Aromatics Elixir Clinique for women

In Turkiye, we say "Hacı Misi" for this kind of perfume. Heavy and not for blind buy.

Im usually a huge flirt, but this makes me feel sexually unavailable (without being chaste) and elusive. Very mysterious perfume for such a loud department store classic

wood and brass. church basement bathroom fake bouquet. choir sings in autotune and it's far too loud despite the grand space. slight tummyache but its just indigestion from a super yummy dinner.. youll be okay.

In 1975 My family emigrated to RSA from the UK. The flight on South African Airways had 2 stops and I remember how the hostess walked the aisle, spraying perfume to freshen the aircraft and I always wondered what and where the air-freshener came from... today I met a lady wearing Aromatics Elixir, today I am reconnected with a very strong memory. I had smelled hints of this fragrance before but it was always in a crowd, today the lady was alone and I was able to ask what perfume she had on. I went directly to a store and sprayed a paper... the smell is so comforting.

Hi
I have 1/2 a bottle of the vintage formulation that i would trade for something or sell cheap. Contact me if you are interested.

@RubyJones I know what you mean. I can’t wear Aromatics Elixir at all. But I love smelling it on someone else as they pass by. All these years that it has been available and at a good price, and it is still distinctive and remarkable.

AE always needed hours to develop from a overbearing hag to an enchantingly well-rounded lady, but the last bottle I bought (2023) needs days. Two days to be exact. It took a full 48 hours for a spray on paper to dry down; on my skin it took almost 24 hours exactly. In the meantime I had to fight the urge to wash it off.

One of my absolute favorites.
I own the Perfume, the Edt, the Body Wash (shower gel), the Body Smoother (body lotion), and the Deodorant.
And I layer all of them when I'm in the mood for some serious Aromatics Elixir magic.
It works like a charm.

It's believed to have specific effects on mind and spirit and even says so on the box.
This is a pure parfum, not an Edp and it definitely delivers like a parfum in terms of longevity and sillage. It's very potion like, herbal and earthy and you can really feel the moss and the wet forest, and it literally takes your mind and spirit to those realms. That's the beauty of it.

I gotta say, it took me some time to truly love this fragrance and when I did, it opened up my eyes (and nose) to a deeper understanding of perfumes. I have gotten many compliments wearing Aromatics Elixir and there are days when I crave it like crazy.

Give it a try, go with an open mind and if you'll learn to appreciate it you're in for an adventure.

@harperhilton - cheers!

Fortyfree -- if that's how you write when heavily intoxicated you must be absolutely off the charts lucid when you're not :-)

Review is based on an "ancient" minature, (looks nothing like the pictured bottle.) The enlongted, plastic cap has turned yellow and the juice inside is very dark brown.
Very strong, aromatic and green with plenty of rose!
Very powdery, bordering on narcotic...but very natural and green (smells like a park in spring-time.)
Strong Musk in the base,
Powerful, carnal, classic smelling and addictive.

Great performance and quality, exellent for the price. (although haven't tried current formulations.)

It's "old skool," but this minature retains some of the original inspiration that I suspect this scent would've had when it was released. It's wildly heady and worthy of the upmost respect.

Time less chipre for all seasons. In summer become more soapy and herbal, like spa from 70es.. Perfect for man's and woman's, specialy for pachuli lovers
Performance is excellent

My mom’s signature, I had to order a small bottle cause hers was…lost. I picture myself getting ready for school in my bedroom and the scent wafting its way through the vents, so strong and beautiful. Keys jingling as she gathers her things, the sound of me needing to hurry up cause it’s time to go. The smell of this inside the car on the way to school, mixing with the leather of the seats and faint scent of the cigarette she smoked before we left; this is great at combating cigarette smoke, like no other. All year round she wore this for most of my life. It makes me want to cry! Sometimes I’d go in their bedroom to retrieve something—steal a q-tip or some cotton balls, maybe a spritz of her Aveda hair spray—and the air would be heavy with Aromatics Elixir until you hit their bathroom, which then smelled more prominently of my dad’s Aramis. When I smell this, I can hear the quiet of the house when I came home from school and they weren’t home yet. I can feel the cool of the air conditioning, in the same way I can feel the heater coming on for those three years we lived in Colorado when I smell her bottle of Wrappings. And when I first had my son, just a couple years before she passed, the way she would leave the scent of Aromatics Elixir on his clothing after she got done loving on him…oh man. I’m not crying, you’re crying!

Oh as for the scent, I mean, read the notes. It’s gorgeous! But for me, it’s a memory more than anything else.

I absolutely adore this frag and would wear it as my signature every day but it has such an emotional intimate tenderness for me that I prefer to wear it in bed as it is so soothing.
It is a bitter (probably the oakmoss) almost medicinal perfume but so warm and embracing, an enduring masterpiece. Has an almost candle lit meditative luminous quality. The sharpness reminds me of older versions of Magie Noir though softer on the patchouli.

This one has really been a challange. At first I literally yelled “yuck” and felt like it smells so old fashioned, even for me. Like I hit my “oh no this is actually too old-fashion”- point. But then something weird happend, I started to get fascinated and intrigued by it, craving it even. It’s very bitter and herby but it’s relaxing and something very different from all the super sweet scents that is on trend now, it’s like a relaxing pause, resetting. And it also brings back memories from my childhood, and somehow I associate this so much with hugging someone in a fur, my aunt probably and that also gives off nice fondly memories. Now I’m mostly use it when I’m by myself, still a bit scared if people recoil if I would wear it outside, but secretly hope that I one day will be that bad bitch in a leather jacket that can pull this off. Maybe being someone else’s cool aunt that they would have fondly memories off.

This fragrance falls into 2 categories:

A) you smell like a rich, earthy, aromatic patchouli forest goddess that everyone and there brother wants to sniff

- or -

B) literally like I rolled in a goats stall;

Sadly I fall into the latter category. Major hit at the barn.

This has been completely ruined by reformulation. The Estee Lauder company who owns Clinique has cheapened everything it makes and Aromatics is absolutely disgusting. I purchased it directly from Hudson Bay my local department store last week (January 2024, with a batch code of made in 2021), where my very own sister worked at Clinique counter between 1985 to 2006. I know what this is supposed to smell like, and now it smells exactly like Perm solution/nair hair remover, Japanese soya sauce and celery seed. I am taking it back, it is disgusting. What an absolute shame. Their other offerings havent fared much better, everything is watered down and has zero longevity. the EL company is losing shareholders by the thousands and they are in the news a lot. they arent gonna make it...too many flops and cutting corners. Shame...

This fragrance is meant to be worn with assurance. It stands out with its unique blend of strong woody, oriental notes.

*This review is for the current formulation*

Aromatics Elixir has a strong medicinal opening, very bitter, herbal and patchouli dominates the first 15 minutes. It then mellows out to be a green oakmoss/inky scent. I also get little wafts of geranium, lemon verbena & aldehydes in the mid. Definitely unisex and much better on skin than on clothing. On fabric I find that it leans way too bitter (almost like medicinal iodine) as opposed to the softer, fresher green development on skin.

As many have said, it has an aromatherapy quality to it once you get past the opening. If I had to compare, I would say it smells a lot like Silences edp Sublime upon dry down. I honestly don't get incense at all and wish it was more pronounced in the formulation. I think layering it with orange blossom would brighten up a bit and make it more palatable to the masses. It certainly lives up to its name, aromatic indeed!

I recalled commenting on someone's Clinique fragrance a long time ago and always intended to purchase a bottle. I thought that fragrance was Aromatic Elixer. I ordered it and upon first spray immediately knew I was wrong....it was Wrappings that I had remembered.
I neither love nor hate AE. It is very earthy and herbal to me and doesn't last too long-a few hours at most. I'll use it up on the weekends at work, but i need to stop with the blind buys.
It's funny to me what people now think of as the "grandma scent". I actually think that grandmas smell very soft-light floral and powdery not earthy, woody, spicy and powerful. I guess it's time for me to be a grandma then.

This gets better every time. Wear this whenever you want to smell like an Eighteenth Dynasty pharaoh's chief embalmer who, high as the star-studded sky goddess Nut on the fumes from his incense and embalming mixture, has abruptly woken up, half naked, with his mask of Anubis planted firmly in the dark, damp, pine needle-strewn floor of a magical, flower-filled clearing in a virginal Alpine coniferous forest at sunrise on the solstice.

just got my 100ml bottle in the mail today. this wasn’t the atomic bomb of aroma that i was expecting, but very nice regardless. definitely a “vintage”-smelling scent, and not in a fear-of-aging way, you can just tell this was crafted in another time. it feels akin to an antique store to me, which i love. the bottle design only adds to this feeling. i think i used to smell this on my grandma, but she’s no longer with us, so unfortunately i can’t confirm, but i’ll ask my mom if she remembers. but i know she at least knew about it for sure. smells strikingly similar to my favorite incense as well, opium scent by the brand satya. so if you’d like to burn this scent as an incense stick too check that one out. i recommend this for anyone interested in the history of fragrance.

I found AE after scoring a bottle of Le Labo's YLang 49 super cheap (€70). I enjoy Ylang 49 so much that I started looking for other similar scents. As this was such a cheap option (found 10ml bottle for 2 Euro) decided to blind buy to test. Wow is this similar. What's even more wow is considering that some people pay over 200 Euro for a Le Labo scent when something this similar can be had for like 30 Euro. I wouldn't rebuy Ylang 49 at full price ever knowing I can have AE even though they are not the same. It's close enough and just as strong that I could live with both but would obviously choose the cheaper option. Are these feminine? I guess you could say that but as many have mentioned on here, men can easily wear this as well. I somehow find this to be a super comforting smell and enjoy it from first spray until hours in...it does really last and last. I also agree though that you could smoke out your office if you work with others in close quarters. Buyer beware.

Update: so a couple days in and after some wears, I now know exactly what some reviewer below meant when they said there is a urine smell to this. I initially didn't understand but once I discovered it, I can't get it out of my nose. Now I can't wear this as all I'm getting is this odd urine odor. No idea how this only "appeared" to me after a couple wears which I initially really enjoyed. Thankfully a very cheap "experiment" gone bad.

I just took a good long sniff of this perfume at the duty free store. I had a really hard time putting it down. My partner wasn’t crazy about it, which did influence my decision to put to back. It definitely has a bit of an old fashioned vibe, which I kinda love, tbh. It makes me want to put on my huge pink glasses and my crocheted sweater and binge watch The Golden Girls.
The oak moss and vetiver are so rich and complex. I absolutely love the rose and incense notes. This is a vintage beauty.
I am having a hard time forgetting it. I thought I would walk out of the store and be happy with what I got, but the memory of this aroma is still teasing me and making me long for more. Whenever that happens, I know it will likely end up in my collection at some point.

Such a complex beautiful fragrance with a nostalgic vibe. It's a strong bold statement maker. Does it make me, a 38 year old man, smell like a grandma/grandpa? yeah, kinda. Do I care? hell no. I enjoy this one very much :)

Fabulous fragrance - I first wore this in the late 1980s and forgot about it. I really struggle to find fragrances I love but this one isnt the usual fresh blue that I like. Its soft, rounded, spicy and feminine, just delightful. I managed to pay £20 on ebay and wasnt sure if it would be weakened down after the decades but no its still powerful. So I am delighted with my cheap purchase compared to the £50 plus I have been paying for fragrances with no longevity. I wouldnt say its strong- more punchy and the great thing is it lasts!!!!! For this price I can be generous and everyone in work loves it too.

My 10 ml bottle of AE has a batch code from December 2022 and I am pleasantly surprised!! Much rounder, less screechy than 2020 formulation. Definitely nearer to the original masterpiece. This will forever be Kamp Bornhofen ‘95 in my memory.

A few years back I was obsessed with finding an authentically vintage bottle of Aromatics Elixir. No need!
I just opened and sprayed one of the cute little 10ml sizes Clinique has been putting out recently. It smells amazing, and hasn't lost the top notes. The old bottles inevitably have soured top notes. This is still an amazing fragrance. It *is* a bewitching brew - it keeps me sniffing, interested, enjoying the scents I encounter, and coming back for more. What is bewitching, if not that?

Aromatics Elixir is a hard one for me to describe. It is well balanced in its elements of herbacity, which encompass the smells of earthyness/dirt, grassiness, medicinal herbs or herbs for drinking as tea. I think I can best name vetiver, patchouli, and tagetes (marigolds). Perhaps chamomile, which I think often smells astringent when used in perfume, but I'm not sure if that's the marigold. Perhaps the slightest hint of lemongrass. Everything else is lost in the mix, for me. It just swirls together.

The first time I smelled this, it was initially disappointing, later on, magical. I sprayed from what was probably an older bottle on the counter at Macy's in San Francisco. Who knows how long it had sat neglected? The juice was quite dark and the sales associate literally had to unearth it from somewhere. I sprayed a strip, didn't much like it, but stuck it in my purse or pocket. Fast forward at least a day, maybe it was more like three, I was walking around, and had that "oh my god, what is that amazing smell?!" moment. It was this.

Give it a chance. Spray and walk away, if need be, for a day. But for anyone who likes the deep enchantment of the darkest green in a shaded forest, the quiet glint of midges buzzing in a slice of golden light in an almost quiet greenwood...

You have your brew.

@twoism: "Old women don't wear this, they wear whatever sweet Gucci stuff that shop attendants hand them."

see, that's where you're woefully mistaken. old women wear whatever the h*ll they like.

also: aromatics elixir happens to be one of those perfumes old women actually *do* wear (if for no other reason than that they wore it when they were young women.) but you *are* right in suggesting that it is a masterpiece that warrants wearing by anyone at any time.

:-)

Smells like suddenly stepping off the street into a Chinese herbalist shop with 40,000 different weird herbs and giant framed ginseng roots up on all the walls. I can only dream of what the 70s smelled like when normal women were walking around wearing this stuff. You should really smell this and, if you like it, wear it! Forget connotations of "old lady" etc. Older women don't wear this, they wear whatever sweet Gucci stuff that shop attendants hand them.

