Penhaligon’s Sports Car Club Review – 2022

Perfumes that try to convey a sense of speed represent an intriguing creative challenge. Vol De Nuit comes to mind straight away as an example, but its emphasis rests rather more heavily on the nuit than on the vol. Caron’s En Avion is another notable instance, and more recently of course we’ve had the likes of Gucci Rush, as well as two Cartier releases from Mathilde Laurent: L’Envol and Roadster. It’s the latter that swerves closer than any of the others to the subject of today’s review: Penhaligon’s Sports Car Club, a limited edition (why?) reportedly inspired by the peculiarly English glamour of racing days, leather gloves and driving goggles. 

In Roadster, Laurent attempted to evoke a vision of speed by using mint and eucalyptus-y lavender notes. It was a decision that made sense — the sharp, fizzing greenness of the mint connected with the camphoraceous quality of the lavender to propel the composition in a forward direction. Unfortunately, the use of Cashmeran and patchouli made the whole run out of fuel and divert into the pit stop rather too quickly, but then velocity-chasing top notes aren’t easy to sustain.

Almost the same could be said of Sports Car Club, except that here mint is replaced by pink pepper (arguably an ‘exploding’ ingredient as opposed to a ‘sprinting’ one) while the softness of the lavender has been relegated to the back seat in favour of a more prominent eucalyptus-and-pine combo. Instead of Cashmeran we have, you guessed it, Ambroxan; in other words, floral-spicy musk has been trumped by woody-tobacco musk . But the patchouli is still part of the race, albeit in a cleaner, more toned-down form. 

So, how does it all travel? Well, pleasantly enough, to be sure, but it won’t be breaking any sound barriers any time soon. There are moments when it threatens to offer a ride to the boorish, crass woody-ambers that blight many modern so-called fougeres. But it manages to avoid them at the last minute. And then it saunters along, drawing inexorably closer to the patchouli at the finishing line, seemingly intent on keeping to a pace that never rises above relaxed.

As a sort of modern take on the brand’s own English Fern (allegedly over-altered by ingredient restrictions) it ticks all the right boxes. But when compared to Sartorial (with its fascinating, metallic-steam note, and a more genuinely playful approach to mixing old-world codes with 21st century tastes) it never makes it out of the slow lane. Mind you, a snail’s pace can have its charms too. 

Persolaise

[Penhaligon’s Sports Car Club review based on a sample provided by the brand in 2022.]

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