Aramis Devin

Woody Earthy Chypre Aramis Devin--straight out I like this very much! It is winter now and it works great on my skin in cold temperatures. It is very comforting and even cuddly to my nose, but I live for woody perfumes. Also, I am a woman, but tend to gravitate to woody, chypre, unsweetened perfumes. So what is going on in Devin? First, it does open up with a lot of pine, with maybe a hint of citruses & bergamot around the edges, the way that fresh pine needles can have an orangey citrus undertone to them. The pine is strongest in the topnotes, and then it does a slow fade throughout the wear of the perfume. I think the galbanum takes up where the pine leaves off. The leather is also there, and I have to warn everyone, the leather is kind of sweaty. Yes, there is a sweat note in Devin. Very clean sweat, not skanky in the least, but the sweat note is evident for at least an hour. The heart is my favorite part. Devin is really spicy, but earthy spicy, not kitchen spicy. It reminds me somewhat of a transition zone, where the desert meets the mountains. I can smell a dry sage/herbal note, along with cinnamon and nutmeg, and fresh soil, mossy & woody, the caraway and artemesia working together, all sun warmed and alpine, these are not dank northern forests, but captures the way I imagine New Mexico would smell, a hint of conifers in the air. I really can't smell any carnation, but there is a strong floral note, jasmine, it's more sweet and less white/indolic. At this point the floral notes are stronger than the green/pine notes, and the dry leather note is still hanging on in the background. As it dries Devin becomes more and more woody, the floral notes fall away, and the leather comes out again (but not the sweat lol.) There is a LOT of oakmoss, vetiver and cedar in here. If you love oakmoss take note, I bought my bottle last year, it is made in the UK, and Evernia Prunastri is listed halfway down the ingredients list! Yay! Devin is still a REAL CHYPRE. Really I don't smell that much patchouli in here, the drydown doesn't disintegrate into laundry musk, it's a real wood drydown. Devin has moderate silage with 3 or 4 sprays, and lasts 6+ hours on me. _____ Review is over, but here are the rest of my thoughts. Again fragrance has no gender, I do get that this is a perfectly masculine perfume, but I think that if you are a woman who likes older style fragrances, woody perfumes, and Aromatics Elixir, you should try this. If you're an oakmoss huffer like myself you should also try it--100 mls can be had for $30 or less. If you're a man and want a woody perfume, instead of an ozonic/calonic type thing check this out, there are no aquatic notes in here at all. Devin DOES smell like Aliage, but it smells like the reformulated Aliage, not the original kind. It is primarily woody and then green (old Aliage is primarily green and then woody.) So--who orchestrated the reformulated Aliage? Bernard Chant is sometimes credited with creating Aliage, sometimes not, but I believe that it was reformulated after he died. So where does this all fit in? I also have no idea what Devin originally smelled like, so it's weird that both perfumes have been formulated to smell alike. But then again they are both owned by Estee Lauder so maybe that's the explanation. Perfume mysteries...

I am outdoorsman, a naturalist, a conservationist. I am the type that when walking in the woods I really like to drink it all in. I see a log with moss and lichen, mushrooms covering it, I get in close, examine it, am in awe of its splendor. I am in love with everything from the haunting calls of the whippoorwills and loons to the morbid, mysterious beauty of carrion beetles carrying out their work. I admire the whole picture, the good, the beautiful, the bad, the ugly, and how all the tints and hues come together to spell out "home" to me. This is why Devin is so beautiful to me. The genius of Bernard Chant is that in his works, he tapped into all of these qualities, thereby making his work smell so natural that the average Joe may be taken aback: "this doesn't smell clean, this isn't safe and antiseptic. This isn't right. I am a city man, what do you take me for?" This will certainly not appeal to the 'blue' fragrance lovers of today (at least not until their noses acquire a taste for more complexity and artistry in scent); we currently live in a time where nuance and dynamism is shunned in favor of Disney versions of the natural realm. Devin was through much of its existence presented as a 'country' eau de cologne, almost as a disclaimer. This has since been removed from the labeling of newer formulations, but the fragrance remains primarily intact. I have an older bottle that just sings the praises of all that is agrestic, raw, rugged (tall pines, herbs, weeds, and grasses, and animalic leather/labdanum), yet vulnerable and tender under the surface (florals, jasmine, lavender, an understated sweetness). The pine note is the real stand-out for me: it is not a hackneyed Isobornyl Acetate heavy accord but rather a more dynamic pine of needles, resins, sap, bark, wood. We do know that pine and artemisia were often paired together in men's chypres of the day (Quorum and the like), but here, they really somehow stand out as Technicolor, albeit with many muted and tawny shades thrown in. The galbanum brings out the truly green and sappy qualities of pine needles and broken leaves. The cinnamon is far from candied and rough; it really brings out the woodier qualities of pine. If you have graduated from simpler and hopelessly accessible scents and want to explore something simultaneously thought-provoking and a source of primal pleasure, then Devin is a logical progression in your fragrance journey. Applied with a light hand, this will likely be appreciated by others around you, too. The word "classic" has been mentioned 33 other times so far in the review, and it comes as no surprise. Devin is one of the most beautiful men's fragrances I've smelled, simple as that. It brings a whole new meaning to "taking the rough with the smooth." 10/10