This has been on my wishlist for a long time, without actually knowing for sure what it smells like, so today I tested it in store.. the opening is very sharp and somewhat unpleasant, so give it a few minutes to settle. One spray is plenty, because this is STRONG!

The smell.. the smell is nostalgic to me. I recognise it from my childhood.. it smells like aromatherapy, it smells like anthroposophy, it smells like yoga, it smells so so herbal and medicinal, but also warm.. it smells like sauna and natural wood.

It is gorgeous and I imagine it’ll make you feel very healthy and ‘healed’ when you’re wearing it, because it has that natural medicine and aromatherapy vibe going on. It’s not for everyday, it’s certainly a mood, but it’s very zen and wonderful. I will have to buy this now.

This is so comforting for me 💚 I love to use the shower cream, body lotion and a spritz of perfume before bed. I sleep relaxed and blissfully.

It is indeed very similar to Aramis 900.

I remember smelling this when I was a little kid, spraying some from the bottle my mom had on her dresser and wondering why it didn't smell like perfume to me. It smelled bitter and herbal and sharp, nothing like what I thought perfume ought to smell like. I expected perfume to smell flowery in a sweet and obvious way. I don't think my mom wore this fragrance very often, so maybe she felt the same way. But as I age and start to appreciate the beauties of the true bitter chypres, I realize that this perfume (a reformulation of Chant's original creation, alas, but it smells pretty much like what I remember) does indeed have a pretty floral heart. It reminds me of Private Collection in the drydown, and the whole effect is outdoorsy. Chanel's Sycomore is a different kind of nature, more rugged and elemental; Aromatics Elixir smells vernal and green but more cultivated, an elegant old walking park with an English woodland garden vibe, wildflowers in a tended field. As with most chypres, it reveals its depths and layers over time. "Because it is bitter, and because it is my heart."

L'aromatics elixir nella formula originale dal 71 fino a una ventina di di ani fa aveva circa 700 ingredienti amalgamati e concentrati che formavano quel bouquet famoso intenso e dorato che durava giorni interi e cambiava magicamente addosso passando dalla rosa al muschio umido,all'odore di foglie secche in autunno,all'incenso su note piccanti,erbe verdi e secche,fumi calmanti,salvia,fiori e zibetto..
Oggi la versione più recente che possiedo (del 2020) dura sulla pelle circa mezz'ora e gli ingredienti sono ben pochi e galleggiano sulla cumarina.
Sembra anche fatto di foglie di salvia essicate alla fine,cosa che nella versione precedente non c'era.

Well, it's a chypre alright. And damn, she is STRONG. I sprayed this once on a little tester card and I could very easily smell it over anything else around me - including myself! Just as well I didn't spray it on myself, as I probably would have perfumed out the entire office!

If it's true that the current formulation is pretty close to as it was in years gone by, then damn, what a bold move from Clinique. At a time when manufacturers are quietening down their scents, they've just gone "screw that, let's keep this LOUD." I really can't exaggerate just how loud it is - this is NOT safe to wear in the office or in an enclosed space!

This is floral and herbal, and borderline medicinal - taking that elixir name a bit literally. And yes, it does smell old-fashioned. Whether or not that's a bad thing is up to you, but I think there's a time and place for scents such as this. I think it smells vintage sophisticated, and that's a vibe I can get behind. I don't know if I have the balls to wear something as strong as this, but the scent profile is pleasant enough for anyone to wear. And you can pick it up fairly easily from discounters for a very good price, so in that regard, this nuclear-strength old-school chypre is extremely good value. It would still be good value at full retail - you wouldn't need to use much at a time!

Late autumn, open countryside, the air outside was still warm and my mother was wearing one of those white Egyptian cotton dresses literally possessed by her favorite perfume: Aromatics Elixir. She sat with largely superficial composure, leafing through a Sylvia Plath book surrounded by flowers, dirt and dry leaves. Behind her the beginning of a small green forest and a huge magnolia tree that immersed her in the darkness of its shadow. It was all so intimate, calm, natural. I felt safe.

- i had this perfume and when i tell you it is strong.. IT IS STRONG. i originally got it because my aunt always smelt so good. i finally got it for Christmas and i was so excited.
- i would spray this in class and people across the room could smell it, it was so crazy lol. i don't really like the beginning, it's very foresty, like a forest-like smell with a little sweetness, but when it wears down it smells so good.
this perfume also lasts all day. my dad would get mad at me when i reapplied it because it was just so strong and i sprayed it so much. this is definitely ETERNAL.
- it's not my favorite perfume because I'm more of a gourmand girly, but its really nice and i like it! 🫶🏾

99093; this is the formula number for current Aromatics Elixir perfume spray. It’s also the formula number for the limited edition Morher’s Day bottle that came out earlier this year. So it’s been reformulated again early 2023. Up until a few months before, the reformulation to remove Lilial had formula number 49170. So why they reformulated again in the span of less than 2 years beats me. But I’m glad they did because they restored some of the lost beauty!

This current formulation brings it closer to the 80’s formula and remarkably close to Genny, the original Diana de Silva production. Almost a dupe, far far closer than previous AE editions.
There’s a perceivable chamomile smell that was kinda missing, aldehydes, neroli and more civet than before. The oakmoss is still there but now it’s more potent; the inky saltiness is back and it smells more like proper oakmoss. I also smell less patch and the floral notes are more blended. It’s more herbal, greener compared to the more woody and dry previous iteration. I also notice more sillage and I don’t become nose blind to it.

We know that the big face lift came around 2014, when it became distinctly slimmer but still maintaining its character. Now, it’s got part of its personality back, so they must have listened (I wish!!) to consumers. Either way, it’s a very beautiful adaptation, it lingers for hours, and bringing it closer to its 80’s version shows how multifaceted Aromatics can be without losing its traits. Now it’s a good time to stock up if it’s a fragrance you enjoy; who knows how next reformulations will be like.

Charming herbal bouquet, quite not like anything else. I enjoy it very much.

I thought I'd give this a chance last week before I made up my mind to sell my vintage bottle.
Although its pleasant and nostalgic to smell in the air,on my skin it was a complete disaster and I shouldn't had worn it in public much less at work like I did...
An overwhelming dirty scent covered everything.People complained it reaked!
Homeless old lady and toxic industrial waste.
While at home I tried it with my most "simple" perfumes to try and give a bit of sweetness and see if it could actually be wearable,but to no avail.Nothing is able to save this.
It doesn't work for me.
Truly a masterpiece of perfumery though.
Extremely unique and strong.

First try in warm october. Current version produced in 2023: Floral, floral, aldehydes, floral, incense, floaral, orris, and floral. Even a guy like me who dares to wear Yatagan in hot summer hesitates to put this on as it's too floral. I can feel chamomile, ylang-ylang, jasmin, rose and other honeyed notes swirling around. Patchouli and other non-floral notes are completely drowned - only when applied on my skin or during the drydown on the second day can I feel the musty patchouli and earthy vetiver. It's unexpectedly cool, thickly and freshly bitter-sweet (so paradoxical). Sniff close to the blotter whereon I put two full spritz, it's like bug repellent or stick incense - though of course it's deluxe incense for some elegant restrooms rather than for public toilets.

Even though it's like no perfume for women today, it's not quite a male scent. It's powerful and overwhelming enough to smother all other trendy syrupy ambroxam in the same room. The longevity on my skin is just average, but pretty good on fiber.

The atomizer of my bottle has a weird defect that it spews so tiny amount each spritz that successfully prevents me from applying too much juice |||-.-

update: got used to the floral notes and with more appreciation for the honeyed vibe accompanying earthy patchouli, now I love to wear it.

I’m still mourning the loss of this unique fragrance. Didn’t care what anyone else thought of it, I’d wear it every day, daytime and night time. After testing it, I walked down the street with a sea breeze in my face and hair, I felt like the epitome of a summer’s day on the beach. Instantly recognisable. Going to the loo at work one morning, a voice piped up from the cubicle next door ‘is that you Rache?’ Loved or hated, I loved it before they butchered it. IFRA, damn your eyes!

This is such a cool chamomile, herbal, mossy chypre lemonade! I wear it in summer and early fall. It envelops me and curls like a silk scarf. In vintage versions the smoky, juicy, resinous base of fresh bark and wood of noble trees is especially attractive. I like to know that when I wear these sunny hippy flowers, I am making the world a better place.

I have found myself deflated and dissatisfied with many of the modern fragrances I’ve tried since I got my first bottle of AE in 2013. There are a few exceptions, of course, but clearly AE has done something to the bar.

It’s icy cold, like a chilled crystalline vapor filling up my lungs. Stomping off boots with the kitchen door ajar, neither outside nor in, with bitter cold New England winter at my back, taking that last breath before I enter. There’s a fire burning inside, and tea balls steeping with cloves and a chamomile blend. I get them all together in that last breath; the bracing air, the herbs and spice from the tea, an incense from the fireplace. It’s so warm, too. Like the carpet of pine needles that fringe the lazy river as I float by every summer, so heated by the Florida sun that they’re almost tinder, itching to catch. It’s a perfect juxtaposition.

Because of life, I shuttle back and forth between the bitter, biting winters of New England and the thick, humid almost unforgivable heat of Florida summers. And AE transitions with me. In the winter it restores my inner warmth, and in summer it transports me back to frigid snowfields so blindingly white. The damp, decaying forest floor in late spring in the Berkshires. The smell of burning leaves in autumn wafting through neighborhoods in a small town. The intoxicating amalgamation of the scents of hundreds of people packed thick on a hot beach. The heady fog at the botanical garden.

I have never smelled a perfume more beautiful. I set it down for a time. I have grown so tired of wearing friendly crowd-pleasers. I’ve purged a lot of my collection. AE has a permanent spot, and I’ll be paying her much more attention.
Someone else here said AE is a grand masterpiece and I agree wholeheartedly. For a fragrance to have been reformulated many times since its inception and still be this good, well, I think that’s amazing.

I’m at the last dregs of my 2017 bottle. Here’s to hoping the replacement is just as good.

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. While it's undoubtedly appreciated by enthusiasts of this style, I must confess it's not my ideal choice.

I was trying to figure out what it reminded me of and I realized it smells exactly how Sen-Sen tastes. For the unaware: Sen-Sen was marketed as the first breath perfume/freshener in the 19th century. Aromatics Elixir and Sen-Sen live next to each other in my mind, and both would fit in beautifully in a turn-of-the-century LARPing scenario.

This is exactly the kind of patchouli I dislike. It feels like every note in this is fighting for attention, creating a Chypre bomb.

I could see how this is pretty and nostalgic for many, but wow. As someone who prefers balsamic, smooth/rounded scents with many of the listed notes, this is simply not my cuppa.

I discovered Aromatics Elixir from my senior year high school English teacher. This was her scent. She was a stern lady, kind of a tough love type of person. She had great style - blonde pixie haircut, always wore pretty silk scarves to class and always smelled great! AF as I will call her was a strong, no nonsense type of lady. Intelligent, with a mind of her own. She was a sharp lady. I admired her. I went out and bought Aromatics Elixir and wore it at 17 years old, not knowing that eventually I would grow up to be all of those things and more. I hated high school and passed all of my classes with flying colors, just so I could get the hell out of there! AF would go on to be a teacher another 30 plus years. I’ll never forget her. Hopefully, she was an inspiration to other young women as she was to me.❤️ Aromatics Elixir is still a great perfume after all these years. Herbal, aromatic, green. It’s not for the fruity, vanilla, girly types. It’s a perfume that stands out in a crowd.

One of the best Chypres ever, and kudos to Clinique for maintaining production standards (imagine if other houses put so much effort in their older creations). I prefer this to Aramis: it is more bitter, more green, more interesting in general. I could have sworn there is leather in the base. Outstanding in its category.

Sadly, Aramis 900 is no more. It was time for me to have this scent profile on my shelf again, so it's AE for me. There are some slight differences between the two. But they are such that you'd need to smell them side by side to be reminded that AE has a touch more aldehydes and is only a tad more animalic, most noticeably in the drydown. (The color of AE compared to A9 hints at this.)

An elegant and powerful masterpiece. Is it of its time? Yes, very clearly. There's no mistaking this for a modern fragrance at all - which is part of its greatness in my book. As far as I can tell it has remained completely intact throughout the years.

Aromatics Elixir. Like nothing else. Enjoy responsibly.

Very nice. I thought it might be more lean and bitter-green, if only in the opening, but I find it more rounded and probably more opulent than that, because of the creaminess of the base and just because it's a very complicated, well-blended fragrance. I've been comparing this to Chant's own Devin and, though both are strong on the aldehydes, I find Devin a little fresher, greener, leaner and more open than Elixir. They naturally share a lot of DNA though, not least in the drydown. They both make me think of meadows in bloom and so on. Elixir is more feminine to my nose--the rose is noticeable though not obtrusive--but I would happily wear either, though probably not if it were warm outside or I expected to spend any amount of time in anyone's company indoors or perhaps even outside.

I detect a faint, occasional accord of something like urine in Elixir from start to finish. (Sillage is above average for me, by the way, and longevity probably is too.) I think it probably stems from the interplay of some of the base notes--the sandalwood, patchouli and musk, perhaps. Maybe the sage plays a part early on. It's not a sharp, leafy "cat pee" smell. I find it kind of warmer and rounder (and more human) than that. I don't find it at all unpleasant, but I wonder whether the same accord wouldn't be a nightmare for someone such as my mum, who can't wear anything civety-musky without immediately needing to wash it off. Perhaps that accord will become tamer over time anyway.

