Antaeus

I got myself a vintage bottle of Antaeus to compare one of my favorite fragrances of all time with the modern was gonna just edit my older review for a side by side run down but the reviews below made me do it like this instead. theres a very annoying phenomena in this community of constant heckling about reformulations and how much better everything used to be. those boomers are just projecting their own personal frustrations. like i get it bro. hairline starting to recede, you gained a few pounds and things aint working as well as it used to downstairs. some of these frustrations on reformulations are well founded but most of them are honestly just bragging how cool you are that you smelled it before it was ''ruined'' ! these type of reviews aren't helping anyone looking to explore these great vintage classics today. reminisce all you want about the ''good old days'' but stop being a dick. the fact chanel even keeps their vintage line around and presenting it in such high quality keeping it true to the originals while navigating IFRA ingredient bans is nothing short of a blessing. I already smelled the vintage before along side the modern and even then I said how true to the vintage it is. even upgrading with better transitions. but here is the final side by side: - first of all they're both still strong af balsamics. the vintage's opening is a lot less fresher and has a more forward myrrh/ coriander. while the modern also has a very obvious myrrh but the limes introduce themselves more loudly without changing the composition. this adds a transition, layer of complexity with slight sour ''fresh'' facet. - the mid of the vintage is also exactly the same however the vintage doesn't have this ''waxy'' note. i have no real comment or complaint about that as it doesn't seem to do anything but give more texture. again probably to make up for not having REAL castorium, which is banned for obvious ethical reasons. However the MAIN thing what i prefer in the modern over the vintage is that the rose is so much more present. it's also there in the vintage but cuz its bit more denser and not as airy it gets muffled. making it unable to jump out as much. again... adding a more clear transition without changing anything structurally. - still like couple hours on left and right hand. both present. still pushing with no sign of calming down. however the base in the vintage of course.. having pre restriction oakmoss is much more ''3 dimensional''. no surprise but the modern still offers great substitute without making you feel like you're missing out on a lot. the modern is way more aldehydic. - both still have a very lively animalic leathery feel of castorium, despite the modern being synthetic it still has depth, still feels rich and textured. the only main difference i'd say that the vintage leans ever so slightly ''dirtier'' animalic but it isn't far off this is where i can see someone make a actual sound argument on a ''negative'' difference. and i will agree with you since that's also my preference. patchouli in the modern is dosed bit more. - after a full wear they are both powerful. i came back to edit this review and the modern literally lasts longer as a skin scent. i was able to pick up on the remnants of leather n ambery labadum notes long after the vintage died just showing signs that a fragrance was applied there. could be due to the age a bit but i doubt it since the base notes esp for such dense frag should be still alive even with bad storage. this was well over 10 hours tho. - i am also suspecting that the modern projects more. a denser base tends to stick to skin more compared to a more airy composition. also the the juice itself is a lot more viscous liquid. the modern is more ''volatile'' meaning that it evaporates its molecules in the air much more efficiently while the vintage has to rely on more heat of the body. honestly sniff all you want up close but they both smell LITERALLY the same in the air - on side note i asked my dad and sister what they think smelling it up close. my dad enjoyed the vintage cuz he actually grew up with the fragrance. and my sister recognised it was a chanel without me even saying what it was and she surprisingly enjoyed the vintage too because she said that too much is happening with the modern. saying that ''it has something floral, earthy and spicey in there and that it smells too powerful while the vintage is more calmer and easier to follow'' she also said ''they're both something thomas shelby from peaky blinders would wear. but the modern is like the older brother and the vintage younger.'' again, this was up close. however when i applied the modern they mistook it for the vintage in the air and said ''it smells fancy but powerful something for a wedding'' honestly couldn't have asked for a better answer. funnily enough, it kinda proofs to me that the modern is the ''power house'' fragrance people want. theyre just getting nose blind from it. one review said ''i did 6 sprays and could barely smell it'' LOOL... like even if it was completely reformulated to oblivion there is just no way none can't smell it after 6 sprays. that's a brazen lie! google nose blindness bro verdict: still iconic/10 honestly try it out! it's still one of the best and unique animalic balsamic scent in history. if anyone wants a more detailed review for the modern check out my first review of antaeus. peace out

