Knize - the tailor who introduced the first fragrance collection for men
Vienna is the most magical city in the world for me. Where everywhere time moved on and so did the atmosphere, in Vienna the time moved on but the atmosphere stood still. Walking around in the city gives you that delightful nostalgic feeling and add to that all the traditional independent retailers and craftsmen that are still going strong and you find yourself in an old book or movie. The 1st district is of course the part of the city where you will find the most famous ones like the Sacher hotel and Café, who are famous for their chocolate cake, and Wilhelm Jungmann & Neffe, which is probably the oldest fabric shop in the world and the interior hasn’t changed a bit since they opened. But also the old Emperor’s bootmakers Rudolf Scheer & Söhne are still around crafting fine bespoke shoes and boots. Some of them have a century long lasting international reputation like for example the bespoke tailors Knize (pronounced as ‘’Knische’’) on the Graben no.13. They tailor since 1858 the finest suits, shirts and ties for Vienna’s and the world famous. In 1888 they received already a Royal Warrant for serving the Austrian Emperor. The inside of the shop was designed by the famous Viennese architect Adolf Loos between 1910 and 1913 and remains unchanged till today. A bit later in their history they would have shops in Karlsbad, Berlin, Paris and even New York which made it let’s say the Viennese Hermès of those days.
Photo credits: Nataliya Mureau
Up till today it’s a delight stepping into Knize and buy some of their ties that come in 2 different widths, their knitwear in more colors then a person can imagine but also buying one of their famous fragrances for men. And in those fragrances they have a unique story to tell. Because beside tailoring beautiful clothing they have reached a ‘’first’’ in the world of fragrances a century ago in 1920. Because their fragrance Knize Ten was the first fragrance specifically for men in the world. The scent has remained almost unchanged over the years and is considered as one of the classics for men. And whether you hate it or you like it, taste is personal after all, it is a special feeling to have a fragrance that was the first fragrance for men ever and that you can smell the stylish era of the 1920’s in it. Even though Knize Ten is most probably the most well-known fragrance of Knize they released some more versions over the years like Knize Two, Knize Forest and Knize Ten Golden Edition.
For years I’m a fan of the Knize Ten fragrance and always buy a bottle when I’m in Vienna. But now I decided to buy all the others as well and give them a try which I will share with you in this writing.
Photo credits: Nataliya Mureau
Knize Ten
Knize Ten is a fragrance that you either hate or love I think. It’s reasonably heavy and spicy and gives a feeling of walking into an old gentleman’s club with a lot of dark wooden furniture, old style paintings and leather chairs. I don’t know if it’s just me but I always smell a hint of cigars in the scent which gentlemen in this kind of clubs are most likely smoking. I’m not a fragrance expert myself but many people describe the notes of Knize Ten as; leather, wood, warm spicy, aromatic and smoky. I can actually confirm all of those notes and don’t smell anything additional to it.
Photo credits: Nataliya Mureau
It’s a fragrance that I personally won’t wear in summertime and don’t recommend anyone too, but once the colder days start I think it’s a very sophisticated smell for everybody who loves classic clothing. The scent brings you back to the old days when bespoke tailored suits were a common thing for every man and walking out of the door without a tie was unthinkable. I can however imagine that the scent can be intimidating for people around you and therefor it’s maybe not ideal when you’re wearing it when going to your office, meetings with a lot of people or to a restaurant. However when you’re in your own home office, man cave, in a cigar lounge or are about to make a long walk in a park or forest I’d wear it and enjoy it. After all you can also wear fragrances to enjoy yourself and not necessarily only to please others. It should however not bother others either. For me Knize Ten is enjoyable as it brings me back to an era I wished I could have experienced, it also brings me to Vienna whenever I wear it.