Legends never die as they say and this one is definitely legendary
Even if you can’t enjoy this scent denying its great influence in the fragrance community is crazy
The smell of the 70’s I’d say
I think it’s unisex but not safe enough to be worn by your average joe
It’s sweaty aldehydec not in an annoying sense but bearable to my nose
The performance is incredible lasts all day
For what you get compared to prices of other scents you are getting a bargain no doubt
And while wearing it I didn’t feel like the notes are cheap or not well blended

Oh boy, it's a love from me (male). I've had this in my rotation this past week and this fragrances, whether you love it or not, is impressive. It is definitely on the unisex scale, not that fragrances need to be gendered anyway: wear whatever you like in my world. You really need only 1 spray because it is so powerful. I have tried it both on my clothes and on my skin, and for me, while it lasts eternally on clothes, I find the scent matures better on my skin. The opening is quite horrid, dirty, dark, over-powering, confused, and smells almost like a fragrance that has gone 'off'. This is unsurprising considering the number of notes that need to settle in the dry down. On me, the real magic starts to happen 20 minutes later and I find the overwhelmingly dominant note to be the patchouli held aloft by flowers and oakmoss. Held aloft is putting it mildly, it is more like shoved, pushed, ramped, and thrust ahead. Sillage and projection is enormous and you need to consider that when wearing Aromatics Elixir. The fragrance will be noticed by everyone around you, and probably by some who aren't so near as well, and it continues to perform for hours. Some people will not like it wafting ahead and behind you. I bought this fragrance based on my nose tingling to the scent of it from other people who were actually quite far from me. It is one of the few scents that have made me follow someone in a supermarket just to ask them what they are wearing. Back to the patchouli - it is strong, but only slightly dirty barn for me. Imagine TF's White Patchouli, but with the patchouli left, it is that wavelength of patchouli; Crisp, clean, cold, unforgiving, just how I like a patch to be. 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. There is also something creamy about the scent up close and personal and a sweetness that could be coming form the orange blossom and rose. Whether male or female, you need confidence to carry this one. It wears you as an accessory and it is in charge. It's not a date, restaurant, theatre, airplane scent as it far too loud and proud for intimacy. It will fill the room before people have even noticed you arrive. It flaunts itself, and is best suited to situations where strangers don't need to be around you for too long - out shopping, walks in the park, home alone (or with a loved-one who loves it as much as you do!). I don't peg this to any particular season. I would think in tiny amounts this would be office safe, emphasis on tiny, not even a full spray. 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. Prepare to be asked what the heck it is you're wearing, cos it will happen!

@bjorkchicago

When I was a toddler in the early aughts I remember my grandmother wearing Aromatics Elixir. I can't be certain, but it smells very much the same now as it did then. A few years back I purchased a vintage bottle in an antique store. The only major difference I've noticed? As the patchouli oil ages, it takes on a slightly different smell. Over the years it loses some of the fresh, herbaceous nuances and smells a bit softer, smoother, more earthy. I have read some people describe aged patchouli oil as smelling "chocolaty", like the scent of the patchouli in Black Orchid, and maybe that will help give you an idea.

If you scroll further down, Algebraist has commented on the differences between the vintage and modern formulations. However AE is such a distinctive and utterly unique fragrance, I think if there were any major reformulations more people would have taken note and complained, as they have with other Lauder classics. As far as I know this one has had minor tweaks, but it smells more or less the same.

Honestly I LOVE chypre fragrances and I find this TOTALLY unisex but haven't owned a bottle in YEARS.... I was browsing duty free in Hong Kong airport and they were selling the 3.4 oz perfume spray (made in Switzerland for those who want to know) for $38... I was sure it was a mistake so to be a good guy I said "is this HKD300 off the regular price?" But the friendly associate said the price was truly hkd 300... Obviously I grabbed one and now that I'm wearing it to bed, I'm going to buy TWO MORE on my way home to Taiwan.. this fragrance is brilliant... I'd been meaning to hunt down a vintage bottle (oakmoss mostly) but can anyone please tell me if it REALLY makes a big difference? This smells great to me and not VERY different than I remember it... Anyone in the know?

A beautiful golden birch forest in autumn at a lake on a cold but bright morning. Some pines are in the background, moss and other plant on the nearby rocks. When the Sun warms up the ground and the mosses, you can smell this exact scent near the ground.
I just love this.

I got a 100ml bottle when Chemist Warehouse have the 2023 EOFY sale, for AUD 80. That's about 50% discount.

I tried at a CW branch to ensure I like it. Based on the notes I was almost certainly sure that I would like it, but for perfumes we have all learned our lessons, haven't we?

Turned out I liked the typical Chypre smell! The middle and base notes of patchouli, incense and oak moss just ticks me. Reminds me of an old, dark Chinese Traditional Medicine shop with so up-to-the-ceiling herb cabinets. Ever since I tried VCA's Moonlight Patchouli, I became addicted to the particular scent. And I have some patchouli essesntial oil at home for aromatherapy, so I'm very sure what I'm talking about!

I'm now so curious about its sisters, the white and black elixirs. Perhaps I'll get them from FragranceNet later this year.

Oh my why do I love these old perfumes so much...they are all older than I am.

The only one question I have is whether it's safe for office. I decide to just wear 1 spray and observe my colleagues when I wear it on weekdays.

Terms as old fashioned and old lady do not mean the same as disgusting. They mean “from earlier days”. You might just smell unique when wearing this these days. Simply because everyone between 16 and 55 wears a lot of modern times gourmands. This is one of those head turners that people love but cannot place.

I smelled this one on someones aunt and asked what it was. It smelled so good on her!!!!

Other fragrances that were once worn by everyone but are unique now:

Red Giorgio Beverly Hills
Obsession Calvin Klein
Giorgio Giorgio Beverly Hills
Moschino Moschino
Jil Sander nr 4
Le Bain Joop!
Scherrer 2 Jean Paul Scherrer
Spellbound Estee Lauder
Estee Estee Lauder
Knowing Estee Lauder
Cinnabar Estee Lauder
Must Cartier
L’Aire du temps Nina Ricci

And no, sugar and fruity fragrances aren’t always what you need. Sometimes you just need to respect classic treasures.

I’ve just obtained a bottle of this and I now realise this is the slightly overpowering scent I have smelt before on so many classy mature older women.

Can smell Oak Moss (although I don’t think that’s an ingredient anymore) patchouli, vetiver, it’s vintage and classy.

It certainly borders on too strong, I applied one spray to my hand, I actually washed it off but was still there. However I got a compliment from my other half saying I smelt clean and he liked the scent.

The dry down seems nice as long as it’s not right under my nose. I’m not sure if I will wear this one or not to be fair. I might try a spray and walk through rather than direct on to skin.

I remember I used to steal in mom's dress room and went to her drawer to see perfumes. Not many in it, but I found this one in the drawer and I tried this on me. As a teen I strongly hated it--too powdery, too overwhelming, too dark (at that time I prefer a light and fresh scent). Mom hadn't finished the bottle so I kept it in my perfume collection. I put this scent on again when I was a 30 something and I found with surprise that it was a sexy scent, powdery, woody, spicy, and dark on its own. I began to like it but I was afraid it would run out so I carefully used it once in a while, and that made Aromatic Elixir a more beautiful scent. This is a strong scent so one spray is enough or you'll be overpowered with it.

My mums signature scent. Sadly, I can’t stand it! Patchouli is possibly my least favourite note ever, and in this it takes centre stage.
It’s an absolute beast of a fragrance too, when I hug my mum I will stink of this for the rest of the day. Not ideal when you’re a light and fluffy violets and roses kind of girl. I can’t pull off a dark and earthy scent like this, and nor do I want to.

Those describing it as witchy and damp-forest-like are right on the money. It is strong earthy patchouli and oakmoss, herbal, dark, damp. Different, certainly, and I can see why some describe it as sophisticated. A marmite scent for sure, and really not for me at all.

I’ll forever love aromatics elixir because not only is it one of the greatest, if not the greatest, perfumes of all time, but I met my favourite guitarist by chance whilst i was wearing it the other week and gave him a hug whilst I stank of this so it feels like a lucky charm now 🍀 But aromatics elixir is a perfume that I douse myself with in the summer, it reminds me of happy times; being young, carefree, crazy and having fun. It smells like damp moss, sweet hay and essential oils in the best way possible

Yesterday i found a tiny, seemingly ancient bottle of this at Goodwill for $7.37. I didn't spray it in the store, but the atomizer smelled disturbing, almost poisonous. Dry, bitter and unwelcoming, without one hint of sweetness. I could not have named a single note i was smelling. I bought it, brought it home and fearfully sprayed as little as possible on my forearm.

It DOES seem poisonous, like something to definitely be avoided, and is exactly what a witch in an old European fairy tale would smell like. Secret herbal tinctures and concoctions, dried roots hanging from rafters, a mossy dirt floor.

I love it! I am wearing it today and will buy more when this little bottle is gone. I'm curious about what it will smell like fresh. My boyfriend hates it with a passion, but Witches gotta Witch.

This fragrance is stunning not everyone will appreciate it as fragrance is very personal but this smells like an enchanted forest and it been raining heavily the night before and the ground I still wet i find this fragrance is cooling in summer and very cozy in winter absolutely stunning and classy

I need to revisit this fragrance. The last time I smelled it was 2018 or 2019 in Ulta, before the location nearest me stopped carrying it to make room for more laundry coffee syrup fragrances. I am usually a vintage oriental or floral person, with an appreciation for chypres that are not super bitter. Some of the classic bitter ones, like Bandit and Magie Noire, I can appreciate but not wear all the time. So my memory of Aromatics Elixir from a few years ago is that it smelled vaguely like Chinese patent medicine. I knew I could not pull it off. But I think I need to take a break from old amber fragrances and seek out an older sample of this. I'm sure the last time I smelled it, the oakmoss had already been snatched away.

Vintage perfume spray. This was a surprise for me. I decided to purchase a vintage bottle that was very inexpensive with walnut colored juice. My SIL wore it years ago, she passed young some years back and I wanted to visit with her in that time/place again through this scent. It smelled like I remembered her smelling..made me even more melancholy. Then, I sprayed a tiny spray on my wrist. Hmm. Aromatic, herbal just as described but..something else. Fascinating. Another spray the next day. And the next. Nozzle cleared of the initial juice in it for who knows how long and it changed again. SO rosy and lemony. Nothing like it smelled on her or in the bottle. The wonders of personal body chemistry interacting with a well crafted perfume to suit the wearer. Magic. I had a coworker stop me today to ask what I was wearing. Said I smelled fantastic and had for the last several days and she wanted to know what I was wearing. So I told her, thinking to myself, memories new and old all in one bottle.


Edit:
I realized, looking at my favorite perfumes, that I've been chasing after Bernard Chant and his talented nose. Well. Now I know some other perfumes I need to find and test out. The band plays on.

This perfume instantly brought memories of the nouveau riche ladies of the 90s going to church in my extra religious country. Not a bad scent on its own but an absolute no-no for me.

Memories aside, this is an experience. I wasn'st sure if i like it at first, since the opening made my nose ticklish and I really disliked smelling it on my skin but the trail it left was pretty enjoyable. For quite some time all I could get was luxurious olive soap bar which I liked. I don't think I could pick out any florals, only an "old timey" rose maybe? Drydown is pretty nice, earthy and smokey and bitter.

Maybe a time will come when I will enjoy it.. For now I much prefer the black flanker.

I took one sniff of this and wondered what on earth I've been doing all this time, staying away from this fragrance because of the comments from naysayers.
I will proceed by making clear that this is not a crowd pleasing fragrance, this is not something that everybody will appreciate, but I would be hard-pressed to find a chypre lover who will not enjoy this 70s masterpiece.
Aldehydes and bergamot in a brief opening, quickly overtaken by a marriage of oakmoss, carnation, patchouli and vetiver. And you cannot miss the chamomile!
Story time: In 2021 when we were all wearing face masks, I was doing my shopping in Sainsbury's, rolled my trolley past a well-dressed senior in the bread aisle, almost gasped aloud by how wonderful her chypre perfume was, thought it would be rude to interrupt her bread musings, decided 20 seconds later that I'd start with an apology and then it wouldn't matter, rolled my trolley back to the aisle, smelt her perfume but she was long gone, spent the next 5 minutes rolling my trolley around the store looking for her, mourned the lost opportunity to find out what she had been wearing... and today, I smelt it. That beautiful woman with excellent taste had been wearing Aromatics Elixir... somehow, my brain remembered the chamomile. But I'm quite sure that she had been wearing the vintage version, this one didn't pack as much floral punch as that one did.

A love. A protective bubble. Brings to mind nature, but alien in a way, like the smell of plants on another planet. Invigorating. Sharp but powerful and wide. Oakmoss is strong. Very herbal, the robust scent of a mix of herbs prevents the chamomile from being too sleepy. Very strong and long lasting.

Aromatics Elixir is a baroque, vintage-style chypre, one of the classics of the genre. Initially brightly floral and herbal, it is also inky-dark and mossy, powdery and soapy, woody and musky, earthy and spicy. It is bold and opaque - a little goes a long way - and it is reminiscent of many beautiful chypres, both modern and vintage.

AE opens with aldehydic florals, bright and soapy, with chamomile adding a hay-like, herbal edge. Green verbena adds a light, lemon quality. Green and peppery, thanks in part to a nice geranium note, it is earthy and softly spicy here too. An Earl Grey-like bergamot note cements AE's status as a classic chypre. Rich and complex, it gets progressively darker as it develops.

The powdery floral heart emerges after a little while, led by heady, sweet ylang ylang and big, powdery rose. Clean white florals round it out, primarily jasmine and some sweet tuberose. I get prominent spicy clove here, enhancing the bouquet beautifully. Orange blossom adds a sweet, fruity edge - not my favourite element, but blends in nicely with the other florals. Orris keeps things powdery.

Woody and earthy notes permeate this scent, but really come to the fore as it dries down. A cloud of patchouli alongside beautiful oakmoss forms a rich chypre base, a marriage of the modern and traditional. I get a lovely sandalwood note in there too. A little incense adds smokiness, adding to the darkness. Musky, slightly sweet amber ties it all together. It is dark and dense here, rich and mossy, fading to a musky, mossy skin scent eventually. Sillage is strong and longevity is long-lasting.