Having just bought a new bottle (same formula code as my previous one which still had a couple of sprays in it), it was interesting to note how muted the citrus top notes had become, from a few years of sitting in the bottle when compared with a fresh bottle. Tested against a mid-80's small bottle that I have, it was clear how much the top notes fade after time. So this is a cautionary tale for all the vintage bottle chasers, yes the very, very old bottles may have real castoreum and oakmoss, but really all you will be smelling from the moment you apply it is a very hazy version that leaps straight into midnotes or at least loses a lot of zing of the citrus, and from there into the drydown. The modern versions may have lost some oomph perhaps from the change to an oakmoss alternative, but you still get a proper chypre progression from the burst of citrus and herbal notes, then the floral heart starts to come out as the warmth of leathery/animalics/mossy notes in the base starts showing through. The only other vintage perfume that I know well that gets close to the beautiful rose/castoreum/oakmoss leather accord at the heart of Antaeus (and it's from the 30's/40's and I know my old, but only recently opened bottle, will have lost its citrus top notes quite horrendously) is the Jean Carles classic "Elle Elle" for Lucien Lelong. Jean Carles is one of the key perfumers of the 20th century, and the "Jean Carles Method" for constructing perfumes are taught to this day in the key French perfumery houses. Jacques Polge was trained by Jean Carles who was his mentor, and so he would have been completely aware of Jean Carles' historic accords, compositions and his method. From the first time I was able to compare them (a few years back now) I've always considered Antaeus to be Jacques Polge's masculine version of, and homage to, this long lost masterpiece. Elle Elle used carrot seed and chamomile as key highlight notes/foils to the underlying base accord, rather in the way that the coriander and clary sage and other herbal notes work in Antaeus, but the rose/castoreum/oakmoss leather heart remains strikingly similar in the dry down when compared side to side. The whole midnotes to dry down of Elle Elle when compared against even modern Antaeus shows an almost uncanny similarity, both in a strong rose floral heart and the warm animalic focussed base. Elle Elle may be just a notch more plush (with some more musks) but the overall the similarities are quite striking. These days you'd market it as a unisex without even batting an eyelid. If you want to go down the Jean Carles rabbit hole, you can still buy in some form or another to this day Tabu (the scent for putains) and Canoe for Dana, Ma Griffe for Carven and Miss Dior for suprisingly, Dior, (the Miss Dior "original" version which they still make in pure perfume form, not the later pink fruity ones), and perhaps a few others if you scour around. It's a shame that Schiaparelli no longer make another one of his great compositions - Shocking, which was their signature scent for many a long year. Anyway - all of that is to say, stop fussing and ventilating unnecessarily about vintage bottles and how the modern version is a travesty of what went before and should be burned in the fires of hell etc. Maybe also stop trying to flog them via the comments section on this scent, however perfectly preserved they may or may not be - that doesn't seem very cool to me and certainly not what the comments section was created for. Hey ho. Chanel is not perfect by any means, and yes, it's cynical in its pricing, but it's one of the few houses that still seems to value its reputation for good perfumery with generally good ingredients. The recent slicing through of its pure perfumes in smaller bottles is nasty cynical move that I hope will bite it in the proverbial soon. The current version of Antaeus really holds up just fine, it really does, and it still has that magic in its heart. Just go out and buy the damn modern bottles, otherwise the next thing we'll know is that Chanel will have discontinued it, and that would be even more tragic. It's a masterpiece that is there to be enjoyed.

My signature scent... the first time I sniffed it I loved that mysterious dark smoky/musky and slightly animalic scent. It makes me think of burnt cork. It suits me very well and I'm comfortable wearing it. When I hug my wife she takes a deep breath and assures me that it smells very good. I discovered it in 1999. Like Cartier Santos (my other main fragrance), it, too, has been reformulated. I am certain of this. (For one thing, the box no longer lists oakmoss as an ingredient.) Vintage juice: Powerful, deep, dark, somewhat animalic, smoky and absolutely masculine. Use too much of it you'll be smelled a city block away. Reformulated juice: Very nearly the same thing but much reduced in strength, according to current trends. Antaeus Lite. This morning I did about six sprays on myself but the scent is confined to close to the skin; I can only smell it when I move my shirt front like a bellows. That much of the old stuff would be discotheque-grade killer. Why was it reformulated? Did Chanel do it to make Antaeus less of a dated Eighties scent? I called Chanel Customer Care and they told me that there has been no refomulation of it since it was introduced in 1981. I just don't believe them, and it's apparent from the comments here that others are sure that a reformulation has taken place as well. I asked them about oakmoss restrictions, and the woman on the line had no information about that other than to maintain that it's the same 1981 stuff. Update: I bought a bottle today. How I missed it! -------- I found a bottle of vintage (I'm guessing mid to late 1980's) Antaeus. Anyone who doesn't think this has been drastically refomulated just needs to get a whiff of the old stuff. Like night and day. --------- Big disappointment yesterday. A few years ago I traded a couple of bottles of perfumes I didn't really like for a half bottle of vintage (1980's, I think) Chanel Antaeus - the stuff with the real castoreum and oakmoss in it. The bergamot citrus top notes had evaporated away, but that's okay, the heart and base notes were still intact and much better than the current greatly lightened and oakmoss-free formulation. Problem was, though, the bottle's sprayer cap was a bit funky and leaky; I could smell vintage Antaeus when it sat in the cabinet. No problem, thought I, someday I'll simply go to Whole Foods, get a new sprayer bottle and transfer the stuff. I did that yesterday - and was heartbroken to discover that most of the juice had evaporated away! I figured I had about 2 ounces left - in reality, I had perhaps an eighth ounce. DANG. So what have I learned? Alcohol-based scents need to be kept in airtight bottles! Also, tempus fugit. ---------- BTW: Current formulation Antaeus no longer has oakmoss in it. Look at the ingredients. No oakmoss listed. If it had it it would be on the box. ------------------- Update, March 2024: I found a bottle of this at a duty free shop in the Amsterdam airport. Sprayed some on my arm. The giant is dead! Within an hour it was gone. A pity. This used to be one of the greats.

