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Only God nose
The AmericanPapist, when he is not helping us keep Speaker Pelosi’s grand anti-Catholic gaf in the public eye, is exploring the olfactory:
Has anyone out there actually tried this stuff?
It claims – wait for it – to be the "Private Formula of Pope Pius IX." I’m not kidding.
If anything deserved to be in Pope Pius IX’s Syllabus of Errors – this is it!
Look what I found.
It is available through amazon.com! $25.95
I would put it on my wish list… but… well…
It was Rome before air conditioning, but after cholera made people think baths were unhealthy. Yeah, I think you’d want some cologne. And the ingredients seem pretty pleasant: orange blossom, lemon verbena, lavender, violet, clove and sweet orange.
Also, their webpage says they will ship you a free sample (you have to pay shipping).
Comment by Maureen — 3 September 2008 @ 11:36 amBtw, that headline pun is a stinker. :)
Comment by Maureen — 3 September 2008 @ 11:37 amWhy are you so hesitant to put it on your wish list? Are priests not allowed to wear cologne?
Comment by marc — 3 September 2008 @ 11:40 amI have just seen advertisment of it in “Incide the Vatican” magazin. There was also “Hyssop soap” with “Asperges me hysoopo” citation
Comment by ekurlowa — 3 September 2008 @ 11:46 amLOL
marc, I’m guessing Fr. Z would feel like a prat if he actually put that on there. But, if he did put it there, I’m sure someone would send it to him. LOL
Comment by Kradcliffe — 3 September 2008 @ 11:59 amI received a bottle of this as a gift – it has a very pleasant scent, rather citrus-based. I actually know a few bishops who wear this….
Comment by Bob — 3 September 2008 @ 12:05 pmIs this the definitive “odour of sanctity”?
Comment by Christabel — 3 September 2008 @ 12:06 pmThis cologne is very gentle and elegant, and has a kind of mild sweet orange smell. I think Father Z you will like it. The only thing I dislike is that the bottle does not have the spray tube.
Comment by Theodorus — 3 September 2008 @ 12:07 pmFather,
I wear this cologne almost everyday. It’s pleasant enough, and, according to the maker, it lacks the scents associated with eroticism and romantic love, commonly found in normal colognes. Allegedly, that’s why the Pope had this made.
Comment by Eric — 3 September 2008 @ 12:34 pmFather, I wear this to Mass every Sunday. As others have already said, it has a very pleasant smell—I’ve been complimented on it on more than a few occasions.
Comment by Quaesumus — 3 September 2008 @ 12:34 pmI’m pretty sure I know what my priest is getting for Christmas now.
Comment by Jayna — 3 September 2008 @ 12:46 pmIt was given to me for a Christmas present this year and it has a very nice, almost citrus aroma to it.
Comment by Father Bartoloma — 3 September 2008 @ 1:08 pmBelieve it or not, a fan from EWTN sent me a bottle for Christmas. Smells like a blend of incense and basalm (used to make Chrism), but much toned down, of course. When I ran out, I went back to Old Spice.
Comment by Father John Trigilio, Jr — 3 September 2008 @ 1:17 pmAsperges me Sapo Hyssopo™. Funny.
Comment by Jimbo — 3 September 2008 @ 1:36 pmI would put it on my wish list… but… well…
well… “I ain’t da POPE”
Think of it sort of like Michael Jordan cologne, Fr. Z. You don’t have to be Mike to wear the scent, although its okay to have Mike-like aspirations. Or perspirations. Or…hrm.
Comment by Jimbo — 3 September 2008 @ 1:53 pmHeheheheh… Fr. Finigan of Blackfen actually got some… though I don’t think he has ever worn it!
(You can ask to check it out when you visit!)
Comment by Mac McLernon — 3 September 2008 @ 2:02 pmThe man who makes this cologne is Dr. Fred Haas, a devout Catholic and a medical doctor. He was featured on CBS Sunday Morning show a few months ago. Researching and making perfumes is his hobby. It is quite legitimate and I was impressed by the story. Perhaps American Papist will be more gentle with their presentation of Dr. Haas’ Cologne. Let’s offer prayers for Dr. Haas and his beautiful family.
Comment by Alan — 3 September 2008 @ 2:03 pmOne of my very last bad habits (yea, right!) is my passion for good cologne (and good cigars and good bourbon and good books). When I was “in the world” and making enough money to spend it on cologne, I bought three or four different brands a season, easily. Now, I have exactly three colognes. (I gave away a LOT of the stuff before I joined the Order and again before I moved to Rome). Sometimes, some of my more austere brothers will make a side comment about my “odor,” but I find that most lay folks seem to appreciate my wafting-scents. Fr. Philip, OP
Comment by PNP, OP — 3 September 2008 @ 2:39 pmYes, I got some when it came out. It is in a drawer somewhere. Must sprinkle some around to keep the gnats at bay :-)
Comment by Fr Tim Finigan — 3 September 2008 @ 3:18 pmI wondered what it smelled like when I saw it somewhere. thank u for the review!
Comment by Coletta — 3 September 2008 @ 3:44 pmSo… what’s the consensus… should I put this on the wishlist?
Comment by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf — 3 September 2008 @ 4:29 pmYes!
Comment by JR — 3 September 2008 @ 4:56 pmOoooo… You could wear it with those beautiful new vestments!
Comment by JR — 3 September 2008 @ 4:57 pmFr., they were selling it at Leaflet Missal. You could check it out next time you’re in town.
Comment by john — 3 September 2008 @ 5:39 pmI wear it sometimes—the smell goes pretty well with incense (our priest at the TLM here loves to use a lot).
Comment by Rob — 3 September 2008 @ 6:04 pmYES!
Comment by marc — 3 September 2008 @ 6:48 pmYes!
Comment by joy — 3 September 2008 @ 7:50 pmYES!
Comment by Jimbo — 3 September 2008 @ 7:57 pmYes! And then give us your opinion! Perhaps if Fr. Finigan actually wore it he might improve his ratings on Paddy Power. Wear it on a visit to the Nunciature and he might get Westminster.
Comment by David O'Rourke — 3 September 2008 @ 11:23 pmDefinitely yes!
Comment by Theodorus — 4 September 2008 @ 2:46 amFr Phillip, curious as to which three colognes you kept behind?
Comment by Tod — 4 September 2008 @ 11:53 amBut distilling stuff is a very monkish sort of thing to do, and medievals felt that perfume could be medically desirable as a therapy (besides just making money for the monastery). So it all ties together. :)
Comment by Maureen — 4 September 2008 @ 2:41 pmI make The Pope’s Cologne from the private formula of Pius IX. It is an aristocratic, Old World cologne with surprising freshness. It isn’t some joke like “Pope on a Rope”. It provides an interesting look into the mid 19th century, a very important time in the history of the Church.
At first I thought it strange that a pope would be wearing cologne but in my research, I found that it was very fashionable at the time for aristocrats to have their own perfumers compose colognes for them. And Giovanni Maria Mastai-Ferretti was an aristocrat.
It is really a nice aftershave and my three sons and I all wear it.
I hope some of you readers may be able to enjoy it.
I would also point out that it is available online at our website
http://www.thepopescologne.com
Shipping is FREE and there is a FREE newsletter in addition to interesting images of Blessed Pius IX.
Fred Hass
Comment by Fred Hass — 4 September 2008 @ 8:24 pmExcelsis