It all goes back to the time of the French occupation of 1796, by which time French expansion into Germany west of the Rhine had extended to the city of Cologne. The closest cousin to 4711 is Guerlain's Eau de Cologne Imperiale, composed some seven decades later, and favoured by the French aristocracy. They both had exquisite taste in just about everything, and this makes me think of wonderful Christmases at their house, and their photos from Tahiti and Molokai. The brand also released a new fragrance, known as the 4711 Nouveau Cologne, on a significant date: 4/7/11.

Useless as a scent as many intend it today (super projection, everlasting longevity, possibly choking everyone else in the room), the original 4711 is a wonderful fabric scent, or a superb olfactory comfort when you need to smell something nice, clean and invigorating.Opinions differ on how much truth there is to this founding legend, but it is a fact that, beginning in 1799, Mülhens sold his ‘aqua mirabilis’ – healing miracle water – as ‘Cologne Water’, marked with the words: ‘Franz Maria Farina – Klöckergasse No. Which may sound like fun to us now, but must have presented considerable disadvantages in everyday life. Due to the poor performance, and due to the fact that there are better citrus fragrances and colognes out there, I can't give 4711 Cologne a 10/10. It's in a way more masculine and old-fashioned than 4711, but still with similar longevity problems. The name of the fragrance known as "Eau de Cologne" leaves you in no doubt as to where this perfume originated – namely here in Cologne.

If you were raised in the middle east and ever set foot in a flower distillery, you for sure, know this smell. It smells either like alcohol or like those refreshing tissues passengers get on commercial airliners. to my nose when all is said and done, and I feel that the people most likely to notice/comment upon any reformulation of this scent are those who have been familiar with it for decades.It still reminds me of my childhood and I will alway have a small bottle in my collection to remind me of my Omas and childhood! Frustrated by the disorganized layout of the city, a French general had all the houses sequentially numbered.