A traditional, masterfully-composed chypre, AE is a classic for a reason. Up there with Mitsouko, Givenchy III and Knowing, AE is a true reference chypre that is unisex by modern standards. While it is not a personal favourite chypre (that honour goes to Jubilation 25 - AE is slightly too sweet for my taste), it is an undeniable masterpiece. Mossy, musky, autumnal goodness. 4.5/5.

A baroque, unapologetic chypre. It is indeed old-fashioned, which is not necessarily a bad thing, so long as wearer respects the fragrance for what it is and plays to its strengths. Mossy, piney, witchy, and could be used as man-repellent if desired. It's perfect!

Sometimes I love this, but usually I only like it. The chamomile may just be too much for me, as there are few instances where I like chamomile in perfume (Fougere Royale is one). Leaving that note aside (if possible), this is a masterful embellishment of the Chypre structure. Specifically the florals in the heart are just abstract enough to not be distracting, but not too abstract as to become vague. The oakmoss of the base is in great condition in the current formulation, and is accompanied by a showstopping patchouli. On days when I do go for it, I use one spray very far from my face (wrist, or even better on a long scarf). It manages to be enormous, but is still legible and not too opaque.

I am trying to learn chypre. I already feel that I have a deep connection with AE but I can’t wear it fully yet, the oakmoss is in my throat in this one. Time to time I wear it and I feel that i am getting closer. As opposed to some reviewer, I adore the beginning and for me it is the end that is challenging, maybe too much patchouli and oakmoss. But despite everything I can not let this go, I feel how beautiful it is, there is a reason why AE has been popular for 50 years.

I cannot even imagine the power of the older formulas. I bought a gift set a few years ago, but even just walking through the air it was too much for me. Currently I can only wear the body lotion, half a pea amount and this way I can almost get away with it…. I fully agree with Katrin77 below: “women of the seventies, who were you?”

I adore the lighter, brighter, younger sister Wrappings. I wish there was a fragrance bridging Wrappings and AE.

It starts off quite medicinal, topped with aldehydes and acidic lemon verbena notes. Chamomile, patchouli, vetiver, and carnation pave most of the herbal background. I get much more oakmoss and rose when I sprayed this onto fabrics than on my skin. I wish I could get more rose on my skin because it really makes the scent more rounded, since the sour aromatic combo is a bit screechy on my skin. As the top notes fade out, the lemon verbena is still present 15 minutes after application, but it becomes smoother as the white florals and rose chime in. Only patchouli and vetiver, with some sandalwood added, are left in the drydown. Because the incense and oakmoss notes are not too heavy on my skin (compared to application on fabrics), I think I might be able to pull Aromatics Elixir off in warmer weathers because I like wearing herbal scents that are light and bitter in the summer...

I also sampled Amouage Beloved Women, but Beloved is sweeter, more floral, and muskier than Aromatics Elixir. It doesn't have the oakmoss and patchouli.

As much as I want to find something pretty in this perfume, it just doesn‘t work. It makes me sick. As i sprayed it on my wrist I had to immediately wash it away and still the terrible smell lingers for hours. Nauseating…

This perfume is extremely nostalgic for me as my aunty wore it all the time while I was a kid. The projection is HUGE. A few sprays would fill every room in her house. She’s a smoker and this perfume was designed to complement the smell of cigarettes.

Despite smelling very distinctive, It is very different on each person. I have a friend who also wears this but smells like a totally different perfume (still overpowering). Either way, it is an acquired taste. It’s extremely powerful and loud. I enjoy this smell on my aunty but it certainly is not for me. It’s headache inducing. This is not floral or feminine but an interesting and unique scent. One spray is more than enough!

I’m writing this review based off my college memories! I’m a poison or coco or opium kind of gal! But this was the rage in 88 89? So I tried it… from my memory I remember instant headache. I just didn’t get what all the hype was about? Something really really annoyed me about it ? To me it’s basically a perfume with a mix of notes that’s trying to come off is really special and unique but the fact remains when you put it together. It’s just nonsense and chaos ?? if that makes any sense, ? I’m not a big patchouly fan so it might be that mixed with the coriander and sage was what annoyed me? I’m literally writing this review. Trying to remember why I dislike it so much but also kind of want to try it again there’s something about it I want to make, but it’s just too strong and it almost kind of reminds me of a strong cat spray ( and y’all know about cats know what I mean ! No pee but the cat SPRAY!!!) so I’m definitely not gonna buy it again. I think some people love it some people hate it. I don’t think there’s any middle ground with this one. I don’t find anything fresh about it herbal yes but there’s still something in it but I just can’t make any sense of cute bottle!

I remember trying AE decades ago and being repelled by it, but having recently started to learn more about perfume, I wanted to revisit it, especially as it is revered as such a classic.
Second time around I can see what all the fuss is about in terms of the fragrance’s complexity and uniqueness, but I still can’t bear it. There’s something in it that has brought on a terrible headache and makes me feel nauseous. I’d rather be stuck in a lift with spilled bottles of Opium and Poison than have to spend time in the company of someone wearing AE.

I loved because it smelled like church (lol), and was therefore comforting in a way. Not many other 10 year olds liked it, for sure. I put it on right before bedtime to relax. Super strong exotic incense smell. With library mixed in. (Sorry not good at knowing notes and stuff yet)

ChatGPT and future subsequent artificial intelligence spawns birthed from microplastic servers will never hack the magisterial nature of Aromatics Elixir. The elixir of elixirs and aromatic of aromatics yields to no algorithm. AE is the unknown unknowns. AE is the sacred and the profane. AE is the masculine and the feminine. Let them try looking into that place where they dare not look. They’ll find AE there staring back at them.

Work in healthcare and one of my patients was wearing this. It’s powerful af. Vetiver is the dominant note, along with Incense. gotta barbershop quality to it. Reminds me of Sequoia by CDG, but old lady-fied.

I just bought it. I used to wear it some years ago. I turned back to it as I remembered how unique it felt. Unfortunately it didn't smell the same. At first I was in between if it had a very long shelf life and was old and ruined, or if it is a reformulation. I guess it is the second.
I am very sorry that the original formula has not been preserved. It seems distorted and now so my memories. Better for me not to buy it and keep the good taste of the memory...

I enjoy aromatherapy and was drawn to this fragrance because it reminds me of a natural wellness center where they use pure essential oils for their massages. To me it's very earthy and herbal and grounding in a way. I pick up the Clary sage, rose and patchouli. The other notes are very well blended . A very mature fragrance but not "old lady" smelling. Confident. Extremely polarizing. Its not for everyone, neither is it for everyday. long lasting fragrance,, limit to 2 sprays because it's so powerful it can easily overwhelm. Not a safe blind buy unless you absolutely love "dirty" essential oils.

Woah - spray lightly!! This has ENORMOUS scent projection on opening spray, to the point I had to wash some off and open the windows, it is just far too headache-inducingly overbearing!

I bought this on a nostalgia trip very recently, it was my signature scent for a good while 30 years ago, including for my wedding. Honestly, I don't know that I thought I would suddenly wonder how I'd lived without it for a couple of decades, but I did expect to still like it... I was really pretty gutted to find out that I actively do not.

I know that your tastes change as you get older, but I've never been a rose person, and this sweet, slightly spicy, warm scent screams ROSE!!! from the first moment and it just doesn't go away.

Maybe it is just a reformulation thing, and i'm sure many people will love this.. but I'm sad to report that I am REALLY no longer one of them. Feels like a very sad end to a love story tbh 😔

Definitely not for everyone. I started off hating it and in the course of about a week moved on to finding it okay or even slightly enjoying it. Nevertheless, I sold it on because my boyfriend found it repulsive.
From what I am reading, it seems to be an acquired taste and not everyone acquires it.

I really like this perfume, but I agree that it's not for everyone. If you appreciate the smell of Elizabeth Arden's Eight Hour Cream, you'll probably like Aromatics Elixir, too.
Not that they resembled each other in any way, just the medicinal quality in both of them.

Very similar to Azzaro pour homme.
Surprised its not in the Reminds Me Of section.
Love it.

AE is a scent for someone who has attained quiet self acceptance and feels no need to prove or explain anything to anyone. I wish I had met the original. I bet she had a bigger presence and impact. The current formulation is unexpected to me. It’s gentler than I anticipated, very herbal, mossy, and green. Not as much patchouli as I would like. It sits close to the skin after the first hour, but lasts 12 hours on me. I can’t pick out the flowers, but they add sweetness in the drydown. I have a travel size and have been wearing AE for the last several days to see if I want a full bottle. It interests me, it’s not demanding of attention, and it seems as though it brings out something I like about myself. I forget I’m wearing perfume, which is a good feeling. Also, sometimes I feel as though some perfumes wear me instead of the other way around, but that’s not the case with AE. I like AE and I appreciate its qualities, but it’s not a love.
For a chypre floral, I love Halston Classic.

My gosh. Where to begin..?
The women of the Seventies, WHO WERE YOU? Pulling off Bijan, Aromatics Elixir, Opium, and so on. You must have been some badass warriors. I sometimes think that we are not from the same planet, sharing the same anatomy and olfactory sense. No way.

But then again, I find myself developing and moving towards several timeless classics that I have never considered before. I am intrigued by the overwhelmingly positive reviews here, and think that you people have caught something, understood something, that I have not yet seen myself. Show me! Tell me!

So far AE is harsh and aggressive, and so, so strange to me. But I also sense something sad, poetic, innocent here. Like a box that has been sealed for decades, hiding its' secrets, and just recently has been found and reopened.

I got my first ever AE today (yes, I did open the Clinique Advent calendar box for Dec, 23...). and I am keeping this one. Try to get to know her, and hopefully discover her secrets. But it will take time, and I am not bold enough to wear her in public. Not yet.

But I will, eventually. I hope.

Elixir is right. Gorgeous smooth and herbal woody potion. This is my mother-in-law’s signature scent. I can see how this can be associated with a Chanel. My boys say I smell like Nana’s house when I wear Coco Noir and Allure Sensuelle. This is a cooler, mentholated patchouli though. Soothing, calming. I can’t pull this off quite like she can, especially since she’s so known for this. My boys, when they were babies, would always smell like her after she held them. I love that about this.
So, this is my perfect yoga time, bath time, me time scent. Heavenly.

My absolute favorite category of scents is chypres and AE is my very favorite of those. It’s warm but cool, also. Herbal. Does not resemble Coco or Aramis to me, at all. Those are spicy, this is herbal. No leather. I get chamomile, clary sage, and oakmoss the most. I’m 44F for reference and discovered this gem about 15 years ago.

I love aromatherapy, and this has a calming effect on me. I always think of a calm, cerebral person who has their life on point. This is extremely subjective, of course, but it smells like my idea of balance. No note is too strong, or out of place.

I just (today) bought a brand new bottle from the Belk’s counter. I don’t know if they’ve reformulated it from my last new bottle (about 2015) but it is much better than the last new bottle I had.

If I had to have only 2 perfumes for the rest of my life, they would be AE and Angel.

It is a beautiful fragrance, smells like soapy tea, a damp forest, and creamy florals. I absolutely adore it but I came into it with the same mentality that I find myself in surrounding vintage fragrances. You look at the reviews and the “enormous” sillage and “eternal” longevity make it seem that you’re in for an inescapable fragrance. Alas, the current formulation of aromatics is not that. Its longevity is great no argument there but even with four sprays (which I thought would be cloying and suffocating everyone around me) people had to lean in to see what it smelled like! It seems that no current formulation vintage fragrance has a correct fragrantica rating for sillage and longevity, I am sure this fragrance was that one spray is enough bomb back in the day, it is still beautiful and I will be wearing it A LOT, but it is not that.

This is one of my favourite floral Chypres. Vintage opening which can feel a little dated but once it settles it is heavenly. A really lovely woody aromatic. Pretty good longevity and silage.
My 79-year-old mother-in-law (who looks about 50) wears it though, which kinda spoils it on me for my husband and children 😅 but I still love it. My mother-in-law is a very elegant lady with great taste in everything so if she has given it a thumbs up that's good enough for me.

I tried this yesterday, and as a lover of vintage, I liked it. It smells like the precursor to Paloma Picasso. I think it smells animalic, although not listed in the notes. There is the definite barn animal scent that Paloma also has. It’s odd that a perfumer can blend that smell with other notes and make something that smells sexy. This isn’t badass lady boss, like Paloma is, but more hippie cowgirl. Not sure if I will buy this because I already have Paloma and love it so much. Nordstrom Rack does have a great gift set on sale right now for those who are interested 😉

I had the opportunity to test the original version and the current version side by side. The original version brought me to an early spring norming, camping in the lush Sonora Desert, following a light rain. The current version, well, I do not want to be negative, but just let me say that this evoked the following evening when a skunk walked into the tent.

I really like Aromatics but rarely wear it. Today I felt like it (spritz and walk through!). It really smells like from another time and I know that some people actively dislike it! It's not so usual to smell it anymore going out and I noticed that it had disappered from my Clinique counter.

Aromatics is a powerful fragrance and it smells quite differently in summer and winter. In summer it is more cola like and woody, now in winter I get more of the chamomile. I also realized why it smells so vintage - AE has a lot of ylang ylang, the fatty essential oil type, not the beachy floral. That kind of ylang ylang is very typical of scents of decades ago and I haven't ever encountered it in contemporary fragrances except for Teo Cabanel's Alahine.

I love AE because it's fresh, cooling and deep. My bottle is from around 15 years ago so I don't know the state of the current formulation.

My Chanel 5, even the shape of the bottle. Thanks for existing.

Poison Elixir is best suitable for it.
This is a big no from me.
I wanted to have some extraordinary perfume, even a bit old fashioned but still pleasant.
But this one is not.
The first 30 minutes or more it smells sharply as a cat pee. I have a bottle with a dark yellow liquid and I thought it was the perfect match for the smell.
Unfortunately, it can not be washed off. Even with a several washes. The stink remains.
Also, my hand started to itches and pinches on the place where I sprayed it.
So definitely not for people with a sensitive skin.
Big disappointment. I don't get the good reviews about it.
I wanted to throw it in the trash but I am angry because of the 50 euro I gave for this
fly swatter.

