Polo Sport by Ralph Lauren, 1993

The infamous range of the aquatics is not  my favourite genre of fragrances although i don't abhor those aprioristically just for their provenance and placing.  I have to admit that some woodsy-aquatics or aromatic-ozonic fougere and oceanic kind of watery fragrances surprised me a lot and i don't dislike for sure fragrances as Kenzo Pour Homme, Bvlgari Aqua, Sel de Vetiver The Different Company, Aqua Quorum Puig, the wonderful Horizon Laroche or New West For Him by Aramis. I use to appreciate that rare sense of silvan, aromatic (mint, artemisia, verbena, thyme etc), exotic, airy, naturally and deeply oceanic  freshness in the world of scents and many (aquatics or not) manage to satisfy this feel for sure. I use on the contrary to fully dislike the chemics and the metal, i mean the excessively detergent-fruity-floral ozonic scents (like L'Eau D'Issey which anyway has its qualities), the  soapy-chemical-detergent like shower foams (Blu Pour Homme , Heaven Chopard), the metallic (Echo Davidoff, Chrome Azzaro, Chrome Legend, DKNY Men, Acqua di Gio' Pour Homme etc), the sparkling-energizing sporty kind of aquatics (Allure Sport Chanel, Byblos Uomo, Burberry Sport Men, etc., etc., etc.). Polo Sport (i swear i'm not misleaded just by the name) takes unfortunately part of this family (with its uncompromissingly aquatic,watermelon kind, orangy accord of seaweeds, citrus, pineapple and musk) together with dozens of Byblos, Boss, Armani, Miyake, Dolce &Gabbana, Bvlgari and going on till the end of the world, out there. Slightly better Cool Water Davidoff with  its less chemical feel, its better equipped balance and its touch of aromatic woodsy feel. The note of ginger (Bvlgari Blue, Byblos Uomo etc.) uses to imprint  that sort of cool and detergent spark that makes me thinking to a shower gel and not to a real well structured fragrance, so Polo Sport does and the final "sporty-deodorant-detergent" feel surpasses sense of elegance and virile sharp sophistication. Good shower and after shower with Polo Sport my friends.

Harry Fremont's resume certainly needs no introduction; the man who a year later dropped CK One on the masses, was already well ahead of the curve on the aquatic revolution when he came up with Polo Sport. Polo Sport is thick with seaweed throughout, with a nice touch of citrus in the opening before completely giving way to the dominant seaweed note for the rest of the dry-down. Certainly shocks and disorients the uninitiated because it is so different from the standard fragrance. The opening is very think with seaweed and cloying citrus, but after a few moments the ginger creeps into the seaweed and creates a spicier, less projecting dry-down that uses many of the standard Polo elements and notes, which don't seem to be able to assert themselves over the heavy dose of seaweed. Works well with natural skin chemistry, producing a natural, warm and organic scent that wears close to the skin and manages to mask most body odors during physical activity. Given the "sport" monicker for that reason, but really this is more of a beach fragrance that resonates strongly with those who have spent an early, misty morning on a Northern Californian or Southern Oregonian pacific shore. This is one of the best souvenirs one can pick up to bring back images of the colder beaches of the northern California coast, wealthy in sea-life and seaweed along its banks. Projection and silage are fairly average, with longevity a bit of an issue, usually under 4-5 hours and wearing very close to the skin. Still, if you can appreciate more organic scents like seaweed, this is an incredibly original and unique extension of using organic notes. Polo Sport is very unique for its time, most likely more than a little inspired by the success of Nautica the year before and the influx of newer, trendier Polo inspired fashion houses taking a large portion of the 20 something crowd. The packaging itself reflects a time when the Ralph Lauren name was more vulnerable and less self-assured, trying to modernize with a new logo to go with its new jeans line, in an attempt to break from its illustrious past and more emphatically, the Baby Boomer generation. Polo Sport was Ralph Lauren's deliberate attempt to capture Generation X. Not refined for formal wear, but a fantastic, casual alternative to the plethora of synthetics on the market, Sport is original, organic and oceanic, like driving along Pacific 1 Highway with the top down on a September morning. A best seller largely because of the Polo name, but the Polo name does still stand for quality fabrics, oils and materials and not taking shortcuts in China. The Pacific Ocean in a bottle. Overall 4/5 (Quality 3.5/Originality 4.75/Projection 2.5/Longevity 2.5/Value 3.0/Scent 4.0)