I've tried several from the Aramis Gentleman's range, all of which I've enjoyed. However, this stands out for me as something unique. To my nose, there are two elements to this fragrance. Firstly, it's damp, autumnal foliage, country lanes and woodland walks. Secondly, it smells like horses: steaming horse bodies, leather saddles, dung and all. It's both fresh and dirty, and most definitely outdoorsy. Many on here have said it's masculine, but personally I find it to be perfectly unisex. As a man in my mid-30s, I'd enjoy wearing this for days out in the country, but I'd also find it extremely sexy on a woman. The horsey facets conjure jodhpur and Barbour jacket-wearing country girls who stink of horse. Longevity varies, and to be honest I wish it was a little better in this area, but yesterday I could still smell it on the back of my wrist 8 hours after applying, which included a sweaty 3-mile bicycle commute. But, as it's available online for around £20 for 100ml, it's cheap enough to reapply once or twice in a day. EDIT: Got myself a full bottle from Notino, and sadly I suspect it may have suffered from a reformulation. I'm hoping it's just the cold weather affecting performance, but the dirty, vegetal and animalic aromas that were so juicy and fresh when I wrote the above review seem to have been dumbed down. Something appears to be missing or greatly reduced, perhaps oak moss due to EU regulations. It's a shame. Devin, and its sister scent Alliage, have the potential to be the King and Queen of green masterpieces, but sadly it's looking like they will be reformulated out of existence and confined to history by government interference. EDIT 2: I conducted some further research by testing the juice from sampler bottles at Debenhams and House of Fraser, and they were both deliciously vibrant, natural-smelling and multidimensional. My recent purchase from Notino, on the other hand, is a shockingly flat, lifeless and synthetic version of this former masterwork. I'm truly gutted that I have discovered this scent during its demise and have been duped with a pale imitation of the wonderful original. It's like ordering fresh tomatoes on the vine and being given tinned tomatoes.

I've had this for somewhere around three or four years. I don't wear it very often; it favours the cooler months and anyway I'm aware that not everyone I meet is going to like it (whether or not my reaction to that knowledge is to presume I'm superior to them, make them smell it anyway, get arrested for calling them sissies and punching them, etc.--the usual fraghead sociopathy). All the same, I think that either this stuff is improving with age, from what was already a good baseline (perhaps becoming more integrated, rounded and so on, while not losing any impact but conceivably even gaining a little cred by virtue of smelling less--thin or something), or I just increasingly appreciate it. I live in the city but come from a tiny village, and this stuff appeals to the country side of me, even though I can't say that I've ever smelt anything exactly like it in the country. Also I was recently complimented on my "drover style"--full-length cowboy-friendly coat, distressed leather fedora, etc.--and this stuff fits very well with that. This is in no way hobo or shabby chic to me but I do think it works well on a guy (perhaps especially a guy) with an outdoor spirit, with the outdoors in question probably being somewhere temperate, well west and north of--I don't know--Jordan, maybe. I like Lalique's Equus as well and the two fragrances appeal to the country side of me in slightly different ways. Equus is kind of hay-like and a little zesty. Devin has more of a kind of fresh, green smell to my nose and has a whole bunch of meadowy notes judiciously included for good measure. Devin is perhaps more an English or Irish field in cool weather, while Equus wouldn't seem out of place on The Horse Whisperer. P.S. @Snifflord Sex Panther? Seriously? You're getting that from Devin? You should probably steer well clear of anything that actually smells animalic then. That should be a few decades' worth of fragrances neatly ruled out for you. Congratulations if you do get to miss out on this and all Bernard Chant's other supremely rich, evocative creations.

