Boss - Number one

Boss Number One by Hugo Boss is a aromatic fougere fragrance for men; launched in 1985 and based on the input of legendary perfumer Pierre Wargnye, this fragrance is very much a product of that era - bold and unashamedly macho. Exuding confidence according to the advertising, this masculine scent is my formal cologne - this is not my daily aftershave.

According to the description, the fragrance base notes are artemisia, green apple, juniper, basil, grapefruit, caraway, bergamot and lemon; middle notes are honey, lavender, orris root, jasmine, sage, lily-of-the-valley, rose and geranium; base notes are sandalwood, amber, patchouli, cinnamon, musk, oakmoss, cedar and tobacco.

Phew, that is some pretty serious fragrance complexity, what I do know is I liked the cologne the first time I sampled this eau de toilet and had to immediately purchase a bottle, that was in 1999 traveling over the border from Greece to Turkey. I still have the original bottle and use it very sparingly as I had been unable to replace it until now. 

Formally known as Boss, I have been searching for this cologne for some time now in large department and duty free stores with none of the staff knowing anything about this cologne. This is pretty concerning as staff product knowledge is severely limited, it ruins your credibility when a customer asks a specific question and the whole team is clueless. 

That was until I walked into a Hugo Boss branded store in Makati in the Philippines and they knew exactly what I was asking for - now I know how to get my hands on this legendary fragrance.