What is your favorite cologne or perfume?

Rep. Jean Schmidt (R-Ohio): “Shalimar — an oldie but a goodie. I wore Giorgio today. I didn’t think [Shalimar] fit the mood of the outfit [an orange blazer, a bright orange bow in her hair and cream trousers]. The one I won’t wear, in deference to my late mother, is Wind Song [perfume by Prince Matchabelli]. She didn’t like it on me. I have a bottle, but I won’t wear it.”

Rep. Henry Brown Jr. (R-S.C.): “Smell it,” he says, leaning his neck forward. “Do you like it? Down South … there’s nothing flirtatious about it. My wife knows all the details. She buys it.” [Just then, Brown makes a cell phone call to wife, Billye]. “What’s the name of my cologne?” he asks her. She tells him it’s Curve by Liz Claiborne.

Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.): “It comes in a green bottle. I think it’s Polo by Ralph Lauren.”

Rep. Jack Kingston (R-Ga.): “Essence of Right Guard.”

Rep. Shelley Berkley (D-Nev.): “Vernini. You can only get it at the Vernini store. I have three in my district.”

Rep. Diane Watson (D-Calif.): “White Musk oil. I get it from the Body Shop.”

Rep. Phil Hare (D-Ill.): “I like Obsession. That’s the men’s stuff. My sister gives it to me every year. Socks for the birthday. Obsession for Christmas.”

Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah): “Tabac. It’s made in Germany. I have a rough time buying it. Or Obsession, that’s good too.”

Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.): “I don’t wear it. I’m allergic to a lot of the sweet smells.”

Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.): “My wife and daughter gave me Obsession two years in a row. I wear it occasionally when I go out.”

Sen. Pete Domenici (R-N.M.): “It’s terrific. Years ago, it was a present from Elizabeth Dole [R-N.C.].” [The senator’s wife, Nancy, had to be contacted regarding the name of the cologne. She says it’s either Brut, Musk or Perry Ellis — he wears them all.]

Rep. José Serrano (D-N.Y.): “Drrrrakkkarrrr [Drakkar] and Calvin Klein. I have an affinity for black bottles. Years ago I used to go for Serrano, a cologne made by Swank, but they stopped making it. It was terrible.”

Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.): “It’s a favorite. Jeez, what’s the name of that stuff? I just got it. Holy smokes. … Obsession. My wife likes it, so I like it.”

Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kan.): “Old Spice. [Laughs] That’s kind of an old one, isn’t it?”

Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.): “Norell.”

Rep. Bob Etheridge (D-N.C.): “When I wear it, Old Spice. But never too much.”

Rep. Dave Reichert (R-Wash.): “I wear whatever is sitting on my bathroom counter. My wife and kids buy different colognes. I have no idea what they are. It doesn’t matter. I just slap something on so I smell like I took a shower.”

Rep. Thaddeus McCotter (R-Mich.): Asked whether he has a favorite cologne, the congressman says, “Not particularly,” then asks, “Does it matter what kind of perfume you put on a pig?”

Rep. Robert Brady (D-Pa.): “Whatever my family buys me, I wear. [Sometimes] Obsession for men. I like Joop. Every year we have a Pollyanna [a holiday gift exchange] and I get cologne. I put in my cologne and I get my Joop.”

Rep. Tom Feeney (R-Fla.): “I’m still stuck back in the 1960s. Brut is one I probably use the most.”

Rep. Carolyn Kilpatrick (D-Mich.): “Lalique. It’s French.”