A soothing tonic that first comforts, then asks a question: what do you truly want? What were you looking for when you came to me and sprayed me? Cooling camphoraceous chamomile takes over and suspends the anxious seeking mind, separating it from the observing one. What makes me feel crazy is the fact that this behaves like a painfully melancholy aquatic. The bottle is ochre, but the smell reaches into deep glacial marine territory. The image of the bathroom from the first Saw movie as a representation of deep hopelessness and surrender, captured within a dusty photograph. Shaking emotions loose.

A bit much in the beginning and a little goes a long way. However, it settles beautifully. I consistently get more complements on it than many of the more popular or more expensive frags in my collection. It’s cozy as heck and perfect for cooler seasons. Smells like a farmers market babe in a penny lane coat, who lives a little woodland cottage and invites everyone over pumpkin bread and mulled wine. Classic. Love it.

If I have to smell Aromatics, I think I prefer to smell it on a man rather than a woman. It's American, pleasant enough smelling in a very obvious, crude, unsubtle, unsophisticated, out-of-towner, rudimentary, unrefined, neat & clean - so many Americans want to smell "clean" - suburban housewife, sell-it-hard, Estee Lauderey, International Flavours & Fragrances, head-clobbering, clothes detergent kind of way...and, yes, I am a bit of a fragrance snob.

I've seen this for sale in my local "TOFS" (The Original Factory Shop), alongside Youth Dew and Aramis, something Mrs Lauder would never have allowed and would be turning in her grave if she knew.

My sister wore this when she was about seventeen & I always associate it with young girls who know nothing, about life, or perfumes. In France, mothers take their daughters to shops like Guerlain & spend time choosing an appropriate scent. It's a right of passage & an important part of growing up, like opening one's first bank account. If you want the male - and less expensive - version of Aromatics, get Aramis 900, they're virtually one and the same scent...

I'm 90% sure this was my great aunt’s signature in the '90s, so, like many others have mentioned, it's transportive. Not always welcome, though, as sometimes nostalgia can turn to mourning. A barrage of medicinal notes, but the real medicine is how it dredges up memories from the subliminal to the conscious.

Admittedly a rough opening, and the advice to spray and walk through helps to not overwhelm.

ETA: if you purchase a newer bottle, you really should let it macerate. The opening gets softer, and the rose, geranium, and patchouli get some nice lift from the aldehydes to sparkle among the herbs. Find it works great for me as a room spray akin to an herbal incense.

classic🤎

The scent out of the bottle is sour and strong. After two sprays to the skin, it starts developing into a warm herbal smell. Its very warm and inviting, this is the scent my mom wore growing up so it smells like warm hugs to me. It’s definitely a perfume that needs to mix with your skin oil to really develop into what it’s supposed to be. It smells quite complex but simple at the same time. One of a kind perfume that will leave lasting memories if you wear it. This is a comfort smell to me. It will now and forever be in my collection!

Incense in the opening, full-on forest floor in the drydown. Moss, fallen leaves, tree bark on a damp cold day in November or March. Earth angel, mother nature, woman of the woods. You can almost hear the twigs snapping underfoot. Gorgeous.
My sample is clearly a reformulation as it is not as long-lasting nor as loud as reviews would suggest. I can only imagine what a well-preserved specimen from the 70s might smell like.
It is bracing and bordering on medicinal. It will likely challenge those unaccustomed to old-school chypres. I know this because I used to be in that boat, and though I’ve since warmed up to chypres as a whole, Aromatics Elixir stands head and shoulders above the others I’ve tried as my favorite.

This was my grandmother's signature fragrance for decades and I recently bought a new bottle because she passed. I was never a huge fan, but the memory of it was nice to have. Compared to many 70s/80s fragrances still on the market today, this is still absolutely (and even a bit diabolically) nuclear- without even considering its relatively cheap price. I truly cannot fathom how it is able to last so long and project so much from a single spray... proceed with caution! Amazing how strong it still is even when new.

My Mum bought Aromatics again, she used to wear it years ago.
I remember feeling kind of neutral about it in the past so sneaked a sniff to see what I thought now.
Patchouli bomb - great!
So I doused myself in it, at first feeling that same hmm, neutral feeling I used to have.
Then it just seemed to get stronger and stronger.
2 sprays and people around me were complaining about the 'wall of perfume' although I couldn't smell it that much.
The smell clings, though.
Next day I could still smell it everywhere, in my hair and on my skin.
I had thought about getting a bottle but I think I will pass on Aromatics - there's something in the drydown that REALLY reminds me of YSL Opium- Opium minus the cloves.
It also feels not very well 'rounded' to me, it needs .. just something else, an edge of something that's not there.
As someone else has said, if I want 70's witchy, I'll reach for Magie Noire .. well, what remains of it ...

I have hundreds of perfumes.. I can’t get rid of this Elixer fast enough. It will be in my car tomorrow morning to drop at the thrift store.
We all love what we love & we don’t always know why. I have had so much fun looking up my fragrances on fragrantica. I love finding the things in common in these fragrances I have grown up with & added over my life. Standouts (I was born in late ‘63) are Tabu Odyssey Shalimar Sweet Honesty Love’s Baby Soft Calvin Klein Eternity Gucci Rush Robert Piquet Fracas

Patchouli and vinegar dominate the opening. A large sour, soapy floral accord with jasmine and rose is present. With great silage and projection, the depth is incredible and the lifespan feels like it lasts forever. The scent of aldehydes, chamomile, and clary sage make an immediate impact. The flowers, patchouli, woods, and moss just flourish together. It's a lovely chorus and definitely one e of a kind!

I know people said not to blind buy this but I did because I was so seduced by people's descriptions of it. I found it at a really good price at a local discounter's but they didn't allow me to try it on so I was like, oh heck, I'll just get it.

I don't regret it one bit. I couldn't wait to try it so I spritzed a tiny bit on my wrist as I walked outoors and was immediately enamoured. A cool, herbal, enveloping scent that warps and expands into a cloud of majesty and mystery. While I think I walked a little more upright after having it on, it also puts me in a reverie. Sublime!

Quite a complex fragrance, not for everyone. Many will have an association with retro perfumes, with "grandma's perfume", an old pharmacy or a dusty chest. Aldehydes, cloves, ylang-ylang, white flowers and spices, all based on moss, frankincense and vetiver. Typical good chypre, herbal potion, even a little Gothic flavor. For me, this perfume is a sign of the onset of autumn, but many people are happy to wear it in the summer, I feel a little stuffy in it in the heat. In the creaking frost, sonorous aldehydes and cold bitter herbs are revealed.

I really wanted to like this, as I've always loved Clinique and I tend to enjoy older fragrances (even though I don't often wear them). I sampled this in-store and almost purchased it because on the initial spray, I adored it. It reminded me of a gin & tonic, very bold and boozy with spicy woody notes. Unfortunately, the dry-down was a huge miss for me: after about an hour and a half it turned into something so unpleasant that I had to go scrub it off. I could see this working for someone with different skin chemistry, but I wouldn't recommend this as a blind buy when it has the potential to be so nauseating. If you try it and it works for you, go for it!

اگر این شاهکار نیست پس چی میتونه شاهکار باشه؟! برای من این کلاسیک کلاسیک های آروماتیک فوژه است. کاملا یونی که به تن آقایون حتی زیباتر از خانم ها میشینه و درکل هرکس خاصه خانم مشخصی که اینو بپوشه قطعا ابهت و وقارش اونو مصداق بارز جنتلوومن و دیستنکشن با دیگران میکنه. من هرگز دوست نداشتم از کسی بپرسم چه عطری پوشیده اما یکی دوسال پیش توی مترو قیطریه ناچار از خانمی مسن که بین 65تا70سال بلکه بیشتر می نمود پرسیدم چرا که شک داشتم این آروماتیک کلینیک یا اوپوس 1144 اونوم. خالق این شاهکار دودهه قبلش کوباکارد برای مادام گرس ساخته بود که خود شاهکاری بوده و اکنون علیرغم تحمل رفرمولاسیون های ناگوار هنوزم همچون آروماتیک کلینیک از کارهای آروماتیک فوژق خوب و جالب هردو کار گل سرسبد نت هاشون اوکموس که دیوانه کننده ست. اما قطعا کیفیت کنونی آروماتیک بمراتب از کار کذایی برند گرس بهتر است خاصه اینکه میدونیم آکوردی رزینی شبیه صمغ و وانیل از ترکیب برخی نت ها در آروماتیک کلینیک پدید میاد که سبب میشه در کنار اوکموس و اینسنس و پچولی و.. فضایی شبیه اوپوس 1144 اونوم پدیدار بشه و شما گمان ببرید که بیشتر از کاری آروماتیک با یک کار صمغی وانیلی مواجه اید که البته آروماتیک و چایپره یا فوژه هم هست. پیچیدگی این عطر شاهکار نقطه عطفی در دنیای کلاسیک های عطر است. گفته می شود که کلاسیک ها در ادبیات یا جامعه شناسی و.. آن دسته آثاری هستند که مسائل و موضوعاتی را مطرح نموده اند که تا قرن ها همچنان آن سوالات و موضوعات مطرح و مورد مراجعه هستند ولو پاسخ کلاسیک ها پاسخ نهایی و قطعی به آن پرسش ها و موضوعات نباشند! (اگرچه البته پاسخ های آنها و پرداخت هایشان از زمره مهمترین پاسخ ها و پرداخت ها از آن مسائل و موضوعات به شمار می آیند!) با این تعریف قطعا موردی همچون آروماتیک کلینیک رفرنس کلاسیکی برای سبک آروماتیک چایپره است که حتی اگر روزی کسی پیدا نشه که خواهان پوشیدنش باشه، باز هم پرداخت و ارائه استاد برنارد چنت از این سبک الگو و رفرنس هر پرداختی از آروماتیک فوژه خواهد بود همچنان که بقیه کارهای خود برنارد چنت به نوعی بازنمایی جلوه های گوناگونی از الگوی کلاسیک چنت درباب عطر آروماتیک بوده که ظاهرا ابتدا با بندیت و کوباکارد پرداخته بود.
پخش و ماندگاری عالی عالی, و مورد پوشش البته برای سنین بالای 35سال تنها در فصل سرما, و سبک پوشش قطعا مایه های جدی از کلاسیک و رسمی و هرچیزی الا سبک های فشن جوانانه جلف امروزین! (اصلا عطر کژوال نیست)، اما اگر خانم یا آقای جوانی با لباس رسمی یا نیمه رسمی و یا استایل کلاسیک اینو بپوشه چی؟! نخست اینکه هیچ کس مرجع پوشش دیگران نیست جز گشت ارشاد وقیح و پلشت مردم آزار, و آنچه ما نیز درباب سن و فصل و.. می نویسیم مطلقا دیدگاه شخصی است و وجوب آن حتی از تره های موردنظر نویسنده هنر رندانه به فاک دادن کمتر است، دوم اینکه فارغ از این مسئله من برای چنان خانم یا آقای جوانی تمام قد می ایستم و چون فصل سرما همیشه کلاه بر سر دارم، قطعا کلاه از سر برمی دارم. بله قربان این پوشش شایسته تعظیم ملوکانه است

This is a wonderful fragrance for fall. The top notes of clary Sage and coriander evoke aspects of Indian cuisine; but this is not a curry dish aroma. The florals last a good while.The base notes linger and reinforce the
“aromatic” theme.
This is not a bludgeoner, but is relatively exotic enough to be unique among the sweet caramel/fruity fragrances currently in vogue.
I imagine this fragrance worn by a woman of the world traveling by sea in a voyage long enough for a steamer trunk to be used. She would wear expensive silk scarves while strolling on deck. This is not overpowering but definitely noticeable. Sillage is moderate and longevity is about three hours. With judicious application, can be office acceptable.

Aromatics Elixir is a legendary fragrance and one of a kind. Reputed to have mood enhancing properties, it also evokes memories in a very powerful way. I first wore it in 1995 on a trip to Germany with my father, who died later that year. Wearing it now will always bring back memories of Kamp Bornhofen and our last trip together.

I'm giving this to a friends mom. It's not like I remember it in the early 2000s. I dont hate it I just dont love it like I used to but I remember this being a fragrance everyone wore and it was lovely. Sad they changing formulas on classic beauties like these

Picked up a vintage bottle this afternoon, and I have to say, I am intrigued by this fragrance.Patchouli is one of my least favorite fragrance notes, and to my nose, the patchouli in Aromatic Elixir is front and center.And yet, somehow, it just works for me in this concoction. Would I wear it to the doctors office or a business meeting. No. Would I wear it for an afternoon jaunt in the woods in the Fall, or to take a mid day nap ? You bet.

An absolutely stunning fragrance I love that it smells like the forest on a wet day but also smells rich and luxurious I like wearing this in high heat because it cools me down because it smells to herble and cold but smells warm in winter it’s a classic for a reason beautiful and bewitching

The patchouli is camphorous, which I adore. Elixir is dry and evokes the Middle East. Very oriental shades for a chypre. Amazing value if you like this sort of perfume. Bottle is one year old, and any spray on fabric is nuclear.

Don't much like the top. Or the mid. But the drydown is worth waiting for.
I get basically a bitter, masculine vetiver.

And I MUST say I'm truly impressed with longevity. This drydown lasts LONG. Easily 24 hours. And that's straight out of a brand new bottle, purchased just now in July/August 2022.

Just imagine what this will be like in a year or two...

All in all, chypre is not my thing (also have cabouchard edp, the pre reform). They're good but not for me.

Can recommend it though, definitely a quality true perfume.

