Nautica Competition

The original NC pictured above was released in 1997 and contained- TOP:green apple, bergamot and spearmint HEART: jasmine, amber and moss BASE: vetiver, oakwood and musk This was when I wore a few colognes but had yet to become a true collector so this one is one of the few that escaped me from this House. I knew people who wore nothing but this and must admit it was a soft,light fruity, very green scent with hints of florals and a very earthy drydown but at the time I was dousing myself in Drakkar and Calvin Klein stand-bys so either it was not spicy enough for me or never intrigued me enough to hunt it down... NAUTICA Competition (relaunch), on the other hand, was released in 2003 and has the notes mentioned above and packaged in a flacon that resembled a water-bottle and was colored bright yellow with black NAUTICA,cap and square on it with "competition" written sideways in grey letters. This is the one I have and absolutely adore... This was given to me by an ex who said,"Do you want this? I just can't wear it anymore." It was a mostly full 1/2 oz travel spray he got with a Nautica watch and keychain. I used this all up and saved the empty bottle to remember the warm sexy aroma until I got a 2.5 oz bottle of my own after it was discontinued... This begins with the green, sharp scent of juniper and the bitter freshness of bergamot. They combine in a bright almost sweet refreshing way that is at the same time sexy and clean.The heart warms with rosemary's herbal pungency and nutmeg's smooth spiciness. This scent is quite invigorating, not unlike the feeling(not the scent) of warm trade winds rushing past your face and through your hair as your yacht cuts through the waves. It could be descibed as sporty in that it is an active type of scent that would complement being outdoors and exerting one's self. The drydown (not shown here) is sandalwood and something zingy and quite aromatic I can't put my finger on but it reminds me of walnuts and fresh cut or sanded wood and is slightly sour (ambergris, perhaps?). This goes from citric green to spicy herbal to woody/mysterious yet is all of these and something else entirely. Maybe I'm biased because of who it came from and the intense feelings and interactions we had but this is one of my most favorite fragrances despite the fact it is a mass-maket/department store brand. It lasts forever on me and I get a ton of compliments and it was relatively inexpensive...Triple Threat! Sillage: okay to moderate Longevity: great Overall: 4.75/5 For Nautica this is very different and spicier than most of their releases. It is weaker than Nautica Classic but is nontheless super. No one who has ever smelled this on me has complained or said they did not like it, and that's says something right there.The original was more "nautica" oceanic and the re-launch is more "competition" sporty if you know what I mean...

I'm fortunate enough to own both versions. For me, the original blue bottle is a nostalgic trip down high school memory lane, coupled with revisited feelings of 1997 teenage excitement. Original Nautica Competition is Mom waking me up on a chilly October morning, shaking me in bed while reminding me to get my ass up every 7 minutes, as I finally trudged out of bed with a sore throat, thowing my clothes on and racing to school in my hand me down Chevette, while feeling awkward, but also with a feeling that I was starting to see a pinpoint of light in terms of actually graduating (even though I was still a Junior, lol). A simple but fun, green and citrus whose main rival was Polo Sport at the time. Of the two, this one is slightly darker, thanks to the rosemary, and can even come off slightly brooding, or slightly pissy on some rare occasions when the planets are perfectly aligned, but maybe this is due to my aging bottle. If that's the case, then it's for the better of the composition in my opinion. To be honest though, I can't remember for sure. I'm so thankful that I found a cool Ebay seller who sold me a mint condition bottle for a steal of a price! If you're feeling nostalgic with some disposable income to burn, and can track down a new 4.2 oz bottle for around 120 bucks, do it, because as for as I'm concerned, this relic is a bargin at that price point, plus, it makes for cool conversation when your old high school buddies drop by...."Hey, dude...remember this!?" (I'll review Yellow Relaunch next time)

First off, fragrantica should get a few things right with this, it was produced in 1997 not 2003. & the list of ingredients they have are all wrong. Here are the list of notes. Top: Apple, Bergamot, Spearmint. Middle: Jasmine, Amber, Moss. Base: Vetiver, Oak, Musk. I have fond memories of this tied up with my high school days, such good times. Now on to the fragrance, this is IMO the ONLY frag from the house of Nautica that stands out above all the other typical aquatics they produce. This is not an aquatic.. THANK GOODNESS! Its rather a nice take on a oriental fresh fragrance. The spearmint & apple is what I get from the beginning which creates a nice feel, then about 15 minutes later the middle notes appear & it becomes fresh, I detect no base notes except for the musk. This is a EDC which will not last a long period of time, I wish it came in a stronger strength. I suggest getting the shower gel & or bar soap to layer it with, I have both. All in all Nautica did a decent job with this 1, it's a pitty it is discontinued. Its great for jogging, errands, working out etc.. I will always have a bottle of this because it takes me back to a point in my life I can never go back to.