I never knew too much about Polo fragrances but when I saw this at Marshalls for $25 for a 4.2 oz bottle, I thought, why not get it, it's a good deal. I was expecting something to blow me out of this world since everyone I've ever known has put this on a pedestal but unfortunatley, that wasn't the case. At first, I thought it smelled odd? The seaweed note and citrus notes threw me off and there was something about it that smelled dirty, almost like salty, bitter sweat. I know, it sounds weird but I really got that vibe from it! I hated it at first but after wearing it a few more times after that, I must say it grew on me. I actually love the seaweed note in it now and the salty, bitter sweat vibe I used to get from it is no longer there. The aquatic feel to this fragrance is actually very well done and although very synthetic, the combination of citrus, florals, woods, and musk give it a type of character that truly captures the idea of a fresh water ocean, something that I've yet to smell with any other sport fragrance. It's semi-sweet yet green, but has this animalic aura to it but musk tends to do that, and the aldehydes give it a clean, very fresh touch that might even give of the impression of laundry detergent. This fragrance is excellent if you want something different from all the usual aquatic/sport colognes for men out there. I can't imagine why this wasn't so groundbreaking when it first arrived on the scene back in the early 90's. I just imagine myself running on a beach on a warm, sunny day, when all the sudden, a light breeze picks up and freshens the air while it wafts the smell of the deep blue sea all throughout . It's a scent that's great for spring/summer. Its sillage and longevity is fantastic, and uniqueness is a most definite A+! The one thing that this fragrance lacks is in its versatility, but not by much. I wouldn't recommend wearing this in a suit and tie or in any formal attire like one can with most other sport frags (Allure Sport, Dior Sport) because it lacks that "sophistication" factor, but if you're the casual type of guy in a t-shirt and jeans or shorts, this is perfect! Overall rating in my book, B+

Calone and cucumber notes . . . what's not to hate? Polo Sport is a fragrance I reviewed a while ago here on basenotes, but my words somehow got lost. Let me restate them: this fragrance is mediocre from start to finish, and it's not because it's a fruity aquatic fresh fougere. I can forgive the hundreds of entries in that genre if they each offer something distinctive to it. But that's a fantastic standard. Simply put, Polo Sport offers nothing. The tangerine and accompanying citruses are a chemical byproduct of whatever form of calone was used, a fact that becomes painfully obvious the longer you wear Polo. They never really fade, but just hang in there til the end. Then there's the middle, which is quite "cool" feeling. Like cucumbers on your eyes, this phase braces your nose, and is perhaps the only thing about the fragrance that feels good to me. Rapidly the coolness sullies into a faded version of itself, detached and marred by some pointlessly-integrated oakmoss and a vague suggestion of green herbs. Yes, Polo Sport is clearly an agent of freshness with plenty of practical utility in the gym locker room. Beyond that, it doesn't register as a serious fragrance, and is to be avoided. Unless, of course, you wish to remain inconspicuous, in which case I would say Polo Sport is your Holy Grail.

Well, Polo Sport has a soft spot in my heart because I worked at the Polo store on Rodeo Drive when it first came out. That was an experience, and the smell of PSport brings it all back. Ralph himself even came in once with his wife and they just kind of stood around watching. Or were they sniffing? Cool Water had come out in 1988 but was just reaching the height of its popularity. Mr. Lauren, no dummy, knew a good thing when he smelled it. Thus Polo Sport was born. Let's not use the phrase "rip off". Ralph would never do that! But to say Polo Sport wasn't a direct descendent of Cool Water wouldn't be true either. The place was infused with the stuff. It was at every register. Perhaps I associate the cologne with clothing so the next logical step is laundry detergent. And it still smells that way to me. Like a big bottle of ALL or FAB or something. That's not neccessarily bad; but scented laundry detergent isn't exactly the height of olfactory finesse. And Polo Sport has about as much finesse as a box of Tide. But still...It has a certain fun, uplifting appeal to it, much like Clinique Happy. The fruit here, however, is not the ever dependable orange, but pineapple. Mixed with a ton of apparent aldehydes, the entire effect is sort of a CGI of Waikiki Beach. A "seaweed" note is said to be in each phase of the perfume, but nothing in there smells like seaweed to me. Seaweed is salty and earthy smelling. Polo Sport is sweet from start to finish. To sum, it's a great no-brainer for hot weather and hanging out at the beach, the lake, the pool...but go easy. It can annoy worse than a bratty teen-ager, and has about as much depth. But it can make you smile too.