Mark

Working behind a chair at the hair salon,my co worker walked by, OMG!!!! I called her back," What is that perfume"????? It was the ORIGINAL formula AE.I bought it. That was my signature for 40 yrs, one squirter. I sprayed just one squirt an hour before going out. That formula stayed with me until I took a shower. When the formula was changed my heart broke. Compliments galore,that was nice but I loved it for Myself. On the hunt for a new sig.HOW CAN I PUT IN WORDS AE?......I cant.

This is such a beautiful fragrance, and just like everyone else, I have such beautiful memories with this fragrance. To me this reminds me of my mother and grandmother, it’s such a beautiful vintage smell. Sillage is amazing, longevity is just spectacular (I sprayed it 2 days ago on my shirt and I can still smell it very strongly, I sprayed Mon Guerlain on top of it but all that comes through is AE). The only thing that hold me back from grabbing a bottle of my own is the dry down. The smell for about an hour or so is heavenly. But after that, and especially after a few hours and as of now, it takes on the smell of urine… that’s the only way I can describe it.
Anyone else have an issue with the dry down? :(

Hands down The Mack Daddy of chypre's...dont mess with her, she is timeless and classic. The Queen of Chypre.

Aromatics Elixir, in addition to being one of the last true chypres of History, is pure magic : ultra-feminine on a woman, ultra-masculine on a man, or vice versa depending on your state of mind, it never ceases to amaze and delight me. Everlasting patch & oakmoss beauty.

Aromatics Elixir is a sublime blend of dried herbs, damp oakmoss, on a patchouli base. Such a unique fragrance that draws compliments whenever I wear it. It definitely has that distinct 70s vibe with the patchouli. It has moderate projection and insane longevity. I have both the vintage and current formulations and I can only detect a small difference and it’s mainly in the strength upon first application. The modern has a stronger floral arrangement upon first spraying, whereas the vintage hits you with the herbs and patchouli straight away. After several hours the modern formulation resonates with the vintage. It’s still produced with oakmoss to this day. I hope Clinique never discontinues Aromatics as this perfume is so iconic. 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. They ARE the same. Most vintage bottles of her have had time to stew and the patchouli has become darker and stronger. The newer bottles entertain the floral notes more and the herbs are fresher. I appreciate that Clinique has kept the bottle design the same. Even the box it comes in is retro and beautiful. This perfume is so comforting and present when I wear it. It’s strong, but in a delicate way. It reminds me of walking in a deep forest where the sunlight trickles through the evergreen canopies. Its just rained and there is a mistiness about the fallen trees and dried leaves crunching under my feet. It smells earthy in a way. I think that’s why AE has such an appeal to those that truly adore her. Her embrace is a familiar feeling that is almost primal in nature. There really isn’t the perfect occasion to wear this as it’s so different. It almost becomes a part of you when you wear it so the occasion doesn’t really matter.

When I was introduced to Aromatics it was a powerhouse for my younger nose. I didn't hate. It wasn't my taste then. I wanted to get choked out by other gems - fast forward around the height of the Pandemic someone gave me one a sniff & loved it. The composition just works.

This could be categorized as an incense imo. I'm so new to the world of fragrances but it's deep dark beautiful fragrance & capable of waking you up in the freezing mornings or better yet for late nights by the fire outdoor events. I would recommend & does give off a playful confidence for sure.

It's not an every day fragrance for me it's heady and has a way of transporting me back into time, but the patchouli is so good.

Omg I love it !!!! It brought me back when I was a teen , my teacher had it and I was too shy to ask her what perfume was...I've been looking for a long time and I finally have it ...its rich , elegant ,sofisticated and makes me happy !

Herbal, medicinal, sharp and bitter. And perhaps...hay-like?
Chamomile, aldehydes, Clary Sage, carnation and incense.
That´s what i get after 2 full wearings of vintage (bottle from 1998) Aromatics Elixir.
The opening can be a challenge, and when people talk about this one as "old", it must be the aldehydes they refers to. When i first sprayed it, i did not know what to think.
Now, after a couple of minutes, the fragrance settles and a huge floral/herbal heart opens up. It is divine.
Then, after a couple of hours, it dries down to a herbal, incensy (slowly burning) grass field in southern france. It is more than divine!
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.
This is 10/10. Perfect all year round. Last 8 hours on skin.

I wore this in middle school and early High school after loving it on my Mom's friend, and recently blind bought it because I wanted it in my collection as an adult. I don't think it's the exact same as the original formula, but it's pretty darn close.

I understand why it is so polarizing. It is not of this generation, and people tend to like what they are used to smelling. It is also incredibly strong. I'm an over sprayer, but never with this fragrance. ONE spray will stay on until your next shower, and will fill the room for hours.

Aromatics Elixir is a potion. It smells like what real hippies in the 70's smelled like. It smells like an Earthy, woodsy, medicine woman. A white witch gathering herbs in a haunted forest. I think there is a sexy, non conformist element to it, and that it would probably smell interesting and expensive on a man as well. I use it sparingly, and prefer it in cold weather. I also love to spray it in my home as a sort of aromatherapy after I've cleaned house.

I get antiseptic and bandages. Smells like a hospital, but really heavy, without the any light, pleasant cleanliness. I like herbal, medicinal scents, normally, but this was a little foul. I dunno if the vintage version smelled any better. I would have to believe so. I am not detecting any of the advertised sweetness.

Clinique AE is my signature scent and has been since the early 90’s. I loved it the first time I had my nose on it. On me, it is a spicy floral that dries down to a powdery sweetness. It never fails to get compliments from both men and women. A little goes a long, long way. It’s a fragrance that you absolutely must step into. Usually, I extend the wear with the body wash and/or the body lotion. I will always have this in my collection.

This is my mom's signature scent, and one of the many that got me seriously into fragrance, and it breaks my heart to see so many bad reviews of it because I think it smells great on her! And any time I smell it anywhere else it instantly reminds me of her. It is a very strong, earthy-floral scent and kinda old school so I guess I can see why it's not for everyone, but I think it takes a certain kind of person to wear this, and my mom just happens to be one of those people I guess. The performance is insane, a couple sprays fills a whole room, and I can still smell it on my mom after she's worn it for a whole day

Aromatics Elixir is marketed by Clinique as an “intriguing non-conformist fragrance." Chandler Burr writes of its depth and shadows, and it's described by many reviewers as "a chypre on steroids." I find all of these things to be true, and more. It is a bitter, balsamic, menacingly astringent blend of cool, otherworldly woods and sour alien herbs, abstract florals and austere resins. Verbena and geranium, jasmine and oakmoss, bergamot and patchouli–all of the familiar notes for a classic and yet it feels out of time, wholly strange and new, as if it contains a strain of alien DNA. 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. If this being had a message for us from across that cosmic ocean of emptiness, it would surely reach us after its death. Such a transmission from that dread abyss is the scent of Aromatics Elixir.

Where did the rose go? It vanished.

Aromatics Elixir was changed in 2014, it smells quite different than it did before that. It had minor tweaks to the formula before 2014 but it always still smelled basically like itself. The current version starts off similar to the older version in its bracing, herbal-tangy top-notes...but the powdery drydown lacks the lovely rose/geranium note that the earlier version had. It used to be such a beautiful, bitter rose, but now it's nowhere to be found.

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. I do enjoy the tangy, medicinal beginning of the current version though. I find that spraying the current version on clothes keeps the fragrance smelling like those beautiful bracing top-notes and it doesn't dry down into the powdery-sandalwood-patchouli accord that I dislike.

Aromatics is a fragrance that has always dried down very differently when sprayed on clothing versus on skin. Here are my own observations of how I perceive the drydown of the modern & vintage versions based on application method:

Current Aromatics Elixir sprayed on CLOTHES: Tangy sharp opening notes hang around indefinitely.

Current Aromatics Elixir sprayed on SKIN: powdery sandalwood-patchouli drydown emerges after a while and dominates.

Vintage Aromatics Elixir sprayed on CLOTHES: Dries down to a balsamic sweetness that gets more intense with time.

Vintage Aromatics Elixir sprayed on SKIN: Powdery rosy notes are emphasized, more bitter & chypre.

Aromatics Elixir Clinique
In the store I wasn't able to appreciate it as much as it deserves, I thought that I couldn't pull off a fragrance that it is associated so much with the elderly but at home I kept smelling the wrist where the shop assistant sprayed AE. I got emotional to the point of almost crying, that's how much I was loving it. It is very bright, warm and golden like the bottle itself. It opens and warms the heart. Wonderful.

Definitively sharp and strong. A vintage perfume that was brought all the way to the 2020s with all his complexity. Not modern and not for the faint of heart (just look through the notes list). I hate to say this, but it makes me feel like I am in an Italian church at the rosary praying time, surrounded by grannies with their heads covered with black scarfs. I can clearly remember having felt a similar scent as a child at the Sunday mass. It’s not a bad feeling, it’s just that this perfume doesn’t feel young at all, it’s a complex, heavy scent for a mature woman who wants everyone to know when she has arrived. It does reminds me of Shalimar, another perfume that has been sticking to its vintage self for many years. A bit of a headache inducing for me but an interesting scent trip as the perfume dries down on my skin. I think this will last on my skin for DAYS.

FYI: This perfume dry out smells like henna! I get the hay and dry grass scent after 4-5 hours and the same note sticks to my clothes. I can almost make it work, if it’s in Fall and Winter days.

A warm, deep, feminine classic. Wear with your finery and know that you will turn heads. Only one spray needed on skin, this is strong stuff. Usually an absolute bargain.

I buy this last week online shopping, guiding by the good review on here, I neve never use any Clinique Perfume before, I was so happy when it come. I can smell a slight Youth dew sent on it before I spray It. I take a shower before go to work and I spray it, I can only smell rice at the first spray, so i make 5 spray more. WOW. LA PERLA come to my heat..... so nice. so good. love it, I love that it smell like LA PERLA. because I wore that one years ago, but I never get to buy it any more. any way I will use it just like use to with LA PERLA. It has better projection and longevity about 11 hours on my skin.

This is so warm, enveloping and makes me happy. I have loved this for years and keep going back to it.

i feel 10 years old when i wear this . i feel 10 years old running through a dried out field of hay on a hot hot early summers day while storm clouds start to form in the sky oh god

I see that this has been quite reformulated. I found a half-full vintage bottle of this in my mothers drawer and its a masterpiece, though I don't know if I can pull this off as an 19yo boy

I love how this screams "understory" in the best way possible. Tiny flowers arising from the forest floor. The gnarliest steeped chamomile-patchouli clash to exist, with a slight sassy spice. There's a certain citric, menthol-like quality that keeps it from going full soil-on-skin. And oddly enough, there's a part to it that reminds me of crushed children's vitamins (Flintstones anyone?)

Those who've made a signature out of this today must be some intriguing personalities. It's a gorgeous smell that I can't really see as a body scent, at least on myself. It's more ambient, like the scent of a temple without the various resins. However, the florals cloud any bracing freshness/cleanness I'd expect from a fresh-cut wooden structure. Sacrilegious to suggest it should be an ambient scent I suppose; but that should be a testament to the original fragrance story being painted.

Considering this fragrance still contains real oakmoss, it is a STEAL for the price. Deep, bombastic, oily chypre. The best of its kind. If you haven't explored the realms of chypres, I recommend starting here, if you're brave and patient. Your nose will develop and then some. This tops the list of favorites with Halston and Cabochard coming in close. This is the smell of a bewitching woman deep in the woods, casting death spells on corrupt men in the financial district. And if this perfume is a bit overwhelming at the top, just wait for the drydown. It turns into the most profoundly deep, caramelly, spicy scent. You won't even believe it's the same perfume. It's the least linear fragrance I own. And I own quite a few. Those wild top notes that dazzle with the aldehydes end up hiding behind the dark shadows of oakmoss. You can still smell them but they become muted and more resinous in the dark depths that this fragrance melts into.

This is a nature-lover's idyll, a real '70s witch's brew scent. A beautiful and knowledgeable woman goes out into nature and collects herbs, twigs, grasses, mosses, roots, flowers, leaves, barks, seed pods, and sour fruits and brings them all back to her home in the woods. She boils the ingredients in a pot over a small outdoor fire, slowly concentrating the whole concoction into a healing balm which she applies to her pulse points and rubs on the sores of all the injured forest animals she tends to.

This is how I perceive Aromatics Elixir, just a complete reverie for mother nature in a distinctly 1970s way.

This fragrance has *nothing* in common with modern day scents that smell of cupcakes and cotton candy, this is a full blown green, 1970s earth goddess medicinal salve - a true to form "aromatic elixir." It's so invigorating, enlivening, naturistic, medicinal, and tangy - I absolutely love it.

add cloves then you will get Jacomo de Jacomo

The only times I've asked strangers what perfume they're wearing, it always turns out to be Aromatics Elixir. It smells sophisticated and mysterious, elegant and timeless, but also comforting. It's just a beautiful cloud of magic.

Unfortunately, it goes too green and grassy on my skin, but I keep a bottle of it anyway just to sniff.

I was too young at the time to enjoy this in the 80's, but wow is this ever beautiful, so glad I found it after creeping on the vintage fragrance board! I bought a mini and after testing it I needed a full bottle immediately. It feels like it has a lot to say, yet it's so soothing and reassuring.

I don't know how else to describe it, but it smells like my visits to Japan- Kyoto especially. The mossy scent in crevices, hints of incense here and there wafting in the breeze, dusty old locations, the smell of rain after a dry spell and all the plant oils that come alive.

I feel like I must have smelled this on women in the 90's but had absolutely no idea what it was. I imagine someone like Dana Scully would wear this. It feels effortlessly cool, doesn't fall into the expectation of what a perfume is or should be.

To think it was created in the '70's! Timeless work of art.

Update: Okay wow, I can't believe how different the vintage formula is from the current! I must have originally bought something manufactured more recently as when I bought a full bottle, it was the 2011 limited edition release and much much darker. A very jammy rose patchouli with an oakmoss kick. It's so lovely, it makes me feel so elegant wearing it! An hour in is when it settles and feels cozy. Honestly I like both formulations, but they are very different! The newer one feels much more medicinal herbal with the rose taking a backseat.

