Aramis - New West

 Although this is often called an aquatic or proto-aquatic, don't go into this expecting a fresh fougere like Cool Water, Eternity, Escape, Polo Sport, and the like. This is a dense, dark, complex, aromatic, green fragrance through and through, albeit with some touches which anticipate the 90's. This is more of a close friend of Guy Laroche's Horizon, even if it's not a close relative.

It starts off with a distinct watermelon note. I don't mean a typically aquatic melon nuance, but rather an obvious and forward melon note. It's paired with a salty aquatic note, smelling quite oceanic, but not fresh. This fruity aquatic pairing lasts for a couple of hours, and is the extent of the 90's touches. As it dries down, it becomes undoubtedly clear that this is a child of the 80's. The herbaceous and woody notes start dominating the composition. Although some mint gives it a fresh touch, the fragrance is marked by its primarily dark, pungent, bitter, and green direction. Juniper, pine, artemisia (probably what's giving the fragrance so much pungency to my nose), and leather jump at me, along with a cedar note which is more akin to cedarwood oil than to the pencil shavings note. I don't really get moss out of it, unfortunately. This is an 80's powerhouse through and through, but a very unique one.

I haven't tried the blue bottle version. The one I have is from 2014. Compares to other reformulations from Aramis, this actually has decent performance. I get maybe 8 hours from it. It projects strongly for a couple of hours before it turns into a skin scent.

Lalique - Encre Noire, 78% vs 79%

 I have a bottle of the 78% version from 2012, and one of the 79% version from 2018. Doing a side-by-side comparison, both versions do smell mostly similar, but there are some differences.

The vintage is more daring. It smells dirty - like holding a fistful of grass and dirt - and is a tad smoky. It's paired with a nutty vetiver opening, which becomes fresher as the scent dries down.

The current version smells mostly similar in the drydown, and has the nutty vetiver in the opening. Where it differs is that I don't get the dirty, inky, or smoky notes from it.

Performance also differs. The vintage isn't a beast mode scent, but it's strong and tenacious. I get 12 hours and good projection. The current version lasts for 8-10 hours. It projects well for the first hour, then seems to sit closer to the skin, though people have made comments about it to me.

The current version isn't necessarily a bad reformulation. Whether it's worse or better than the vintage will probably depend on your own tastes. If you want something strong, a bit daring, and more vetiver dominant than EN L'Extreme, then you'll probably prefer the vintage. If you want something restrained, gentle, or office appropriate, safer, cleaner, fresher, and more vetiver dominant than EN Sport, you'll probably prefer the current version