TomWooton

UPDATE. Guerlain Vetiver eau de toilette is a masterpiece, it's part of my personality after 40 years. It is good daytime, nighttime, formal, casual, all seasons. It's good to do this now and then I guess. Screw these below though, putting them in the guest house.
Been wearing Nautica Voyage for about a week now. I was not in love with it first spray. Thought I'd give it a little time because everybody else is in love with it. My cheapie tooling around in the yard has been Aspen for a couple months. Just tying other stuff for just hanging out. My signature fragrance the rest of the time has been Guerlain Vetiver eau de toilette (for 40 years). Aspen smells like fresh laundry, drying in a pasture. Up front, a little bit like laundry detergent. The dry down really pulls off the Green Irish Tweed vibe nicely though. Nautica Voyage on the other hand, to me does not smell oceanic, it smells more like a froggy pond. It's not a clean smell in my opinion. If I fall in a pond, I want to take a shower afterwards to get that smell off. I would put some on in the morning after my shower (one spray back of neck) and my wife that night would find it overbearing in bed. It really sticks your skin forever. I think my conclusion is that it's very high quality for the price, but it's not for me.

First off, let me tell you all where I'm coming from. My signature fragrance for over 45 years has been Guerlain Vetiver eau de toilette. So, I like very modest, masculine fragrances. Recently I gave Aspen Cologne a shot because I felt I needed something less expensive to play in around the yard and I'm overwhelmed how nice the dry down is. Very, very upscale for something so cheap. The top is a little sharp and artificial, but that burns off quickly and the dry down is just wonderful. So, I saw these wonderful, overwhelming reviews here on Lomani pour Homme saying it was "barber shop, masculine, understated, and signature scent material" and I said maybe I'll give this a shot too. It's $10 what can I lose? You guys...you guys....LOL!!!...I'm sorry but this does not smell "barbershop, or masculine...this smells exactly like sterilized gauze, band aids, ect. Doesn't smell like any shaving cream I've ever smelled? It's not that it smells bad. It smells clean (surgically sterilized), but this is just not something you would want to wear. It smells exactly like the emergency room. It's not at all classic or traditional in in any sense of the word. If this is what Drakkar Noir smells like. Holy cow man. LOL!!!!! Sorry but wow...I mean really wow.

On top a little sharp, artificial, projects a little too much for my taste, then the dry down is a very pleasant upmarket surprise. It's GIT or as good in the dry down for all practical purposes. It lasts a solid 8 hours on me and then some. After about three and a half hours a skin sent but very much there for close handshake or hug. My signature fragrance for 45 years has been Guerlain Vetiver eau de toilette. I'm very hard to please and this is quite a departure. I spray only twice on my neck after shower (terrible sprayer sprays 1/2 what most others do). That's probably because after 45 years I'm used to the modest, extreme sobriety and low projection of Guerlain Vetiver eau de toilette. This is understated, clean, classic, fantastic stuff for 10 bucks!!! GREAT for after a shower and just playing around in the yard or whatever 65% of the time. Use your $100+ signature fragrance the rest of the time.

Guerlain Vetiver eau de toilette has been my signature fragrance for 45 years. I consider it a masterpiece. Still open to new things, but unfortunately it seems that this perfume version is pointless. It last about the same as the EDT. It doesn't have the depth or complexity of the EDT. I'm not a fan of boozy (Gin) licorice, juniper berry with Vetiver. It's just a kind of flat, sweeter, almost no tobacco. Just another sweet, linear Vetiver fragrance. I don't see what the point is. This is not on par with what one would expect from Guerlain. Very disappointed.

Without getting too technical... It hasn't changed much; however, it does change some with age. Top citrus dies out some. Perception of tobacco goes up. Honestly, Guerlain (unlike most) is an exceptional house with a lot of integrity. They know their customers generation after generation. They are not going to mess with their iconic show pony. So, here is my take on what matters; Guerlain Vetiver for me is handsome, sober, modest, well mannered, restrained, comfortable, not overly emotional, not effervescent or giddy. It's the smell of black-tie parties in The Garden District in New Orleans and South of Broad in Charleston. It's a pair of jeans and a white oxford cloth shirt barefoot on a warm spring day. It's the smell of an unlit Cohiba under your nose. It's the smell of mowing the lawn in the morning. It's the smell of sawing lumber that gets slightly burnt. It's what my dad wore, what I've worn for the last 45 years and what my two sons wear. 1 spray, not 3 or 4. One at 7am and another one for after 6pm. I have tried other things over the years, I don't want to be close minded, but they don't complete the picture I just described. In particular the sobriety of Guerlain Vetiver that today's newer men's fragrances don't have. They smell clean, fresh and great for a few minutes and then quickly turn silly, immature and not be taken seriously. Dime a dozen. I'm not a stick in the mud, far from it. I'm just not a pushover and I never want to come across as one. Another thing...wear an unscented deodorant, plain castile soap or maybe Dial original. Make sure you don't layer any other scents. You don't want to cover up the quiet, very complex subtleties of Guerlain Vetiver. This is not a screamer. It doesn't project very far, and that's exactly what I want. However, it does lasts 8-10 hours about 15 inches away. Close handshake or hug distance. Distinct, noticeable, wonderful...but quietly and well behaved. I don't want a fragrance preceding me or following me. I want it to be smelled unconsciously, effortlessly and become a part of me. Guerlain Vetiver is a masterpiece. Handsome, sophisticated, clean, well-groomed but not pretty. Remarkable!