I have a travel size and have been wearing AE for the last several days to see if I want a full bottle. It is bold and opaque - a little goes a long way - and it is reminiscent of many beautiful chypres, both modern and vintage. It reminds me of those women when I was a young teen/teenager that I saw on TV in their shoulder pad power suits running to catch the subway to go to work in some office. The modern version has a bit more of a masculine leather quality and the powdery sandalwood-patchouli drydown feels incomplete and lacking in beauty, depth, and charm to me compared to the earlier rosy version.

Its just rained and there is a mistiness about the fallen trees and dried leaves crunching under my feet. Aromatics Elixir by Clinique captures the essence of an old-fashioned countryside, exuding an herbal, slightly floral, and aromatic quality with a touch of romance.

The Goop types want what she had, but will never get it, because they're chasing an aspirational lifestyle the Aromatics Elixir woman never cared for much. It is insanely feminine on women, the market it was originally made for, and unlike the more usual sweet, amber, aquatic and flowery scents, on men it is like nothing expected, but insanely masculine. As a man, and a lover of chypres, and a admirer of Bernard Chant, i must hunt down a back up bottle, vintage, of Aromatics Elixir. But to my nose, it's just oakmoss, patchouli, and chamomile, strong and gross and wonderful all at the same time.

First impression (by someone born in '82, who only became interested in fragrances like 3 years ago): wow that's similar to the 2 other powdery, purportedly "green" and oakmoss-heavy fragrances I own, which are Chanel no 19 and Yerbamate by Lorenzo Villoresi. The powdery floral heart emerges after a little while, led by heady, sweet ylang ylang and big, powdery rose. You can be trivial about the differences in the modern in comparison with the vintage, but at the end of the day the two smell the same. Like it’s been floating through the void of space in a cavernous non-Euclidean construct, the monstrous pressure and eerie whistle of the air ducts it's been hiding in slowly driving it mad as it drifts a silent path through the cold stars, utterly alone.There are flowers (notably the jasmine) and musk too playing in the background, but I notice that these notes are not evident in the projection. After an hour, I caught a bit of rose coming through, but the overriding experience is still chamomile and clary sage. Please read the full reviews and consider your own needs and preferences before making a purchasing decision. words fail me as despite all the previous complaints on this review site, the fragrance is still like a cheap imposter!