Timberline

This review is for the 1968 MEM Timberline, not the later pictured version above. I absolutely love this fragrance! The vintage bottle that I have is a linear soapy, fresh, pine, mossy, honeyed fragrance. I do believe the top notes have disappeared and blended into the fragrance. I have worn this in the heat, and it isn’t cloying at all like some heavy modern fragrances that I own. It actually projects well the hotter I get. It last me 6-7 hours under normal conditions, and little less when I sweat from working outdoors. I’m an outdoorsman, so it just suits my style. If you get a chance to smell this, you will probably like it! Very Manly Stuff from MEM! Just a shame it has been discontinued, and this occurred before I started wearing fragrances as a teen. I do have a spray bottle of the later version, and it is nothing like the original, so don’t waste your time with it.

Epic Journey Into the Bottled Yonder, 203 ------------------------------------------------------- Purchased October 2022 - NOS Quite a soapy leathered wood but perhaps it being a splasher it cloys the soap part, which definitely something cloys for 10-15 minutes and then becomes quite powdered yet still heavily leather and woodness. Very manly stuff.

A fragrance that transforms on the skin. In the bottle/lid it's an overwhelming alcohol and pine blast. I thought it was a boring generic pine with no character. On skin, it transforms into a powdery fir tree with a hint of floral sweetness. What I register as powder could read to others as dirt, akin to the soil in a dry pine forest. Very vintage, with a comforting dad energy. I'd love to see the packaging and marketing get a revamp. I think it has a lot of potential for a comeback. I'm not sure if I want to buy a full bottle. (Purchased in Australia from Priceritemart)

A very light but interesting fragrance, mildly reminiscent of Aramis, but woodier to my nose. I wear it when I want something mild but pleasant through most of the work day.

Original English Leather version from an unopened box: basically a light, pine soap fragrance. Pleasant but not as complex as the above list of notes would suggest.

This is a review of the MEM co version of Timberline by English Leather. It is a dated 70’s 80’s fragrance. Very strong and reminiscent of that era. Too muddled of a fragrance to really sort out any of the notes other than cinnamon, fern, maybe lavender. Far too heavy for today’s fresher fragrances, maybe for nostalgia, but not for a signature fragrance. Well suited for older gentlemen and more slightly formal occasions. Forget the Dana version. They have ruined most of their acquisition of the MEM line. Dana should just cut their losses and retire the line.

H & R's Fragrance Guide lists the pyramid for MEM's original Timberline as topnotes of bergamot, lavender, lemon, anise, basil and rosemary, mid-notes of geranium, carnation, cinnamon, fern, heliotrope, aldehyde, cedarwood and pine, and base notes of sandalwood, vetiver, moss, tonka, vanilla, honey and musk. I always found it very foresty, green and woody, like the scent of a pine forest on a hot day, with the smells of earth, dust and bark along with the resins and needles of the trees. I don't wear this much anymore, but when I'm in the right mood, I still enjoy it as much as I ever did --- it brings back memories not only of my younger years, but also of hiking in the mountains, breathing fresh pine-scented air and cooling off with pure spring water. It bears some resemblance to Halston 1-12 and Grey Flannel, though less complex than either of those. The Dana version in the packaging shown here bears hardly any resemblance to the original MEM formula.