Estée Super (1969)
by Estée Lauder

By far the BEST of all the Estee Lauder Fragrances. Don't mistake this, however, for the Estee Pure Fragrance Spray. This is the Estee Super Cologne Spray. They are two totally different things. The Estee Pure Fragrance Spray does NOT last at ALL. However, the Estee Super Cologne Spray lasts ALL day. I wore it the night before and could still smell it on my skin the next morning. The Pure Fragrance Spray comes in a 2-ounce bottle, the Super Cologne Spray comes in a 1.85-ounce bottle. Buy the Super Cologne Spray, otherwise you'll keep spraying the Pure Fragrance Spray to constantly freshen up. I highly recommend the Super Cologne Spray!

Ah, for the good ol' days! This feminine powerhouse could eat Acqua di Gio for lunch, and easily polish off Tommy Girl for dessert.

My grandmother was a fan of Estee Lauder products and would buy me a big bottle of perfume every year for Christmas from the time I was in my middle teens. One year it was Estee, another it was White Linen, and so on. My mother would get Cinnabar or Youth Dew (and my grandmother wore Estee, herself).

Anyway, I wore Estee regularly throughout my teens and well into my twenties, not only because I always had some on hand, but also because I genuinely liked it. After my grandmother died, I stopped wearing all but the least expensive perfumes for a long time (mostly due to lack of funds!), but now I'm collecting perfumes again and have recently revisited this once-beloved fragrance of mine.

I find that it opens with a very strong blast of florals and, I rather suspect, aldehydes (my husband didn't like the in-your-face florals much), but that settles down into a very nicely balanced, full-blown, smooth floral. It seems to be quite linear now that I try it again (something I wouldn't have noticed in my teens, heh). The only real changes I've noted are the notes fading (as top notes do).

Revisiting this fragrance is like reuniting with a long lost beloved friend. This is entirely emotional on my part, as it reminds me very much of my grandmother, but emotions aside, the fragrance is extremely nice, very classy, definitely classic.

Some folks, I'm sure, would call this an "old lady" perfume, and I can see that it certainly could be if applied a bit too liberally, but if you like a nice, strong, well-balanced full-on floral with unique and distinct character, definitely check this out.

Oh, and don't let the name "cologne" fool you. This fragrance has extremely good staying power, no matter what they're calling the dilution (I understand that many American perfumes such as this have very strong fixitives in the base in order to make them last a very long time; I don't know if that's the case with this, but it definitely LASTS).

Upon 1st application it is a bit strong. My first impression was of a much softer cross (less bitchy version per say) between Youth Dew & Cinnabar. Upon drydown this really has an original soapy, spicy & woody tone with just the precise amount of possibly mandarin. Estee would be the best for those who don't like the new Lauder fragrances such as Pleasures & Beyond Paradise or for those that don't understand the appeal of Britney Spears. Estee is what I'd call a sexy classic perfume. I would rather have Estee than the current 'sweet gourmands' being sold today.