This was my main fragrance in my early 80's teen years, a dear girlfriend bought it me and I've adored it since. I'm lucky, I still have 2 unopened bottles of the original formulation Country EDC and the Light Sporting EDC. A while ago I found a bottle of the reformulated EDC from the Gentleman's collection at a reasonable price, and I will compare them directly. Firstly this is a Bernard Chant classic and a unique fragrance, the comparison to Aliage and Yatagan are off, yes you can see some similar elements within them, but as a complete fragrance they are not close at all and someone trying them as a replacement for Devin may well be disappointed. Now the comparison: When I first sprayed the reformulated Devin I was pleasantly surprised, it has that initial powerful burst of piney, lemon, orange and wonderful aldehydes. The dry-down progresses into the leathery amber, cedar and patchouli notes nicely, but it is the deeper woody musky and oakmoss notes where the reformulation struggles, it just never reaches the depth and tenacity of the original formulation and that is reflected in it's lack of longevity. The initial 2.5 hours are where the reformulation is very close to the original after that it fades rapidly with little of the residual woody leather notes this fragrance is known for. In short it lacks the depth and tenacity of the original and has questionable longevity and sillage outside of that first 2.5 hours in my experience. In many respects this reminds me of the original Light Sporting EDC. Not as good as the heavyweight original formulation? I think that depends on your expectations and how much longevity is important to you. I'd still recommend getting it to experience the genius of Bernard Chant and a unique fragrance that really is a masterpiece even though that title often misused on here IMO.

"Devin" is derived from an Irish name that is difficult to pronounce, so I won't try. It means both "fawn" and "poet", which is very appropriate for this fragrance. At times it has been known as "Devin Country" or "Devin, Country Cologne". This is also appropriate. First and foremost, this fragrance is ANIMALIC. The most noticable notes are the galbanum and labdanum, plant extracts that mimic animal musk. Aramis Devin's animal character could give Kouros a run for its money. It has that in common with it's predecessor, Aramis original. I have read that both Devin and Caron's Yatagan (which it is often compared to) have a common inspiration in a fragrance called Aromatics Elixir. So for those of you that like Devin, there is a lot to appreciate about Yatagan, and vice versa. Owning one does not make the other redundant as they are both different interpretations of the same concept. Yatagan is a brighter scent--like the steel of the Yatagan sword-- whereas Devin is more murky. Devin brings to mind a cloudy day in spring, just after the rain; when the leaden sky makes the new growth look fluorescent green by contrast. You are riding a horse down a muddy country road. The aroma of the animal is foremost in your perception. Second is the earthy smell of the clay beneath its hooves. The breeze brings the scent of wet vegetation and the perfume of flowers like wisteria, jasmine and honeysuckle. Devin would suit only the boldest of characters. I think a woman could wear it just as well as a man, especially if her favorite place in the world is in the saddle. This is a scent for people who love nature, the outdoors and getting their hands dirty. It runs completely counter to today's trend of clean laundry and fresh cut citrus. Devin is for people with callouses on their hands, especially from handling the reins.

I have deleted and re edited this post as my first review did this amazing fragrance a complete injustice. Opens up with an instant surprising, almost "blast in your face" note of what is in my opinion beautifully sweetened "Khaki Bos", a weed in South Africa. I have discovered that this is more than likely the Artemisia that is dancing here. (Not that I am familiar with this note in its singular capacity.) Then it quickly settles down into a clean fresh, gentle bouquet of bouncy floral, but un-feminine middle notes. In imaginary terms, almost as a butterfly would skip between violet and yellow petals. I see a bright fresh “yellow” in my mind’s eye while savoring Devin’s glory. The long lasting dry down is a warm, invigorating evening sunset. I am not going to try to describe the notes in detail here as I may fail again. I used to wear this in the eighties when it was almost legendary in my quarters. I was completely sold out on it back then and received positive feedback. It made me feel alive and invigorated almost how I imagine aroma therapy to affect me. Devin leans more towards the masculine side, but there is a slight “feminine” element lurking there. This is not off putting at all. Despite being launched in 1977, Devin (even love the name) is a timeless masterpiece and yet modern enough to stand up, in terms of quality, with many of the more recent releases on the shelves now days. I will definitely buy this brilliant nectar again just to have in my wardrobe to feel special. Simply genius in a bottle! One of the best from the house of Aramis. Highly, highly recommended! A solid 4.6/5.

