Reviews of Castile (1998)
by Penhaligon's

Castile is extremely similar to Aqua di Parma. There’s not much more I can add to that, I’m afraid…

O, the pity of it!
It does starts out with a wonderfully enchanting accord of high grade neroli which is both masculine and understated.
Hey, this is made a by one of the old-fashioned Brit houses, so you can bet your tweeds and your pipe it's going to be understated, you Platinum Egoiste mod freaks, so there!

But then the musk notes kick in and unless you're caught in a rainstorm in London or better still, in an Artic expedition, the heat transforms the whole thing into something rather vile and violent. The notes start fighting each other rather than harmonizing and---well, suffice it to say I'd rather wear Kouros. Honestly, It would smell far better in the heat than Castile.

I wear several scents which are classified as feminine, namely Y, Bandit, Cuir de Russie (Chanel), and "Tabac Blonde;" yet for a so-called masculine scent, Castille smells too much of a feminine floral on my skin for me to enjoy it. It also smells to my nose somewhat synthetic and tends to give me a headache. Sorry, but this one may be well made and all, but I just can't bring myself to like it as much as I have tried.

Well made but exceedingly boring.

For another tedious affair of the same sort, try Patricia de Nicolai's well made but entirely disposable Cologne Sologne.

Czech & Speake Neroli is much edgier, though this citrus subgenre in general is usually not far from full blown impotence.

Regarding neroli, I prefer the more substantial L'Occitane Neroli EDP.

I also purchased this blind and my reaction upon first smelling it was "Oh c**p! This is waaaaaaaay too flowery for me". However, I thought I'd give it the benefit of the doubt and now I'm starting to change my opinion. My nose really picks up on the rose in this scent and I'm not a huge fan of rose. However, after the initial strong blast, it really dries down to a much lighter, sweeter odor which is the orange & neroli. It's a little on the perfumy side but has a strange quality that seems to make it a perfectly acceptable men's cologne, most probably the base notes of wood and musk, although IMO these are very muted. Still, an interesting fragrance and one I would recommend those willing to try something a little different.

Castile is a very nice and well made fragrance. I think the success/failure of Castile with your personality type is huge here. Castile IMO teters on being exclusively feminine. The house of Penhaligon has not let me down yet with a truly impressive smelling scent. But i think this scent is more geared toward a woman. Again i place this as neutral because it is not to my liking, but well made nonetheless.