I'm sorry to all the legions of wearers who love #19, but to me it's terrible! Awful! I've tried both EDP and EDT and dislike both. It's not even like perfume at all -- it's harsh, biting, chemically, & astringent. I sniff the bottle and practically recoil from the pungent fumes.

To me, It smells just like Pine Sol cleaner.

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This fragrance is very light, very fresh, very green!!! Its as if im in a rainforest with its fresh dew aroma. The scent is mild and refreshing but the staying power is quite disappointing. Not long lasting on me. Love.love.love

Beautiful muted green, grassy fragrance, and I still smell a bit of leather. Both simple and complex, and beautifully blended. Makes me think of urban settings, perhaps a bit of rain and a chic trenchcoat. Unfortunately it's too pale on me with weak lasting power. Otherwise it's divine.

I have a sample of this, and it smells exactly like a hospital. I mean, it's uncanny. It smells like their cleaning disinfectant. I'll pass on this.

The smell is really really nice. It is light and useful for both everyday casual use as well as usable at nicer events too.

Lasting power is not very good though, but maybe it is because I have the EDT. It sounds from the reviews that the EDP is much better so perhaps after I am done with my giant bottle of this perfume, I might go for the EDP.

The bottle, packaging, and the light green color of the perfume makes for a really classic, cultured look. I love the simple design.

It smells better on some people than others.

IMHO,this is for someone, who knows: it doesn't always have to be about sex (this being said by a person, who wears Boudoir as the signature scent). Sometimes you just want to rise above it, detach yourself from the carnal and dream through the day about something abstract, lay out some plans for the future, focus on tasks that are hard to accomplish but promise a deserved reward, sort that cluttered wardrobe bursting at the seams, carefully wrap a mountain of Xmas presents, go through the accumulated mail and then enjoy a nice chille glas of white while observing the restored order around you. Then, a few hous later, you can change into something cosier, let your hair down for the evening and reach for COCO instead.
I need these kind of days from time to time, badly. And nr. 19 helps me feel like a grownup, like someone who is in control, like someone who is every day a little better a person that he/she was yesterday.
This perfume is highly intellectual, rather minimalistic, demanding high amount of style and understatedness, that usually go hand in hand anyway. It's not icy-green, but rather a chilled green, like a mossy pond in the twilight, and it abandons its sharpness quite quickly, becoming a shimmering green with a whiff of something lilac when you move. A day spent shopping on high end things ( where you need to at least seem confident and qualified enough to bargain ), library events, a job interview, a visit to a gallery/museum on a sunny afternoon, and a classic - a formal sunday brunch/dinner in a casual atmosphere, where something has to keep you from slumping in your chair and crossing legs, which is still considered a pose of familiarity in serious business circles. For a highly sensuous person like me it's a must, if you don't have a strict, albeit well-meaning, mother that gives your back a mighty slap when you were just about to slouch.
City association: New York ( if 19 was a building, it would be the infamous Flatiron in NY! )
Persona association: Queen of Great Britain!!!!!!!!!

A very unique skin scent, with moss, green and leather notes. No sweetness here, just a caressing cashmere feel. The bottle is modern, somewhat art deco elegance. No fru fru embellishments here. Just an "intellectual' fragrance. Although I always come back to this scent, its lasting power is very disappointing.

First off, I am a male (23-years-old) and I absolutely love this fragrance (the eau du toilette). Whenever I wear it people ALWAYS ask me what I'm wearing and comment on its sophistication/elegance/allure.
 
I personally think this fragrance is better-suited for the wintertime—not just because it is very heavy, but I find that it lasts better in the cold.
 
I am not the best at describing fragrances, but this is what No. 19 smells like to me:
The fragrance opens very big—it has a sharp, distinct smokiness that is undercut by what I think smells like dried irises. It isn't floral at all, though. It is more woody and leathery. As the fragrance develops it maintains its smokiness, but it becomes more subtle, and crosses over somewhat into the 'powdery and green' domain. Some people have commented on how No. 19 disappears on them, but when I spray it (3 on front of neck, once on back of neck, once on each wrist, and two across the collar of my shirt) it never seems to quit. I'd go as far as saying the longevity of this fragrance on me is upwards of 15 hours. And I live in Toronto (lots of pollution and other "city scents"). Also, the scent NEVER leaves your clothing. If you want to leave a nice trail wherever you go, I'd suggest spraying it a few times on a scarf or a jacket.
 
Overall, No. 19 is a very elegant, very cold/aloof fragrance that lets everyone around you know who's boss.

Chanel no 19 conjures A rainy Sunday morning with gray skies on a lush Irish
moors with the musk of pure green grass damp from a early morning rain.
With the Morning mist blown from the sea
breaks the darkness of night into the new
dawn with some instinct you begin wondering around feeling the refreshing
texture of the green grass beneath your
bare feet you start to be aware of your
senses around you you smell the sharp
bright scent of bergamot and spicy hyacinth to awake your senses.
Then you hear the most haunting tune of
church bells your entranced by the clear
and most purest bells that chime you see
the most beautiful Celtic Cross made of
white stone and beautiful purple irises
and pale pink that adorn the alter of the Virgin Mary and the vivid color of
the ancient Celtic Illuminated Book of
Kells.

Chanel no 19 has a beautiful Earthiness
that is not comely sluttish or flamboyant it's a simple and pure scent
with a spiritual tone.

First of all, I really don't get the hype of chanel 19, it's good but it's not great. It was very pricey for me and my mother liked it better. If it were a gift, I'd be very happy to receive it but I'd not wear it every single day. The scent is not as heavy as Coco Mademoiselle or Coco Chanel, it is slightly more subtle, and is definitely powdery. It does not stay that long on my wrists, perhaps because I live in place that is humid making the scent go away in only 3 hours. Let's just say that Chanel no 19 is aimed for an older version of me, a person that yearns for freedom.