Classic
Bath & Body Works (2011)

Classic by Bath and Body Works (2011) came out a year after the rest of the former Signature Collection from Bath and Body Works, and as a Johnny-Come-Lately, it didn't receive the same press at time of the collection's launch. The late-addition nature is only one part of the scent's problem though, as the other part was its attempt to go into a more-sophisticated upscale direction in scent than what many might expect from the house, tackling the still-new idea of a men's iris scent, while people were still reeling from the likes of Dior Homme (2005) and Dior Homme Intense (2007), both fragrances to which this one is often compared, and for good reason. Originally, some saw Classic as a downmarket alternative to them, even though it isn't quite so in my opinion.

What makes Classic fundamentally different from anything within the Dior Homme range is the somewhat cheap-smelling and immature boozy apple and pepper notes, and their inherent sweetness counteract some of the iris goodness in the heart of Classic. Vanilla is also laid on thicker here, playing tug-of-war with pepper and iris ionone notes, with vetiver and woody tones playing a background role, as if this is more 90's early gourmand than 2010's fragrance. Perhaps the "Classic" is in reference to this fact, and we are in some parallel universe where Dior Homme had launched in 1995 instead of 2005. Regardless, the fruit and vanilla come together with the woods, pepper, iris, and clean musks in a most ingenious way. Performance is average, but better than most things also released from this line.

Perfumer Gil Clavien has done a lot of work for value-oriented houses like Oriflame, Victoria's Secret, Gap, Perfumer's Workshop, and even a recent Michael Malul, so she knows how to maximize her small materials and development budgets, likely "speedrunning" her way to mostly-unique compositions within the price point. Cheap but chic, or cheap but cheerful is the name of the game with Classic, and a bit of understated class to boot, as I haven't seen many other if any other brands really tackle this kind of thing post-Dior, although it clearly wasn't the first iris-dominant men's market fragrance itself, either. Despite not being re-issued, Classic also remains somewhat attainable post-discontinuation compared to the others in its range. Thumbs up

jcav422's nose is better than mine, and his review nails the essence of this classically masculine fragrance. It was a favorite of mine, and one of the very few colognes that I purchased for male family members. Obviously inspired by mid/late 20th century masculines, it possessed a "cleanliness" that was miles away from the 90's/early 2000's aquatic trend that is still with us today.

I agree with Possum-Pie's speculation that this very scent with different ("upscale") marketing would be sought after. Maybe even within its own store . . . repackaged in a CW Bigelow retro-chic bottle, it could live again. After all, if the handlebar mustache can make a comeback, anything is possible.

Classic is a very unique scent, different from the other five fragrances in BBW's mens collection. I'm very disappointed it's been discontinued. This is probably due to the fact that it did not sell as well as their big hit Ocean or Twilight Woods For Men. Anyway, I tried the shower gel, body lotion, and body spray in this scent before the cologne spray. I came across the cologne for 75% off at their most recent semi-annual sale and grabbed two for $7 and some change a piece! what a bargain! anyway into the scent.

It starts off very fresh and clean. the cardamom really comes out and there is a fruit note, which smells more like pear than apple to my nose. The bourbon also provides a punch.

Once the fragrance dries for about 45 minutes, this delves into a spicy sweet scent. The different types of pepper blend to create a musk scent while the sandalwood stays in the background.

When the scent dries for over 2 hours, it turns into a deep vanilla scent. I love how this smells. It is a very masculine vanilla that collides with some more sandalwood.

Overall, this fragrance is great! It shifts from fresh to spicy to warm and woody. If you can get your hands on this, I would.

As for longevity, on my skin it lasted 7 hours, which is pretty good for a cologne that was $29.50 originally.

I personally use two sprays on the neck, one on an arm, two on my chest, and one on my back.

First the Bourbon hits you, sort of tobacco scent as well. overall warm scent. Inexpensive, doesn't last all day, but longer than many cheap colognes. This is a good example of how a 'discount' fragrance by a company like Bath & Body is utterly ignored by the "sophisticated" fragrance lovers,so drifts, ignored, into non-production. I am glad I got a full bottle before it was discontinued. I guarantee if I decanted it into a sample vial and touted it as the new "Tom Ford" fragrance, it would get noticed and liked. Alas, it isn't so. I get more compliments from this than from many other fragrances.