New West for Him

I LOOOVE this fragrance! So, I also own Guy Laroche's Horizon which this gets compared to and they DO NOT smell alike imo. I suppose they get compared to each other bc these are both "experimental aquatics" which use aldehydes and a leather note. New West does have a fruity freshness to it, but Id say that the slightly smokey Leather and the Aldehydes are more pronounced in New West than the Leather and Aldehydes in Horizon which smells a bit more modern and features more of the fantastic fruity citrus (mainly Mandarin) with the Aldehydes and leather being much, much more subdued. New west seems like it can be used more for formal events as its not as sweet or fruity as Horizon is and has this that slight smokiness from the leather along with that awesome, classic aldehydic push which again, is not all that noticable in Horizon.. Cant yet speak on performance for New West as I have yet to give it a full wear, but I can tell that the performance will probably be slightly better than Horizon's because it does smell just a bit more potent. Anyhow, New West certainly is better suited for guys who appreciate more classic, aldehydic dna's and who like leather notes as again, the leather and Aldehydes are pretty prominent in this, although NOT as prominent as say Aramis by Aramis, Gres by Cabochard for YSL's Kouros for instance. Great unique "odd-ball" fragrance. Its a love for me and Im sure this dna will macerate and change a bit within the next few months. Ill be back for an update on performance, but for now this is a blind-buy SCORE😊 and I recommend New West along with the before mentioned caveats. Thanks to whomever took the time to read my thoughts on Aramis New West. Oh and btw, this also most certainly DOES NOT smell similar to Escape for men🤣

People who grew up in Oregon are usually quick to notice others who did not when the weather begins warming up, because they talk of the beach, and not the coast. We call it that because even if Portland is 85 degrees, that same day just 2 hours away the best the coast can give you is shorts and a hoodie. And even then, the coastline is rocky and full of cliffs, rough sand or pebble beaches, with dewy mornings and cold breezes that spin through the mountain ranges and forests. I call NYC home now, but I grew up as an Oregon coastie, and it’s been so long that all I have are now impressionistic memories fueled by melancholy. Aramis’ New West captures paints some of those expansive open water skies as the first thing I smell is the round feel of the sea notes and aldehydes, very clean and mellow. Then you notice the clouds above forests covering the land as far as eyes can see with the hints of mint, caraway and pine/cedar coming though. It is a slightly spicy and herbal touch that lingers on, as more woody notes start to roll in like low fog from Pacific. That roundness, the expansiveness, and that touch of oceanic cleanliness never fully disperses with this fragrance, playing with the just-so-slightly woodsy and barely spicy+herbal distant fog horns. I love every time this fragrance wafts quietly into my headspace, which is adequately often and for a long while (once I caught a waft of it while showering, an amazing 11 hours after application, and as a fairly conservative spritzer). I’d recommend this to someone that is a bit of a day dreamer, who remembers a lot of nothing memories, and wants to paint a picture of the outdoors.

I bought Aramis New West original, in the blue bottle with the totally yellow lid in 1990 shortly after it was released here in ZA. As I have learned, Aramas has changed the shape of a few of their containers and I think the bottles are now even more amazing! Wow! This is a winner in what can be promptly described at first as crystal clean, metallic, icy, settling to a smooth sweet, and simply joyful. Now I know why! Reading the accords on this super informative site has revealed to me that this is what I admire in so many other fragrance compilations. Initially you are greeted with a sharp twist of uncomplicated minty, sea blue freshness. The middle notes are predominantly Jasmine and Pine which somehow blends with the sensation that you have just stepped from and icy sea blast rock shower into a forest of pine trees. I can also detect a Juniper Berry, gin note, but only now that I have read about its presence. The light musky, leathery sweet dry down is very potent and long lasting, settling the potentially harsh pine, giving it an even better air of quality, as can be expected from many Aramis scents. I remember it being very powerful and long lasting, which is always a winner for me. I highly suspect that the scent has been changed, but I may be wrong. Still, it does not matter, this is one I may want to re visit and add to my collection despite the sort of “done it - cannot go back on the same road” battle I sometimes get with perfume. For its service to me 22 years ago and a new understanding of my favourite notes in men’s perfume, it gets a solid 4.2/5.

New West for Him by Aramis is one of the iconic men’s fragrances of the late 1980s. Classified as an Aromatic Aquatic, it evokes nature and ocean air with a distinctly American character. First launched in 1988 and created by the renowned perfumer Harry Fremont, it emerged at a time when men’s perfumery was beginning to break away from classic fougère conventions and move toward fresher, saltier, cooler, and more transparent marine compositions. The original 1988 formulation had a personality that was bold, dense, and unapologetically aquatic, very much in line with the aesthetic of its era. The current formulation has been adjusted to feel lighter, brighter, and more transparent, placing greater emphasis on fresh mint and the imagery of lush, dewy pine forests to suit contemporary tastes. Despite these changes over time, the core DNA of New West remains clearly recognizable. While many men gravitated toward Davidoff Cool Water, I chose to stand apart with Aramis New West for Him. It is deeply tied to my personal memories back in my freshman year, I wore this fragrance while nervously courting a fellow first-year student. For me, this scent is not merely a fragrance; it is time captured in a bottle*. Whether vintage or modern, one thing has never changed: it is truly "The Beast” in my collection. Exceptional longevity, powerful projection, and performance far beyond what one would normally expect from an EDT. **No more than four sprays** are enough to carry the scent effortlessly from morning until evening.

Seems light, balanced, with some mild peppery spice contributing to a mental image for me of walking not through any kind of lush, moist, verdant wonderland but through more of a scrubby landscape, or at any rate a fairly dry one. I do picture the sea, but then I would. The marketing demands it. I'm not sure that it's central to this scent. This isn't overtly marine to my nose, though it may have a certain salty tang. I get more of an image of walking with open-toed footware through probably thin soil with maybe dry conifer needles etc. getting crunched underfoot. It's definitely sunny and warm. I suppose that most if not all of this is, yes, consistent with a Mediterranean seascape. (I haven't been to the States.) The bergamot is all in favour of that. I actually don't find this anywhere near as outdated as a lot of the more obviously marine fragrances that it preceded. It's soft and impressionistic, and I don't think it's especially well suited to extorting attention. Whether all that is good or bad is up to the individual. I didn't smell the watermelon for more than a few seconds. I don't know that it's needed, but I like it. I do think it's more a fruity rind effect than something juicy to sink your teeth into. I like the combination of the watermelon and the herbaceous and woody notes. These seem almost like different shades of sappy green to me or something. I don't smell any offensive note along the lines of pickle juice or whatever.