This is one of those scents that you have to try a couple times to appreciate what's going on. I have to admit to being a fan of Aramis colognes in general, I have five fragrances from this house and find them all very different from each other, in a world where flankers are all over the place it's great to see a brand that diversifies its scents. "Devin" is very different to others I have tried in that it is a calming outdoor scent, if that makes any sense. The first blast is quite sharp and you might be inclined to think that you would not like it initially, after a few minutes the ingredients settle with each other and form a wonderfully fresh scent, as the name implies, similar to a fresh country smell on a mild day (perhaps after some rain). I live in Ireland and grew up in a semi-rural area, I currently live in a city center and like to put this on after getting back in from a days work, like I'm reconnecting with my roots and back where I grew up. Projection and Longevity is average with me but the scent is just so good that I can't help but love it. Be warned however that this is probably not for everybody, it is a masculine scent that is more authoritative than all this metro-sexual hodgepodge that a lot of companies throw out these days. On that note, my Father is a total outdoors guy, Hiking, Fishing etc, I always see him as a modern Jeremiah Johnson, I bought an extra bottle of this Fragrance as a present for him so that kind of sums up what I mean, It's a fragrance for an outdoors guy with a connection to nature. Two Thumbs Up! :)

You see the term masterpiece used so often in fragrance reviews that it's impact has become dilute, this fragrance represents everything that it should envisage. This was my signature fragrance throughout the 80's and I reacquainted myself with it last year, a reformulated bottle. While initially enthralling it lacked the depth, transitions, and longevity I remembered. The aldehydes, darker green pine notes and musky leather were there, but fleeting. Overall a decent representation/reformulation it lacked the boldness and dry-down complexity of the original. Recently I tracked down a bottle of the original and now own both so I hope this comparison proves useful. Vintage bottles are not cheap or easy to find but I highly recommend getting one if you want to experience Devin as Bernard Chant intended it. If you are a fan of floral aldehydic green leather chypres you can get a vintage bottle of this for less than the latest hype/fad fragrance and enjoy a truly unique scent that will get you noticed. You're a Lion/Lioness, not a sheep.

This fragrance came out right before I was born. It was such a rare name that my mom bought my some when I got a bit older. I loved the name but to be honest, I did NOT like the fragrance at all. Which makes sense, being a 12 yr old kid. I bought another bottle a few years back not expecting to like it, but just for nostalgia sake. But this time I really got attached. Opening notes are still not my favorite, but after about 10-15 minutes, it settles down very nicely into the cinnamon and pine. After an hour or so, it's deep in the rich leather and moss-y smell. A small hint of obsession/oriental in it. But much more classic Irish countryside or East Coast prep school type vibe. Devin probably takes me on more of a journey than almost any of the other fragrances I have ever worn. I love smelling my wrist occasionally and seeing where in the journey I am at that moment. Definitely a scent for more of an experienced nose. So glad I revisited. My 12 year old self just wasn't ready but now it's one of my favorites.

A gorgeous, luxurious, and eminently affordable green leather chypre (from the amazing mind and nose of Bernard Chant). You can smell easily what this has in common with two of his other most famous chypres from this line also designed by the legendary Chant: the original Aramis by Aramis, and the lovely rose-leather chypre Amaris 900. Since both those fragrances are so beautiful and so highly affordable, any man interested in fragrances who likes chypres should buy all three. The green leather chypre is my favorite genre among fragrances, but many of them are so overwhelmingly funky (like the original Aramis by Aramis, Cabochard by Gres, and Dryad by Papillon) that I only dare wear them around the house. This is so much lighter that you could easily wear it day or night (though it may still yet be a little too earthy for the workplace). The dominant notes are the leather and the beautiful galbanum, although the accompanying lighter florals do much to soften it. This is such a steal!

An Aramis devotee, I began wearing Devin soon after it was introduced in 1978, really liked it myself, and received lots of compliments on it. I bought some Aramis at Gayfer's (now Dillard's) in Cordova Mall in Pensacola soon after my commissioning into the Navy. The young lady assisting me stretched the rules and gave me a set that was supposed to be a GWP with a different purchase (she made an empathetic comment about understanding what "just starting out" was like). Its pastoral, country scent immediately resonated with my rural upbringing. It reminds me of The Quiet Man, the Irish countryside, tweed, pleasure cycling, and fly fishing. Devin was my second item from the Aramis line and solidified my longstanding relationship with the Estēe Lauder Companies (in addition to Aramis, Clinique for Men and Lab Series are other ELC brands I've used for years). I'm happy Devin is still around.

Ok boys, it's 2020 now, and you can't have this all to yourself!! I've got two bottles from the 70's/80's and I'm in love. This is certainly what you would call "old school" nowadays, but in no way is it outdated! My boyfriend in high school used to wear this and so I was curious if it was as I remembered. I think it's even better! It doesn't smell stinky or like horse poo (as some say) at all. I would follow someone down the street to ask what they were wearing if they had this on. I can definitely get the "country" picture they were going for here because I used to ride horses. The smell of the horses, the barn, tack, leather, hay and herbal countryside while riding are all in here but in no way stinky! DE-LICIOUS! But for now, this very smooth, herbally masculine love potion is going on MY skin. Ahhh memories. Now where the hell are you, George?