I find Aromatics Elixir earthy, mossy and herbal but not in a warm, comforting way. Camomile is really loud in this interesting chypre and contributes to its distinctive unisex vibe. I would perhaps enjoy it in a spa but this herbal tea smell is definitely not my cup of tea 🙂

Le ultime versioni assomigliano poco all'originale,hanno un bouquet scarno,trasparente,verdolino debole,appena frizzantino,uno sviluppo ridicolo che in meno di mezz'ora arriva alla fine appoggiandosi su una nota quasi dolce (che nell'originale non c'era) che assomiglia a salvia e tabacco e poi scompare.
Nessun fiore ceroso,nessuna spezia piccante,nessuna intensità.
L'aromatics elixir era famoso per la sua durata enorme,per la sua intensa focosità, per la ricchezza del suo bouquet (contava più di 700 ingredienti la sua formulazione originale) ed era caldo, inizialmente odorava di muffa,di cantina,di terra umida coperta di foglie secche, e poi partiva il fuoco delle note piccanti,la rosa antica circondata da incenso,e via via fino ad esaurirsi e restare sulla base secca e solare che riempiva le stanze..
Ora non si sente quasi,è una fragranza debole e che non suscita nessuna particolare sensazione.Solo delusione per chi,come me,lo ha usato ed amato fin dagli anni 80.
Quindi capisco perfettamente chi lo sente adesso e non gli piace,non avendo il confronto possibile con la versione vintage.
In pratica prima era molto cupo,andava sul marrone,aveva molto incenso,adesso è stato portato verso il verde,fresco e umido,schiarito nella sua forma e reso più semplice,breve durata e poca forza di oscurità.

Una cosa ricorrente che vedo quasi dappertutto è descrivere Aromatics elixir come una "eau de parfum". Non è eau de parfum, è PARFUM, o PERFUME,cioè alta concentrazione di elementi. La cosa bella è che c'è anche scritto.

Not much to say. It’s a grand masterpiece. I love it. It’s not for everyone.

feels like 16th century

In one word : mesmerizing

For a green 70s psychedelic perfume, when you first spray it you’re hit with a surprisingly modern sprinkle of aldehydes. Then the curtains drape back to reveal an arresting scene: a fresh garden in the crisp London air, clouds full of rain looming above. Then appear spellbinding wisps of geranium and bergamot to illuminate the senses. The heart reveals a pagan dance of camphoric ylang, coquettish jasmine and proud carnation. Slowly in creeps the patchouli incense; the smell of burning witches to lovingly remind you of its pagan soul. Chicken Soup for the Grace Slick Soul.

Herbal, green, mossy, almost medicinal in a way I find comforting... it brings to mind Chinese herbal medicine / acupuncture offices which have been familiar to me since childhood. It comes off very smoothly blended; classic, elegant, really and interesting beautiful one!

This is definitely a mature fragrance. At first spray it smells very powdery to my nose, but once it settles I get more of the oakmoss and patchouli. I think this perfume will grow on me more and more.

Love this stuff. So aromatic and full of rich patchouli. (I love patchouli) A beast mode fragrance that is not a safe blind buy or for the faint of heart. Hope it never goes away. So many elixir fragrances captures Aromatic’s essence but never replicate this beauty.

My Grandmothers signature scent. I was reminded by it in a store being worn by a lovely young woman with long dark hair. It was very becoming on her and elegant. I’ve two of Bernard Chants Chypre and this is truly a masterpiece. I enjoyed this in the end of summer into autumn. I live in a Chypre forest like climate and it was just delightful walking in our parks wearing this. My body chemistry does not go well with patchouli so I always do the walk through on my clothing.
It does hint medicinal because of the camomile note. In a comforting way for me.
I may layer it to make it more appealing on me to my husband. As it is leaning unisex. I would love seeing how this wears on a man. It’s just a phenomenal formula.

Excited to blind buy the parfum spray at Drug Mart for usd33, delighted to find it's a bottle containing oakmoss extract, as I'm sure there's been a reformulation. This is complex, somewhat challenging for me. On first spray (forearm and wrist), the most prominent notes I'm getting are the chamomile and Oakmoss. Seems like it's pretty powerful so I'm gonna go ahead and say don't over-spray! Might update later after this dries down. Overall, "forest" and "barbershop" descriptions given by others, are apt. I'm loving the absence of sweet notes. I like this "retro" scent (the very young might say "old lady" but it's lacking the powderiness I'd require for that label) although to my nose, it doesn't scream 70's (like I think my Revlon Ciara or Coty Musk do). For me, it reaches further back into the imagined past.

Edit: On the drydown (12+ hours later) I still get a lot of chamomile and barbershop. I like this scent but still not sure where it fits into my life for the when and where of its application. More applications and sniffing necessary before my final critique.

2nd Edit: I've dramatically increased my Chypre intake in the past 8 weeks; smelling this all along the way. It now smells far less harsh and herbal to me than it did before. I can still smell camphoric/resinous notes very prominently, but they seem more balanced with the herbal/floral accords. This reminds me a lot of Cabochard (Gres) despite not containing leather notes. I think it's the in-your-face, dry, masculine quality--yet still recognizably Chypre--that makes it seem similar. This is not a "LOVE" but definitely a strong "LIKE!"

5/5/22: 3rd/final take: this is awesome, without a doubt a love. Now when I smell it, I don't know how I ever didn't like it. What was challenging before has become intoxicating. Is it the weather, or my nose, or are my preferences just evolving? I guess it doesn't matter.

Beautiful patchouli bomb ! Powerful.

My go to fall / winter fragrance since about 1996. I’ve had many compliments while wearing it thru the years.
I love the base woody notes along with balance of lemon verbena and bergamot.
It is distinctive but seems to be an almost forgotten unknown perfume; so much so that when I get a whiff of it on another person I feel like we share a secret.
Less is more when applying.

This perfume is intoxicating, and leads almost to becoming an obsession. When I’m not wearing it, I’m thinking about when I’m next going to wear it. It’s complex, mature, and extremely powerful.

I added two fragrances by the perfumer Bernard Chant to my autumn wardrobe this year (the other being Azurée) and oh my goodness what a talent. His perfumes are quite complex, containing almost two dozen notes that work perfectly to create a masterpiece of perfumery. In the inimitable Perfumes: The A-Z Guide (2010), Luca Turin likens Aromatics Elixir to the alluring, sultry presence of Lauren Bacall, and as usual he's spot on. Aromatics Elixir is alluring, confident and elegant.

This has excellent longevity and sillage, making it perfect for autumn. Others will be able to smell it even if you're wearing a wool sweater. There is also something slightly medicinal about Aromatics Elixir, it smells like a draught you would acquire from an apothecary or a potion from a woods-dwelling witch. As with Azurée I frequently receive compliments on this from both men and women. Wearing both of these Bernard Chant fragrances this past autumn has underscored how my most frequently compliment fragrances are always classics.

As a crazy lover of Chypre,there are less and less to buy these days. I can't get my La Perla anymore sadly,so I bought this. It's big,glamorous, in your face with total confidence. The woman who wears this knows what she likes and doesn't follow trends. This is old school glamour in a bottle. It's telling you that I'm here and I'm gorgeous! I don't care how you judge me,I'm very very elegant and classy. Don't cross me either,you will back down.
I love the waftiness of it. An absolute classic scent!

This is a good value if you like this sort of perfume because it is a beast. This is very soapy at 1st but as it settles down it becomes very mossy and earthy w/ a subtle floral character in its heart. It has an old school oakmoss/vetiver aftershave quality. I wish I liked it more since it is a very unique perfume, and I can tell it is very old school. But for some reason this comes off quite masculine to my nose, probably from its aromatic/earthy/mossy character. This would be worn by a boss lady in a power suit. 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. It has that woman who wants to climb to the top smell. She doesn't have time for fun or frivolous encounters because her life is scripted towards her career goals. This is not me in the slightest. This is what I would call a feminist perfume (dare I say that?) it is used to hold men at bay, not to draw them in. And if you work in an office environment (I never have) it would be useful. This perfume is not a fit for me but if you want a power fragrance that is boss lady take no crap kind of perfume this is a good choice.

Aromatics Elixir is Grade-A, deluxe quality witch's brew. At times, it is sharp and clean to me. Other times, it smells earthy and mossy, but it always manages to beguile me. Sometimes after spraying it, I think 'I shouldn't have' because it is so strong, but after a few minutes, I spray some more (I can't resist). I get the florals here as well...the rose is a stand-out, but the flowers are not the main focus here. This is musky, woodsy, and patchouli-forward. This does smell old-school at first, mainly because of the aldehydes, but the drydown has a really modern, androgynous quality. Maybe that is why this has lasted so long.

The performance on this is beastly. Four sprays will not fill up a room, but the whole house. Aromatics Elixir is a classic. Every perfume lover should sample it at least once. I love this stuff.

People talk about reformulation panic as if it's an imagined problem, but my new batch bottle definitely does NOT live up to the beast mode reputation. Gone in two hours! YSL Kouros is an example of a vintage frag that is still strong, so im not being a hater on reformulations in general here. Wish i had a vintage batch one.

This fragrance should be applied about 45 minutes before leaving the house. Used sparingly, this can be worn in an office setting. This is not powdery, sweet, nor soft. It is a unique scent in the current crop of fragrances, and is best worn by a woman with “presence”. The woody, resin notes are strongest in the top notes, which is why I recommend a delayed entrance. I wear perfume for myself, but realize unique fragrances can be distracting for others. Lasts forever and strong silage.

@ Spring rose I am a man and I love this scent.
I do not know how to compare with the formulas before, but what I like about this one is its particularity of not resembling all those industrial and commercial smells that we smell everywhere, which makes you just copy paste it from a catalog.
Wearing this perfume is to assert yourself and keep your personality.

This fragrance was my signature perfume for years, and I love how woody and lovely it smelled. I'm an old lady, so I finished quite a few of the bottles. Intense patchouli, oakmoss, camomile, and rose were what I could always smell the most in the fragrance. My nose might have changed, or maybe the perfume was reformulated because it doesn't smell quite the same to me. Five days ago, I got a new bottle from the Clinique Netherlands webshop (I live in Amsterdam), and I know everything is fine, but I smell jasmine note quite strongly now, and it doesn't seem as woody. However, the lasting power is still incredible, and it smells beautiful. Does anyone else notice anything different, or is it just my old nose?

I have to admit, I was intrigued when I read somewhere that this is Glenn Close's "go to"....I always thought of her as a lady who was sure of herself and her style.....understated elegance. She's not a downtown girl, despite her Fatal Attraction character's apartment in NYC's Lower East Side...she is definitely, Upper East Side. But I could still EASILY see "Alex" wearing Aromatics Elixir...not just Glenn Close. AE, is yet another scent that is apart from. But the genius of its creator (Chant) is that he made it VERY unique but refused to make it weird smelling and polarizing...and yet, even with it being so closely related to a few perfumes, designer and niche...it STILL has a certain-something, that they don't have. And I tend to think its the chamomile. That damn chamomile!....gives it an herbal smoothness that makes me smile. And as much as I love Amouage-Beloved and Aramis 900 (which I wore back in the day), neither of them have the sophistication of Aromatics Elixir...and its not even close.

I'm back here not for second review but just to celebrate the 50th anniversary of this creation. It isn't the one it used to be unfortunately, still after half a century it has become a classic which deserves to be honoured.

While working in a hair salon,one of my co workers walked by.....OMG what is that BEAUTIFUL aroma? I called her and asked her What are you wearing? That was my intro to AE.Soooo,As I learned about this perfume I soon found that ONE squirt is enough! I waited an hour before going on with my day.Its all in the dry down.Be patient.This stays until you take a shower,it lasts that long.Sometimes on my day off I would skip the shower and still get complimented.! They changed the formula and if your not aware you will be missing out on the Original.SHAME....Why do they do this?😒As this was my signature,I am on the hunt.Thank you!

I often assume I'm way too young to have any degree of familiarity with perfumes that were "iconic" before I was born, but I felt a very vivid sense of recognition when I put this on. This feels like the patchouli smell people are unknowingly thinking about when they mention hippies stinking of patchouli. Since I wasn't around for the '70s, I can only think of the '90s nostalgia for the '70s when I smell this. It conjures up memories of walking into the hippie stores that blew up around then, or new agey moms who listened to Pure Moods and shopped at the mall. The kind of woman I see wearing this is at least vaguely feminine in a classically earthy way that's removed from the male gaze. This adds something a little queer to her presentation, even if she's straight-- the kind of woman who might be concerned about how to please a man, but would never change her style for him. If she is straight, she had gay friends back when that was still an edgy concept for suburban housewives. If she's not fully into goddess worship, she at least admires the concept of it from a safe distance. She likely shopped at The Gap a lot when it was a big deal, and probably still does now because the word "trend" means nothing to her. 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. She just sits on her perfect porch in her once accessible, but now unaffordable home, sipping her herbal tea to Tori Amos, thanking Gaia for the strength to be present today.

I just found out I'm 2 months pregnant, and I always thought I wouldn't tolerate strong perfumes whenever it happened. At the moment I can't stand perfumes with strong oily flowers such as gardenia or with vanilla. However, AE (in small doses) calms my nausea. Maybe it's the fact that it doesn't smell like anything edible, but clean and earthy, and it has become an infallible remedy. I've always thought AE is not a perfume to attract nor please others, but to be respected. It's not the most feminine, young, sexy or delicate smell, but basically and definitely the wealthiest, healthiest and most spiritual.