completely biased review. this was one of my favorite scents when i entered high school - and i wore it often. i have such good memories with this - anything i say will be tainted. Believe it or not - Nautica used to be kind of cool. At least in the mid 90's. Nautica was trendy for youngsters like myself. The smell is far from special - but the memories i have with this are very special. I ponied up $160 for a 72ml bottle. Not a great investment...but like i said - it means more to me than the smell itself. 7/10

My first fragrance. I'm pretty sure I was in middle school and probably oversprayed it. No clue about longevity or sillage since this was almost 30 years ago (that's a wild thing to type), but I know I LOVED this scent.

If you desperately want this back in your collection Common Scents fragrance oils makes a roll on oil of this and it’s an amazing impression. Seriously. You MUST try it! SYL

I wish they still made this cologne! I had this about 18 years ago and I remember it being a fresh, sporty scent that had moderate longevity.

Definitely better than the yellow relaunch and a shame they stopped making this formulation. It was my daily scent for years

This review is for the yellow and black bottle: If you enjoy Tommy Hilfiger for Men or Michael Jordan for Men, this one is right up your alley. It's essentially a creamy version of MJ and/or Tommy. It's much closer to Michael Jordan though, almost identical even. The juniper and bergamont opening is a vaguely dirty citrus accord and lasts for about 5 minutes. Soon, the top becomes creamy and faintly spicy with the rosemary, nutmeg heart. As it transitions into the drydown, the creamy nutmeg, citrus blend lingers over a smooth sandalwood base, almost like the creamy sandalwood in The Art of Shaving, but with the rosemary still spicing up the mix. It's very pleasing but not something for anyone over the age of 20. It's a great starter fragrance for any teen and/or pre-teen and it will definitely get anyone wearing it a mass amount of compliments. Sillage is moderate and longevity is anywhere between 4-7 hours give or take. I bought this this for my little cousin (15 years old) for around $25 (2.5 oz) and he loves it, along with all the young females in his life. On that note, I wore this once and someone asked me if I was wearing Chanel Edition Blanche. I suppose it's the creaminess vibe that would allow for that confusion. Plus, when I wore this back in high school, females regularly insisted that I smelled, dare I say, like "a sexy beast!".

This seems to fall into the Eternity / Adidas Moves family, but it has qualities that make me understand why my freshman year roommate swore by the stuff in 1999. It's fresh and soapy, with apple but not nearly as much as the others above, and somehow manages to maintain a very "broad" freshness, rather than sharp. It has some anise, but not too much so I'll forgive it. This helps it to have an unexpected spicy depth underneath the dark grey fruity soapiness, and I agree that the spiced apple here simulates raisin. I'd qualify it as a "black" scent more than a lot of others with "black" in their names, albeit a freshened-up version. Ultimately, I'm impressed how leathery and resinous it ends up being, while still maintaining freshness, almost like Geir minus some of the sweet fruit and with added leather...in fact surprisingly unsweet for such a low price range. Or you might even compare to Bulgari Pour Homme Soir, where instead of beefing up the citrus they've beefed up the sweet musk. Thumbs up for unexpected uniqueness.

Back in high school, this was it! Strong, woody, fresh... Strong enough to cover up that weird hormonal smell I remember having as a teenager. :) At the time, I couldn't imagine anything better. Now that I'm grown up, Liz Claiborne's Bora Bora is my signature scent. Same type of smell, only 100x more mature. Now that I'm older, I think I'd like the yellow version, but as a kid, I was sad when they reformulated this! I can't stand to wear this one now, but it brings back memories. UPDATE: I ended up selling a bottle of this on eBay for $40, so if you have a bottle of this laying around and don't wear it, you should consider selling it. Also, if you're unsure of how much is left, the rubber on the outside can be cut away in a small area on the bottom to show how much is left. (There's a glass bottle inside the rubber)

Double review, since I have/had both. The original blue bottle is nice. It's rather unique, actually. Has that sort of gasoline thing going on at the outset. But covered quickly by the top citrus and the sour apple. The drydown is sorta woody. It has a sporty feel to it, but never loses that somewhat dirty edge. Probably best for a night out on the town with the guys. The yellow bottle relaunch is also nice. But I don't really find it unique or distinctive at all. I still get a hint of the apple on top. But the dirty edge is gone, replaced by some rather synthetic woods and spices. Not really much development. But it's cheap, and far better than wearing aerosol sprays. I'd say this is better for a day in the sun in linen slacks and a cuban shirt.

