, carnation, civet, and powder, move on pronto.

If a classic 60s fragrance that embodies all of the above sounds like ambrosia to you, Monsieur Lanvin would be rapture. My bottle is a pressurized atomizer, and I need to be so careful as to not drain its contents in one application, but it is divine. My gamble in scoring yet another vintage on the cheap resulted in a near pristine condition, with very little degradation to its top notes. It's miraculous, really.

Monsieur's verdancy seems courtesy to petitgrain and a touch of galbanum, but the real showstopper is this spicy floral accord. Most notably featuring jasmine, it is buttressed by civet (do you understand your civet yet? It doesn't always necessarily smell pissy and certainly shouldn't smell poopy), powdery, plush, outlawed nitro-musks and leathery undertones.

For some reason when wearing this, I feel like watching old episodes of Cannon or Kojak while wearing this. Who loves ya, baby?

"Thanks to Skylab!"
Thanks for his initiative to bring the good old "Lanvin" fragrances back from obscurity. I first had to dive into that obscurity myself to show old treasures the sunlight again. I like to think I have a good memory, but I really can't remember when I acquired this little "Lanvin" collection. The reason is clear to me. As a fan of traditional French perfume houses, my focus was already set in my youth, and "Lanvin Parfums" had an excellent reputation in the 80s. At "KaDeWe," they had their own counter, the distribution was managed by a small but fine company in Stuttgart, and they also impressed with those wonderful, high-quality luxury glossy brochures that wouldn't need to hide behind some internet presence today. The success of "Lanvin" was certainly entirely due to the women's fragrance "Arpège" here in Germany, but the house was not inactive in the men's fragrances either. Unfortunately, there is not a single one of the old men's fragrances available in stores today.
The "Monsieur Lanvin" described here fits perfectly into the 60s. It saw the light of day in 1964, and I think that at that time, the gentlemen of creation were by no means adventurous. If a fragrance was worn alongside the use of soap, it had to be one that smelled herbaceous, distinctive, and extremely masculine. "Monsieur Lanvin" is an answer to this requirement. It starts off green, ferny, and somewhat pungent, but quickly leaves its first impression to make room for spices, as well as plants and woods (geranium, sandalwood, and clove). I find the presence of these not exactly 'quiet' ingredients very dominant.
When I read here that the base is shaped by vanilla, tonka bean, and musk, I can only claim that the fragrance remains with the heart note. A typical Guerlain finish (especially due to vanilla and tonka) is missed here.
But no matter, "Lanvin" is not "Guerlain," and it shouldn't be, which is why I find the comparison quite interesting.
"Lanvin" used the same bottles for its fragrances (at least from the 60s onwards) with a small exception for "Arpège." The bottle shown above served as a pouring bottle for all men's fragrances, and in its classic, square shape, it was very pleasing. The atomizers (see below) are, in my opinion, rather ugly, but probably adapted to the taste of the time.
Environmentally conscious readers may perk up now: The atomizers were atomizers, and they still worked with propellant gas. As is well known, this was banned, and "Lanvin" considered how to achieve consistent spraying without gas. The magic word was effuseur. The shape of the atomizers remained, only the glass was replaced with plastic. Inside, there was a rubber casing that enveloped the fragrance under pressure. When the spray button was pressed, the fragrance could escape through the pressure of the rubber.
This invention received attention but no imitation. In practice, there were too many complaints (often brittle rubber was responsible for the fragrance leaking out). So "Lanvin" eventually also resorted to classic atomizers.
I can't prove it, but I suspect that the production of "Monsieur Lanvin" was discontinued in the early 80s.
The fragrance range has since completely changed; only "Arpège" still leads the fragrance line (even with an Extrait of 7.5 ml). But the house acknowledges its past and lovingly dedicates itself on its website with some advertising posters to old familiar names like "My Sin" or "Scandal." (Lanvin / Frangrances / 5th sens)

A continuation of the men's fragrances from "Lanvin" should follow soon...

"Monsieur Lanvin" from 1964, now arrived as a mini in impeccable condition, is both a child of its time and innovative. At a time when the "gentleman" aspect in men's fragrances, meaning a distinctly masculine-spicy appeal, was the order of the day, this scent anticipates future trends and pathways.

Perhaps even a precursor to 80s men's fragrances, due to its opulence, strength, longevity, and variety of ingredients. The sweetness present is particularly surprising; this was not necessarily common at the time. It is beautifully integrated into the "armor" of density, spice, floral notes, and green elements. Comparable accords only became popular in the 80s. A "Sybaris" comes to mind as a distant "scent cousin."

Very strong and independent, and - as mentioned - historically very interesting due to its innovative character. It seems there are hardly any OFs left, but a few minis are still available at acceptable prices.

... I become tipsy. This scent was the signature fragrance of my father during my childhood and youth. Whenever I catch a whiff of this fragrance, I get teary-eyed. I then see in my mind's eye a straw-blond, two-meter-tall, athletic man with his sky-blue eyes that always sparkle with mischief. Along with that, his white teeth grin at you from beneath his blond full beard. Of course, I realize that I see this from a son's perspective. Next January, he would have turned a hundred.

With this fragrance, you first get a true old-school herbal green spicy fruity citrus scent in your nose. Underneath, woods and floral accords blend in, with cinnamon making its presence known. And since this is a scent for men, leather, civet, oakmoss, labdanum, and myrrh storm the stage and make this fragrance truly masculine. A very slight sweetness with vanilla comes into play, and the musk gives it a dry, powdery finish.

The longevity and sillage are good.

Here, the house of Lanvin has created a true gentleman's fragrance that I definitely see suited for men in their mid-twenties and older, especially those with hair on their chest. It's not really for the younger crowd. Even women will prefer to smell this fragrance on their men. It is a scent that can be worn on both cold and warm days. During the day, it likes to accompany an elegant suit with a tie and cufflinks, but it’s not offended if it’s paired with a casual suit or even dress pants with a shirt and a sweater draped over the shoulders. In the evening, it blossoms in a tuxedo or evening suit just as well as in jeans and a leather jacket.

Anyone who enjoys a herbal green spicy citrus woody slightly floral dirty dry powdery and just slightly sweet fragrance would actually be right here. Unfortunately, this fragrance is no longer produced.