My signature scent, if you’d prefer a more recent fragrance which’d similar, you’d likely enjoy Iris 39 which, I just smelled recently for the first time

this perfume is bonkers and I love it. I finally got a 10 ml bottle after hearing one of my favorite beauty journalists rave about it. when I tried it on my first thought was "wow, that's strong," quickly followed by "wow, I've definitely smelled this before." I have no idea where I've encountered it, but most likely someone was wearing it while I was a kid in the '90s. it somehow manages to be chilly and warm, medicinal and ambrosial, modern and retro all at the same time, probably because it's got everything in it - the notes list is as long as my arm. it lasts ages, and like I mentioned, it's strong, so use a light hand if you don't want your perfume to enter the room before you do. it's also too much for me right now while it's still hot and humid outside, but best believe I'll bring it out when it's cashmere sweater season

I had my eye on Aromatics Elixir for some time, and only recently purchased a 50ml bottle. As my collection has expanded, I’ve really grown to appreciate Bernard Chant’s work (Cabochard, Halston classic, Aramis, Aramis 900). I can definitely detect subtle similarities to Aramis 900, however this is deeper. For that reason, I like it much more. At first spray, you get that blast of aldehydes - it honestly reminded me of the aldehydes in Blue Grass. However, the fragrance begins to settle into an aromatic, bewitching masterpiece. Farther into the dry down, the fragrance turns a bit sweet on my skin while retaining that rich base of Oakmoss, Patchouli, and Incense. Aromatics Elixir is quite an intriguing scent, and I’m happy to finally own it.

Every mom in the 80s/90s wore this perfume I think. It is too much for me. I thought I might like it, than I sniffed it and thought grandma/mom. So I don't think I'm ready for this.

Clinique Aromatics Elixir (1971) - herbal floral - #bernardchant ‘s perfume starts with a radiant and waxy aldehydic accord mixed with Clary Sage and Chamomile. The herbal start was slightly sharp that gets rounded-off with a well-blended heart: Rose-like Geranium, Carnation, Orris balanced with White florals. At the base I get a classic woody floral backbone: mossy sandalwood and vetiver.

This one has grown on me. That opening of dry green and coriander so stripped of anything sweet - well it's sharp and almost off putting but now that I know what to expect... I dig it. The best part is the dry down and longer wear. It's incense and moss. Light floral. Light wood. Calming and lovely - very spa-like. Still can't decide if I like or love it. I'm a sucker for incense so we'll see how often I pick this one back up...

I bought it after TPN recommended it.
This perfume truly embodies the pharmakon.
It is the gateway to perfume appreciation. When i first smelled it in the spanish heat, it felt right. It starts painfully astringent, which feels like a purge of the excess of sweetness, and niceness of the modern chocolate - vanilla excess in perfume, which is great for hot wheather as it makes you smell clean and truly elegant, in a non- stepford wife manner, but rather, sophisticated, like someone having a coffee at some european assembly from the 1930s.
Friends who travel to India and Morocco often have complimented me several times on it, asking if I'm wearing Chanel Nº5. (I consider their opinions more relevant than the usual virgin nasal cavity individual).
I've sprayed it on my fan and it smells delicious on fabric even, I'd be careful though, with silk, and wool as they tend to carry smell differently.
It reminds me of the taste of traditional chinese medicinal chewable herbal balls.
Good starter. Perfect to spray after the shower.

After easily 30 years between purchases, I found a 3.4 online and took the plunge, knowing the reformulation watered this gorgeous creature down. And it's true. Perhaps my hesitation to buy and wear Aromatics Elixir for so long was that the days of beast mode fragrances were over---think Poison, Youth-Dew, even original Obsession. Yet, now I regret not possessing an older bottle. Gone today is AE's incense-like, deeply herbal, floral, aldehydic melange. It's been replaced with about six discernible notes, it's light enough to spray 3 or more times onto the hair, body or clothing, and it's a ghost of it's former self. This large bottle I now possess might serve as a body spray, even, to be topped with precious drops from a vintage bottle, turned brown with age. As for season, I'm wearing this in September, when in Georgia the weather begins slowly cooling, mostly by means of a lower humidity. This AE pleases but it pales in comparison to the original.

Oh well, I am not a fan of this at all. I can't quite place why, I just don't like it. The soapiness I should have expected, and it's not the worst part sadly. There is some kind of spicy aromatic thing going on but something about the herbal quality of it smells almost like food to me, like culinary herbs that I might want to eat but definitely don't want to smell like. Thyme or oregano, not sage or basil. Like oregano soap with just a hint of some floral. It could be a lovely scent for a cleaning product and would be quite upscale in that application-- think Mrs. Meyer's-- but as a personal fragrance it's a turnoff.

Aaaarrrgh!!!!! I cannot believe this got so many votes for longevity and sillage. At best, this performs on me like an EDT. And not a strong one. This is a small skin scent within 30 minutes that’s kind of a green-ish, mildly sweet sandalwood. And it’s killing me. I love this to pieces, but even for a reasonably-priced perfume, it’s just not justifiable. So wish I could find a viable alternative. To me, this vibe is so hard to find, I absolutely love the scent, and would just about drink it if meant my skin would radiate this smell, but the performance killed it. 😩

This is gorgeous in the body smoother form too!

Sometimes I hardcore crave this and sometimes I can't stand it. Love to hate it. Hate to love it. After the initial dry down, which to me is an overwhelmingly cold and clammy forest floor, I get an intensified, slutified, earthy, witchy mimic of my own natural skin odour. Warm too, but not the smelly rancid exercise type of sweaty odour. I'm talking about the slightly sweet, slightly dank human animal smell that faintly lingers after several hours of being unwashed, like when you wake up from a prolonged sleep. Very terrible, almost melts in the mouth. Idk is it narcissistic to say I love my own smell? I also hate it.

After a long day, I use scented bath gel, body lotion and a spritz or three of Aromatics Elixir. I cannot go to a spa every evening, but Aromatics Elixir surely helps. I always feel so relaxed, happy and grateful after my little evening ritual. It is reserved for the evening as such a strong, chypre, oakmoss, patchouli, incense and florals filled perfume is simply best enjoyed alone. I am in my early 20s and I love this perfume. Got a 50ml gel and lotion plus 45ml perfume at a steal price of £10. It used to be so expensive back in time. Regardless of price, the green mossy woody perfume is so relaxing and extremely long lasting.
A rich and beautiful perfume. Just like Elizabeth Arden Green Teas, Aromatic Elixir for me is an aromatherapy weapon. A shot of peace and tranquility.
I could not wear this when going to be around people. It is too precious, too intimate.

Bernard Chant used almost the same notes for this famous perfume as he did for a men's fragrance close to the same time, the equally memorable Aramis 900. But even so, the difference between the two! Although they are equally heavy on the oakmoss, the sparkly rose dominance of 900 takes a backseat here to the much more emphasized dark patchouli and the heavy white floral notes: this seems much earthier, much more natural, and definitely more womanly. There's no other chypre that really has the olfactory effects of this one; and I've rarely come across a fragrance so memorably and enjoyably funky (one spritz would be more than enough for anyone; anything more would be overpowering).

The same year this perfume came out, 1971, also saw the release of Carole King's "Tapestry": and if ever a fragrance embodied the sensibility behind a song, this one does with "I Feel the Earth Move Under My Feet." This is classic early 70s grooviness in the best possible way: this should be worn by a glamorous socialite of the era wearing a Halston caftan and draped in chunky jewelry in a room filled with Boston ferns. The beautiful yellow bottle this comes in also typifies the design of that era (although oddly this was not the original bottle). This is inexpensive; this is classic; and this is so, so luscious.

Reading these reviews and hearing about it from friends I was expecting something "earthy" but in the complete opposite direction. PUNGENT! TANGY! SOUR! SWIRLY! This perfume is a freaking STATEMENT. It unflinchingly and enthusiastically says something significant, but in a language completely foreign to me.

This is my mother’s in law signature scent I love it, I think it was really seductive during the 70’s but not anymore, it’s warm welcoming very aromatic.

Beautiful and very soothing, love love love ❤️ 9/10

Let me start out and say I hated this with a passion 5 years ago when I smelled it!! Well today I was at Ulta and I was looking through Estée Lauder scents and right beside Lauder was Clinique and there it was the golden yellow color I eyed it and thought to myself surely it won’t smell good? WOWZEE!!!!!!! This is gorgeous OMG, I can’t even tell you how much I freaking love this scent now. I am now hunting down a vintage bottle this is so good man am I glad I retried it. I’m in love and her name is Aromatics Elixer🥰😍❤️ True love now for eternity!!!! Just wow!!

Lots of sage, coriander and patchouli, soapy at the start - I think aldehydes are not my thing - citrus, very green, not a lot of floral yet, deepens over time, but I’m either quickly nose blind or my skin just eats this - after about a half hour it’s a clean green close to the skin scent. I think musk tends very laundry-y on me, I get a hint of that at the end too. I wanted this to be the powerhouse it’s been described as, but alas…

There is this old apothecary place in my city, with hundreds of fern bushes and lots of dust, where the very old pharmacist is always in the back making some prescripted fluids and ointments. This is exactly how this place smells.

Let me try to rate ..aromatics
Scent 10
Longlasting 10
Sillage 10
Value for money 10.

Da quando lo ho scoperto,metà degli anni 80, ad oggi,ha subito riformulazioni notevoli.
Il suo inizio è molto umido e ricorda le foglie secche e bagnate sul terreno in autunno, oppure una cantina, qualcosa di muffa e di antico. Aromatics elixir pe me è l'autunno. Il colore che richiama è quello delle foglie secche in autunno nel bosco,odori e sentori di umido e di legno,molto evocativo.
Pian piano si riscalda facendo emergere note piccanti di fuoco,ardenti e stimolanti.
Poi compare l'immagine di un mazzo di rose e fiori secchi poggiati su un tavolino antico,all'interno di una casa di campagna dell'800.
Immagini molto raffinate e di classe, calde,delicate,fiori delicati e dall'aroma silenzioso,un filo di incenso rilassante e un patchouli dorato che dura un'infinità.
Non lo ho mai sentito come profumo di seduzione o da donna, ma una fragranza che induce alla meditazione,che deve piacere a chi la indossa per il proprio benessere personale.

Le versioni dopo il 2008 non sono più uguali all'originale,e ogni anno sono diverse tra loro.
Ne ho trovata qualcuna che sapeva di mirra e salvia,altre verdi e fredde che duravano neanche un'ora,alcune con un sottofondo non gradevole che ricorda i calzini usati e odore di piedi, quindi le migliori sono le vintage,se entro il 2000 ancora meglio.

I tested this in stores yesterday and I couldn't smell a thing. Like nothing, even as it was being sprayed. Disappointed because I wanted to experiment with chypres and I had heard this was one of the best. Is it worth trying a vintage version?

I loved the sound of this on paper, but it's too heavy and pungent for me. There's too much going on and I can't pick out the individual notes (except maybe patchouli). Maybe I just like a more minimal and modern style of perfumery. Not a safe blind buy!

Aromatics Elixir is one of those fantastic vintage perfumes that has been reformulated absolutely.
No question in my mind.

I remember the first time that I smelled it. It was Spring, 1988. This stunning woman walked into the office where I worked to visit her husband who also worked there. As she sauntered past my desk I was enveloped and over come by the most dark, fragrant, complex and intriguing perfume that I had ever smelled. At that time I was not one for strong perfumes (after all I was holding my own at the office, trying to survive the onslaught of all my female co-workers who felt it necessary to drench themselves in Poison everyday, uggh) anyway, I stood up, chased after her and remarked about how FABULOUS she smelled. She smiled and told me that it was Clinique Aromatics Elixir and that it was her signature scent and that men go WILD over it. Well, she certainly didn't need any help in that area as she was one of the most beautiful women that I had ever seen, but I purchased my first bottle shortly thereafter and it was pure HEAVEN, I mean it had an oily, exotic quality to it. It surrounded you like a blanket and stayed with you for at least 24 hours and longer on clothes. I have owned several bottles over the years since then and the current bottle that I own is from March 2019. It resembles the original perfume, but it has lost that oiliness, that unique exotic vibe. It's still beautiful, don't get me wrong, but it's rather "sharp" now and it doesn't last nearly as long. Now if you go looking for a vintage be aware that it used to have something in it that would definitely go off after awhile so your likelihood of getting a spoiled vintage bottle is highly probable. Still, it is my all time favorite fragrance, a true masterpiece in perfumery.

Sniffing around in Ulta one day, this totally stood out to me because of its herbal smell. I wasn't sure if I really liked it so I didn't buy it that day. I recently bought a travel size and when I uncapped it and took a sniff at home it didn't smell anything like I remembered. I was completely surprised by how much it smelled like "old lady." When I finally wore it, I thought I was crazy to be getting a slight urine note on first spray, but I see some other reviewers mentioned it as well. After it dried down I got more of the herbal notes that I remember from the store. But it still powerfully reminds me of my grandmother (even though, according to my mom, my grandmother didn't wear this) and I'm not sure how I feel about that. I'm going to have to experiment with it more to feel really comfortable wearing it.

I bought this when it first came out and I was a young woman looking to define myself. It seemed like all the ladies at my church were wearing it one year, and it smelled fabulous to me. Intense but not strong, complex, feminine but not frilly. So I tried it and loved it on me, too. I loved 4711 around that time, too (and still do). I was sad to find that it's been reformulated. Why do they feel like they have to do that?!

I just tasted it in the offline shop. 2021 year. DNA is very close to the Shalimar, Guerlain. Eastern pure spicy bomb. Not flowery, not blossomy..only if camomilla- that I believe. This perfume I would not name a "perfume", it is an oriental oil that includes oriental spices. There is a leather scent here too.
Obviously Aromatics Elixir had a presence of natural ingredients- spices are just real, absolutely naturalistic and very prominent. Reminds some Indian shop that sales those aroma sticks for burning. You are just entering this type of shop and you feel those scents right immediately. For lovers of the oriental and indian fragrances this perfume will suit perfectly. Notes are sound the same from the beginning till the total dry down before they evaporating. There is the classy retro vibe.. And not for every day fragrance. There is slightly unisex vibe. So, it would sound on the men well too.