Knize Ten Golden Edition
Knize Ten Golden Edition is a fragrance that was launched in 2000 and was a rearranged version of the classic Knize Ten to celebrate it’s 75th anniversary. The idea was to make the scent a bit more modern so that not only the die hard classics would go for it, however the classic scent should also remain. So Knize Ten Golden Edition was meant to be an addition to that. With notes of bergamot, orange, lemon additionally to the sandalwood, leather, musk, cinnamon, smoky, woody and warm spicy notes the scent became slightly lighter and more wearable in a modern environment without losing it’s beautiful classic character. The general notes of this fragrance are described by specialists as leather, woody, floral, warm spicy, citrus and powdery and also that I can confirm. However I would like to add smoky to it as well, but not that smoky as the classic Knize Ten. Taste is personal and so many people might disagree with me on this but this fragrance I would wear to a restaurant, bar or office as well. I don’t have a feeling that this would bother others even though they might not be a fan of this scent. But then again if you are not into niche perfumes and smell everyday the scents that have a lot of citrus or candy notes to it you need to get used to every fragrance that Knize is offering. I think Knize Ten Golden Edition stands out and gives that very classic scent but in a smoother and lighter way.
Photo credits: Nataliya Mureau
Knize Two
Photo credits: Nataliya Mureau
Knize Two is the fragrance of Knize that is probably most accepted and loved by people around you even if they’re not into niche fragrances. The scent was introduced by Knize in 1978 and it is a scent that for me personally is the best to wear in spring or summertime. I find this one too light for winter but again this is a very personal matter of taste. The main notes are described by specialists as floral, powdery, woody, green and aromatic. I definitely confirm that but still would like to add soapy or washing softener as two extra notes to it. The interesting thing is that this fragrance is super fresh without a strong hint of citrus to it which is usually the case at fresh fragrances. It has a sweet smell to it but not oversweet and however it might go into the direction of a ladies fragrance it’s certainly not beyond the border of that. Not even beyond the border of a unisex fragrance. I can’t imagine anybody to be bothered by this fragrance even the ones that are only used to fragrances with a lot of citrus or sweet notes to it. This fragrance can be worn to any occasion, restaurant, bar, club, office, street, park or what so ever. And even though the fragrance is more acceptable in the modern environment you still stand out as it smells nice and different. For winter I would consider this fragrance too weak and too fresh though. But again this is a matter of personal taste and I’m a big fan of heavier and spicier fragrances.
Photo credits: Nataliya Mureau
Knize Forest
Knize Forest was the most surprising one for me as I didn’t expect to like it in the first place. The first time I smelled it I also disliked it rather than liked it, but this changed once I started wearing it for a couple of days. The scent was released in 1993 and as it is called Knize Forest one would expect a very forest like aroma to it. It definitely has it but I had a very funny first impression of the smell when I sprayed it on myself. I smelled rubber car tires! A strong smell of rubber was my first impression which made me dislike it. Again this is very much a matter of personal taste as when I let it smell to some friends they considered it as a very manly smell and loved it therefor at the first sniff. But the more I started wearing it, the more I started to smell the notes of wood, pine trees and generally all the things one enjoys in the forest.
I even felt that it had the classic spicy notes I like so much from Knize Ten but packed in a lighter surrounding. Fragrance specialists describe the notes of this scent as aromatic, fresh spicy, woody, citrus and herbal and I can confirm that for sure. I would add though the first hint of rubber as something ‘’manly’’ as my friends called it. Also bergamot was a note I smelled strongly as well as pine tree. Personally I would wear this scent as well in the summer as in the winter and to any restaurant, bar, club, office, street, park and of course in the forest! I can’t imagine anyone being bothered by this and to be honest I also don’t think it stands out a lot. The funny thing is that it reminded me of a scent I once had from Ralph Lauren of which I forgot the name. Despite the fact that I disliked it in the beginning I am wearing the scent often now and especially in weekends when I’m spending time in my garden.
Photo credits: Nataliya Mureau
Photo credits: Nataliya Mureau
Long lasting quality of Knize fragrances
One of the characteristics of the fragrances of Knize that I would like to light out is their durability. None of the Knize fragrances disappeared from my skin or clothes until the next day and even after a shower I could smell a little hint of them. So I think that these fragrances last long which I personally find a very positive characteristic and a sign of quality. For me it is also a sign of a niche fragrance although I’m sure this isn’t necessarily the case. As I mentioned I’m not a fragrance specialist nor an expert, but I do appreciate a good fragrance in my own way, try a lot of fragrances every year and Knize is one of the houses I’m always coming back to.