This underrated classic deserves more appraisal and recognition... It is a small miracle that such an extraordinary and profoundly masculine fragrance survived the fleeting tides of the designer perfume market and is still with us today. The 1980s were a fascinating period in perfumery – a time when fragrances had been created to last and stand out. Yes, Antaeus has been reformulated multiple times, and no, that doesn't mean watered down or robbed of much of its potency. Antaeus remains the ultimate olfactive representation of healthy masculinity – a testosterone-fueled sweat of a Hellenic demigod who plays to his strengths and is not afraid to display vulnerability. He is a warrior, a lover, a poet. Untamed, capricious and potent, this creation encapsulates the essence of ancient heroes. The flacon represents one of the smooth, black pillars of the subterranean temple wherein this primordial creature resides, refined to perfection through the millennia. The opening is fresh and herbaceous, inviting us to an ancient, Pagan ritual in the temple. Through all the incense, hints of sweat, flowers and fresh citruses are revealed, as Antaeus rises in his full beauty. The sweaty and balsamic onslaught of myrrh, castoreum and clary sage captivates and ensnares the senses, elevated by the refreshing hints of bergamot, lime and Amalfi lemon along with crisp coriander that adorn this glorified secretion. Rose and jasmine hum, woven into the lush, verdant tapestry of clary sage, basil and thyme which remains prominent until the dry-down. Heroic myrrh endows an aura of power to this demigod and, in fusion with the aromatic and floral notes, quickens the pace of the deep, leathery pulse throbbing in Antaeus' muscled chest. Castoreum, which vintage formulations of this perfume are best known for, is not in any aspect overpowering or excessively dirty, yet provides a healthy dose of daring funk throughout the experience. As Antaeus dries down, a soft, creamy accord of labdanum, patchouli and oakmoss takes charge; evocative of Athonite incense – a Greek style of incense used in Eastern Orthodox churches, probably due to the fusion of myrrh and labdanum. This marvellous, timeless creation deserves to shine in EDP and roar in XDP concentration. Antaeus is, by far, Chanel's most original, yet most underrated perfume. I have not tried anything from the Les Exclusifs collection, so I can't make any comparison between Antaeus and Le Lion (a similar creation). Lastly, if Chanel No. 5 endured on the shelves for a whole century, so can Antaeus. It is a masterpiece worthy of a signature scent, a perfect balance between appealing and daring, fresh and dark, classy and different.

A classic 80s masculine that smells... well... like a classic 80s masculine lol. Arguably this perfume has probably aged the least well of Chanel's active lineup, but that bar was already incredibly high. For today's younger man - likely who Chanel still want this to be aimed at as an alternative to Bleu - this perfume still has a lot to offer. If you like the dry, bold, statement-making cologne-style masculines that smell a bit old school it's hard to do much better (wearing something old school as a signature would actually be quite unique these days. Pay attention, newbs). This cologne is a legend for a reason. The bitter citrusy bergamot, and dried herbs and spices opening signals this a cologne for a man that walks with his back straight, shoulders back, and head high. It is classic masculine confidence in olfactory form. In the rather quick first dry down comes a bracing swell of myrrh, cedar and sandalwoods so dry and sharp you would swear that they were about to burst into flames all on their own. It commands attention, yet unlike modern masculines that use these notes it is not at all harsh and abrasive. Modern masculines use synthetics to such an overt level, and poor synthetics at that, where those compelling incense and wood accords have no attractiveness at all. They are just repellent, annoying, and harsh. But not Antaeus. The heart notes of Antaeus are what would set apart the modern young man wearing Antaeus from the modern young man wearing any other modern incense woody masculine; he will smell confident, strong, and bold, but not harsh or repellent. He has class and style, confidence without the off-putting club-boy arrogance. After some time, the base notes start to come forward with gentle leathers, frankincense and labdanum, moss, some animalic notes, and a beeswax note that - again - sets Antaeus apart from the modern pack. That gentle honeyed sweetness at the base with the understated incense and leather and animalic notes is genius. A man of high confidence showing he can relax too. At the end of the day, when energy is a bit drained, this is what you want to smell and feel. And, unlike the majority of the modern masculine incense woody plonk we have today, this EdT version lasts incredibly long, which means you will indeed get this comfort at the end of your day or night out. This perfume is an absolute no-brainer for a daily-wearer by someone who wants a classic and stylish masculine fragrance. It might not have aged that well, but all of the greats of the past inevitably find revitalization at some point in today's world.