Nautilus

From the note breakdown of Nautilus, the latest Lili Bermuda release geared toward men, it’s predictably fresh, slightly spicy (via the lavender and geranium), and somewhat earthy and smooth (via the vetiver and musk). There is something vaguely aquatic about it, so I’m curious about the “stormy sea” note, which is cleaner than calone, for one, but gets the idea across as with many cheap, designer options—not a welcome comparison, I’m sure, but nonetheless one that comes to mind. Nautilus is an agreeable, versatile men’s freshie, almost to the point that it smells like something one might find with a Nautica or Calvin Klein label, and for someone like me that admires some of the fruitier or bolder offerings, it’s a little bit of a letdown, but that’s okay, as I imagine it’ll do very well with lots of men, as it’s a little less edgy than other male-targeted offerings from the house, like Cedar or Navy, that might be tougher pills to swallow for men who predominantly wear inoffensive freshies. And at $95 for 100ml, there are certainly cheaper options out there from designers that do the job similarly—I should be clear that Nautilus is at least slightly better and more sophisticated than some of those offerings, and becomes more interesting in the dry down, while the generics tend to become less tolerable after the mellifluous openings required to sell them in the first place, so in that respect, clearly Nautilus’ ingredients are a step up, but the result is still just a little too safe to pique my interest. The fragrance doesn’t move the needle much for me, but I imagine it’ll do well, an upgrade for the otherwise designer-preoccupied majority. 6 out of 10