Catalyst for Men (1994)
by Halston

Remember smelling the spicy pot-pourri and thinking you could almost eat that or infuse it with boiling water and make chai. Once you've quenched your thirst, why not moth proof your world with this spicy treat? It starts off with a boisterous homage to bay rum- well, boisterous but safe. It doesn't assume a you-asked-for-it attitude but the suspicion that one might spritz a room, a linen press, a spouse, each of the wardrobes and the interior of the home and improve one's quality of life immensely begins to dawn.The cloves are restrained and the nutmeg is even more contingent upon the will of the sandalwood. This is the only note that doesn't appeal to me but I won't complain since it dominates the musk and keeps it from becoming too saccharine. When I think of powerhouse fragrances, I think of a series of cascading elements that rise to prominence and dwarf what went before, and then develop an altogether new quality through creating a kind of aesthetic story telling, or a journey of sorts in which fragrance dictates terms to the mind, the memory and the emotions. This is no powerhouse. It is a composition of well balanced elements that serve to create a unified and harmonious liquid pot-pourri for you to use to terrify the pets but improve their waft and your own altogether.

3rd January, 2012.

Pure clove extract, a bit sweetened with cinnamon. A bit sharp and a bit synthetic but clove has never smelled natural to me anyway.
Its structure is really simple, like this is some kind of basic chemical ingredient used in a lab: a catalyst which accidentally also smells good, masculine, provocative.
Has this oriental feel without being an ambery fragrance.Warm but not cozy, it tingles the senses, keeps your attention, like a real catalyst should.

13rd May, 2011.

Odd. The Clove overpowers most of the top notes when you first apply it citrus lasts for 30 seconds then its cloves and sage. This strikes me as having a strange discord amongst the notes up front. Then it turns into musky woody cloves with a dash of nutmeg that reminds me of some sort of cheap bay rum aftershave but much more concentrated, doesn't let up and is on the sweeter side, like spiced cookies. Only reason I give it a neutral as opposed to a thumbs down as it is at least an attempt at something somewhat different, just not in a good way.

4th May, 2011.

I don't agree that Catalyst is a spice lover's dream, because I don't find this to be a particularly good spice fragrance. I like most of the notes that comprise this scent, but I don't like this combination of them.

My biggest problem with this is that it is poorly blended, and unfortunately the less desirable notes - i.e., the synthetic wood notes - stick out like a sore thumb and don't balance well with the spice notes. I find Catalyst to be irritating and unpleasant. It smells like liquid soap and sharp wood notes blended with cinnamon and nutmeg. It sounds a lot better on paper than it actually smells.

I can't give Catalyst a thumbs down because it is a somewhat daring fragrance, and I respect that. It's just that it contains a combination of notes that should work well together, but they don't. I'll be wearing JHL when I want my spice fix.

MY RATING: 5/10

26th April, 2011.

Catalyst shares bone structure with its siblings I-12 and Z-14. If Aramis' Havana or Stetson's Sierra were evaporated, leaving only their spice elements behind, the result might smell something like Catalyst. If you hate cooking spices such as nutmeg and cinnamon, I can't imagine Catalyst is for you.

Not especially original, but not bad for the low, low prices for which this can be had.

11th March, 2011.

Catalyst bothers and delights me. I am fond of the artemisia in the opening (as I usually am), and am intrigued with how it plays with the other notes to make that curious spoiled apples accord (Xeryus Orchard Edition?), but I wish this green tinged start wasn't so short-lived. The musky clove in Catalyst is unrelenting, and apparently everlasting, and while I feel it's nicely done it does make me feel as though I'm being prepped for the oven.
Doesn't work too well for me, but we're still on good terms because I like the way this Wild Card of the 90's flew in the faces of all the marine fresh taste makers. Go Halston, Go!

5th January, 2011.