Original Blue Bottle I went through several bottles of this back in the day. In my memory this smelled very sweet and reminded me of Polo Red. However, I just got a well preserved bottle circa 1997 and it does not smell much like I remember! It is certainly more in line with other fragrances of the time, including XS Men by Paco Rabanne (slightly sweeter), Hugo by Hugo Boss (sweeter, more fruity), Tommy by Tommy Hilfiger (more woody), etc. As an aside, I also got a bottle of Classic Match "Our Version of Eternity" and real Eternity today -- both bring back memories of the same time/slightly earlier. I specifically wanted Classic Match because the smell reminded me of a friend, lol.

Almost done with my bottle, this one is an awesome Spring/Summer wear. If you are expecting an "Aquatic" style to this, then pass on it. It's completely different from the Nautica Series, in that, it smells like a real, masculine style cologne. Not that Aquatic is feminine, but in the sense, they are "softer" than a "masculine" form. :) If you do come across it, make sure to get the one you see here, not the black and yellow bottle ( which is the reformulated one ) I haven't tried the new one personally but every person I've come across that has spoken of it says it's weaker. So again, if you find it online or somewhere, grab it, it's worth having for sure.

i definately get the bergamont and rosemary from this. too citrusy for either of our tastes. kinda reminds me of what a man who is competitive sailing would wear. the type of guy who maybe takes competitions too seriously. summer time daytime fragrance. my husband doesnt like this either, but neither do i really.

Citrus like small for me, not bad but doesn't last long at all. 100ml (3.4oz) goes for less then $20 CAD. I use it as an everyday quick spray or car deodorant. It's gets compliments but you can do much better for a summer cologne. I would recommend Island Voyage if you want to stand out using a Nautica cologne.

I'm one of the last to cite a clone for a fragrance but, when it's discontinued, it's fair game. For those looking for a good copy, look into FragranceRevival. I just got mine from there and chose the Parfum version, and it's literally 1 to 1.

Owned a few bottles in the past. Was good for jobs as it didn't carry. I eventually gifted the remainder of a bottle to someone as I tired of it. It isn't very complex and does require lots of reapply. The Yellow Metal bottle weighed a ton.

THIS IS A REVIEW FOR THE REFORMULATED YELLOW/BLACK BOTTLE I bought this for $12 for a 4.2oz at TJ Maxx. I blind bought it because I read the reviews on the old version and did not realize this was reformulated. Anyway when I first sprayed it I got a blast of juniper and bergamot. There is only a slight trace of the spiciness from the nutmeg/rosemary combo. There is no stages in this cologne. It is all there from the first spray. Do I regret buying this cologne...I regret to say yes. The longevity is not bad but the sillage is horrible. Therefore it does not matter how long it lasts because you cannot smell it. I tried applying more sprays to fix these issues and ended up with a headache. The first time someone smelled my cologne they asked if I was wearing Axe. I was offended! I finally found a use for this cologne: the gym. I found that applying only a few sprays on the chest and neck when working out allowed the cologne to warm up and carried the scent a little better. I would not recommend this or ever repurchase. Longevity: 7/10 Sillage: 3/10 Versatility: 4/10 Scent: 4/10 Overall: 4.5/10

I've only tried the blue/gray bottle and wore it once. For me, this scent gets citrus/herbal/spicy just right. I got no fougere accord so if present it's probably just in the top notes (probably some lavender without the coumarin). And it smells entirely natural, thankfully. The citrus/juniper balances perfectly with the herbal and spicy elements, with none dominating. Unlike something like Eternity for Men, there is no strong geranium note that seems to want to "steal the show." I almost can't believe this scent exists! It's what I thought niche would be before I had sampled many of them. To be sure this is quite simple, but is has enough dynamism to prevent it from becoming boring, though I would only wear it when I was in the mood for this sort of thing.