Aramis is a masculine chypre for men who appreciate tradition. It was named for a character in Alexandre Dumas' classic "The Three Musketeers." The original Aramis fragrance was very popular when it was launched and it continues to be popular with each generation since its classic scent never goes out of style. Created by the legendary Bernard Chant, it is a powerful and masculine scent that finishes on a strong leather note. Apparently Aramis was inspired by Gres Cabochard which was also created by Bernard Chant.

When searching for a listing of notes, I went to Fragrantica which is usually my first stop. However, in reading information on other websites, I've come up with quite a number of variations for the notes of Aramis.  Here's what I found: 

• Fragrantica - top notes of artemisia, bergamot, cinnamon and gardenia; middle notes of pelargonium (a variety of geranium with a lemony-rose note), patchouli, vetiver and sandalwood; and base notes of leather, oakmoss and amber.
• Yesterday's Perfumes - top notes of artemisia, aldehydes, bergamot, gardenia, green note and cumin; middle notes of jasmine, patchouli, orris, vetiver and sandalwood; and base notes of leather, oakmoss, castoreum, amber and musk.
• Osmoz - top notes of gardenia, artemisia, cumin and bergamot; middle notes of jasmine, patchouli, sandalwood and vetiver; and base notes of ambergris, castoreum, oakmoss and leather.
• Perfume Intelligence - a leather masculine chypre with top notes of mainly artemisia, heart notes of jasmine and patchouli and base notes of oak moss and leather.

It was launched by Estée Lauder and her husband Joseph and broke new ground by being the first prestige men’s fragrance widely available in department stores. "The thing about Aramis is that it’s an incredibly refined and distinctive fragrance,” says perfumer and fragrance historian Roja Dove. “It has inspired a myriad of masculine creations over the years, but no one has created a better version of it and it continues to inspire many perfumers working today, including those who create fragrances sold by uber-cool brands."

Aramis won a FiFi Fragrance Hall of Fame Award in 1995.

Aramis is still available for purchase.

This is the original cologne version of the fragrance.

RETRO - Aramis by Aramis Cologne Reviews

Yesterdaysperfume: "Beautifully blended gardenia, jasmine, amber and sandalwood sweeten and warm the scent almost immediately, giving Aramis a comforting softness that invites you to snuggle with it on its Naugahyde couch.(Just snuggling — it promises!)"

Basenotes: "A classical woody/herbal/leather for purists who are purists about more than just fragrance, Aramis eludes clichés more successfully than I would have guessed: smoothed out by aldehydes and skillfully balanced, it still holds a surprising amount of appeal. I don't find it smells dated for the practical purposes of daily wear, inasmuch as the context of its original popularity (a 1960's-70's, hairy-chested machismo) has largely vanished, with the 'cologne guys' of our present era having moved on to a totally different approach."