I always found a good companion in an Aramis perfume - starting with the classic Aramis for men, still one of my favorites. Devin is a meritorious member of his family. I have the new formulation - eau de cologne -, in the Gentleman's Collection. It is a strong, dry and bold scent, for a confident man. I smell it as perfect for the daytime. It exudes calmness and coolness - signaling a man who have all things under a firm control. Pine needles and bitter orange are the stars of the composition - both on a leathery base. Just perfect for the spring to come. Sometimes, it reminds me another classic - Caron's Yatagan. Sometimes, it seems to be a "cousin" of Givenchy's Gentleman. But, all that being said, Devin remains an unique chypre aromatic, a legend for all ages. A deserved 9/10.

Beautiful, tender and emotional. Genius Bernard Chant... this is a masterpiece. The sound of birds, the fresh air of the forest, the tenderness of the raindrops, hand in hand with the lover, everything is beautiful and peaceful. A lovely misty day in the 70s somewhere far from cities. Two lovers in each other's arms, under the Beaver fur. After a long horse ride, early morning in spring. And they only have one horse... All the beauties of nature are shown realistically in this magnificent scent. The fact that you can buy such a great masterpiece for so little money, is mind blowing. Performance is not great but it’s not bad either. 6/10 The time that you can experience it’s full beauty is not that long. I can't say how much i love it, so, bbye ( Review based on 2018 bottle )

I feel that this entire section should have an asterisk.These grades, judgements, and opinions are for 2 distinctly different formulas. It became obvious when I Sillage and Longevity were moderate. With Original DEVIN 4 sprays directly on the skin would be noticeable on Friday regardless of daily showers and the "good value" is misleading. With a pricepoint that could easily exceed $400 for 3.7oz, it is worth it but could hardly be considered affordable. Yet, all the above ratings fall directly in line with the current formula. If these 2 formulas both named DEVIN both colognes met on the playground, they would not be friends right away and if they came to blows 1977 DEVIN wins 10 out of 10. Totally different Strength, Fortitude, Character, and different Presense all around.

i saw a female reviewer reviewing this one or was in a montage of reviews on mens fragrances that she found appealing, nice looking lady, so i though why not test it out? and i love this stuff, smells like a man would want to project to others depending on their personality,maybe an out doors rugged man. i will be purchasing a bottle soon..a sort of woody spicy with some really nice floral..not a ground breaking cologne but just a really nice pleasant quality solid scent for a man to wear, not pretentious , i could see this around an office environment also. a calming sort of pleasing,and secure safe fragrance for a man. to me it projects strength and comfort. you can count on that guy in a pinch, give it a try it sometimes you will just go hmmm..not bad, not bad at all.

This is Zaddy in a bottle. Even original Aramis isn't as Zaddy as this. The opening is fresh and bright, with an excellent balance between green and citrus notes. The middle isn't dominated by pine, which can happen with Chypre fragrances, but its giving forest, its giving tweed jacket, its giving beagles. And it is all class. ALL CLASS I TELL YOU! The dry down is possibly one of the most comforting shower gel smells you could imagine and if you have a partner who enjoys classic masc fragrances, you'll find them wandering inside your scent bubble just to get a whiff of all that 20th Century mascsmell wafting from you. A fragrance for life for people with taste.

The more you wear Devin, the more you come to understand and appreciate its "Country Cologne" designation in the context of 1970s sensibilities. Oh, it's country alright; but not the fresh green foliage, blue skies sort of country. Nope, Devin is dirty country. This is horse stables, pine needles, and dirt roads. More in the direction of Quorum and Yatagan than Green Irish Tweed. More daytime than evening. In the right mood, at the time, Devin is a magnificent rural masculine! Alongside Aramis and 900, we have yet another Masterpiece from Perfumer Bernard Chant.

Only for Frag Heads with a lot of experience. For sophisticated noses only. A very complex work that most people won't understand. Best worn under the shirt, but not on clothing. The Galbanum note lasts too long on cloth and can become cloying. Only one spray on each forearm. If applied too close to your face, it can become cloying. If you know how to wear this, you will absolutely LOVE it! If applied correctly, this fragrance is amazing. A very complex beast and a MUST for all serious aficionado's!!! DEVIN is an essential piece of fragrance history.