Roger & Gallet Gingembre

[Dymphna]

Hi, everyone. I hope I get this right, this my first time posting a new topic.

 

I know it's a serious longshot, but has anyone here smelled Roger & Gallet's Gingembre (Ginger) soap? The last time I bought perfume, the saleslady threw in some minis and when I smelled that one I almost died. My husband doesn't like wearing scents, and normally I don't like anything on a man except a bit of aftershave, but for this...if he smelled like this stuff, I'd be in heaven.

 

He agreed that it was "okay" (his word for everything he doesn't love or hate) and that if I could find the cologne for him, he'd wear it. Unfortunately, according to their site, R&G only make this as a women's cologne. Crazy! This stuff smells like the best-smelling man in the world, nothing like a women's scent. I know I could've gotten it for him anyway, but I was afraid that it would smell different, more feminine, as a cologne since the company considers it a women's scent.

 

So, now I'm left with this little mini soap, still in its box, which I keep on my desk and occasionally (okay, practically every day) sniff and sigh over. And when I found the Recommendations section, I thought maybe there was a chance to find something that smells like it. So! Can anyone recommend a BPAL scent that's spicy (but gingery, not cinammony) and sharp, not at all sweet, with a bit of musk and a masculine edge to it? Pleasepleaseplease? Because if I can find something that approximates this scent, I will be a very happy woman. And my husband will be a very happy man, if you know what I'm sayin' and I think you do.

 

Thanks in advance for any help you can give me!

[fallow deer]

As far as I remember (my BPAL spreadsheet went down with my laptop - weep!), the only blends containing ginger are more feminine. Devil's Night sounded as if it would be more male friendly but it ended up very sweet to my nose. Your best bet could be Shub Niggarath, which as a LE might be quite hard to find, but that was the least sweet gingery scent I've tried.

[Dymphna]

Wow, I don't know if my husband will like it or if it'll smell like the soap, but if Shub Niggarath really smells like "evil gingersnaps" I have got to get some And maybe I'll try Devil's Night, too. Uh, if I can figure out what section it's in. I thought it was an LE, but I don't see it in the LE reviews. And in the meantime, once the lab's search function is back online, I'll do a search for ginger/pepper and musk notes. Thank you for the suggestions!

 

(my BPAL spreadsheet went down with my laptop - weep!)

Wah! That sucks. I think I'd better back up my spreadsheet once I'm done updating it.

[greywind]

You may also want to try an imps of the general catalogue scents Kumiho and Bengal. Kumiho is what I would consider a unisex tea and ginger scent, and Bengal is wonderfully spicy. Depending on how your husband's chemistry handles the honey in the latter, it could also be nice without being too sweet. Sudha Segara is also very gingery, but something in it had a perspiration note to me. That doesn't mean it wouldn't potentially be fabulous on someone else.

Edited February 3, 2006 by greywind

[Dymphna]

Thanks for the recs! I probably wouldn't have thought to try Bengal (on him, anyway) because it's supposed to smell like chai, which to me is mostly cardamom and milk. I'll have to include Sudha Segara, Kumiho, and Bengal in my next order so he can try them all just to see. I told him most of the scents are neutral, so he'll try whatever I give him, since you never know what's going to smell too masculine/feminine on you until you try. (Tempest smelled like really strong men's cologne on me.)

[TroubleDoll]

I know Gingembre. I don't know of any BPAL that is identical, but you might try two things:

 

Penny Dreadful dries down to a sort of dark ginger scent on me, even though ginger is not listed in the ingredients

 

Malediction has the dark, woody quality but not the ginger-maybe you could layer it with Penny or Sudha Segara.

 

Good luck!

[Dymphna]

Thanks, TroubleDoll! From their descriptions, Sudha Segara + Malediction sound like they'd make an interesting combination, and may come really close.

 

I'm sniffing the Gingembre soap right now (again!) and it really smells to me like a yummy, expensive men's cologne with deliciously sharp spices. So good!

[TroubleDoll]

I want to add one more thing to this discussion. I used to live in Paris, and Roger&Gallet is super popular there. Both women and men wear their Green Tea scent in France, and I remember several other scents being considered unisex as well. They may market the Gingembre toward women in the States, but I really see no reason a man couldn't wear it. The packaging isn't even feminine.

[Dymphna]

Yeah, I was thinking the same thing at first about R&G because my mom used to get a lot of their soaps and they seemed pretty unisex. (My favorite was always the vetiver.) But when I checked their site, they described Gingembre as having "oriental flowers." Now, I don't smell flowers in this *at all*--it's a very "men's cologne" scent to me--but I was afraid maybe the cologne smelled different. I may end up trying it anyway if I can't find a good substitute.

[Miss Lynx]

I've got to second Shub-Niggurath -- it's the only one that comes close to what you've described that I can think of. It's a long-gone LE, but does turn up on eBay now and then. Unfortunately, it tends to command high prices there, but if you really want the ultimate ginger-musk scent...

[Dymphna]

Thanks, Miss Lynx. Just my luck there'd be a (possibly) perfect BPAL equivalent and it would have to be a hard to find LE. I checked eBay and there's nothing right now, but I'll be haunting it. In the meantime, I'll try some of the other recommendations and see how they work.

 

I really appreciate everyone's help!

[olympia301]

have you considered putting the woman's perfume in a different bottle and giving it to him? *snicker* I'd do it.

[Dymphna]

have you considered putting the woman's perfume in a different bottle and giving it to him? *snicker* I'd do it.

Hee! He already knows that it's supposed to be a women's cologne, though. If I can't find a good oil substitute, I'll just buy it anyway and have him try it. If it smells like the soap then it won't smell girly at all, so it shouldn't be a big deal.

 

Oh, I wish I could describe how good this stuff smells. I think my original comment about it smelling like the best-smelling man in the world pretty much covers it, though of course tastes differ. It's just so yummy.

[Dymphna]

Is there a jumping-up-and-down emoticon? I just tried the frimp of Wilde the lab sent with my Luperci. It smells like Gingembre, but without the ginger! I'm almost there! Granted, it's a little on the bright side, but it's close. Yippeeeeeee!!!

 

Ahem. Just thought I'd share. Now to get my hands on some gingery BPAL scents and start experimenting.

[sophie-au]

Is there a jumping-up-and-down emoticon? I just tried the frimp of Wilde the lab sent with my Luperci. It smells like Gingembre, but without the ginger! I'm almost there! Granted, it's a little on the bright side, but it's close. Yippeeeeeee!!!

 

Ahem. Just thought I'd share. Now to get my hands on some gingery BPAL scents and start experimenting.

 

Perhaps you could try mixing a bit of Wilde with some ginger essential oil?

[Dymphna]

That's a good idea, thanks. I'll have to check first to make sure it won't burn his skin, even diluted. (Probably not, but cinnamon kills my skin, so I want to be careful.)