Stetson Sierra (1993)
by Stetson

I never knew exactly what people mean when they describe a scent as "woodsy", but after smelling Sierra, now I know. This is a superb fragrance! If you mixed Tsar with Gucci Nobile and Grafton by Truefitt & Hill, it would smell a lot like Sierra. This is a dark green smelling fougere that is both spicy and woody throughout its duration. The opening contains good pine notes that segue seamlessly into a sustained green woody heart and drydown that smells like pure classic masculinity. I enjoy this a lot!

I don't smell any similarity to Polo. Though I love it, Polo is a heavy and overpowering bruiser of a scent. Sierra is not that at all. I wouldn't say it's discreet, but Sierra is all about smelling green and spicy, and it totally lacks the density and crushing sillage of Polo. Longevity is very good (about 8 hours), though it lacks the 24 hour endurance of Polo. My only complaint is that I wish the pine notes lasted longer.

Sierra is a beautiful, classic scent that will never smell dated. There will always be a place in the world for fragrances like Sierra.

MY RATING: 8.5/10

17th December, 2010.

At its price point, it's hard to argue with Stetson's Sierra as a viable choice. It seems to me to be a poor man's Havana, sharing the latter's herbal opening (I suspect the coriander-anise connection is in both fragrances). Havana goes in a different, spicier and more complex direction where Sierra stays pretty true to the opening with some spice added for good measure. Longevity is fine.

This is not a typical flanker to the original Stetson, so if you are a fan (or a lambaster) of the original, this bears no relation scentwise to the powdery floral aspects of the line's patriarch (according to Tania Sanchez, make that matriarch).

Sierra is a positive example of a drug-store fragrance: inexpensive, long-lasting and unique enough to be a worthwhile option for those on a budget.

30th November, 2010.

This stuff starts with a great subdued foresty opening, both because of its low concentration and because of an interesting lack of sharp top notes. A sort of sharpness later develops which is very solventy...it smells (and burns) more like alcohol 5 minutes after application than it did 5 seconds after, which is really strange. Gradually a sweetness creeps in which I didn't detect in the first few minutes, which in part is fruity: banana-like and metallic in the same way as the sweetness in Acier Aluminium, though of course not as well-executed. The rest of the sweetness is provided by wintergreen. At this stage, I think of household cleaner...maybe this is the Pinesol aspect that people say they smell in a lot of foresty scents. As the drydown progresses, the most off-putting element probably is the wintergreen because it's too mouthwashy. The other issue is, how did those steel bananas find their way into what used to be such a beautiful forest?

24th October, 2009.

Picked up a 30ml bottle of this for €4 as part of online order. Super scent, very reminiscent of original Polo Green. Strong green fragrance with notes of bergamot, pine, leather, jasmine, carnation, oakmoss and cedar. Very masculine, very rugged, very outdoors type of scent. Sillage perhaps not as strong as Polo, which many would say is a good thing, it stays close to the skin but lasts for many hours for a cologne.
A very capable inexpensive incarnation of the original Polo at about 10% of price. Perhaps the best value I have encountered.

22nd October, 2009.

Good stuff! I remember my friend made me try this and I did, I was surprised. It is green, fresh, frosty, and clean smelling all at once. Staying power is not shabby. My favorite cheapie.

30th September, 2008.