Branching out...

Try Thierry Mugler Ice*Men. I have very similar tastes to you and find that this one start off as fresh / aquatic, but drys down into a beautiful iced-mocha coffee mixed with the top notes of Thierry Mugler Angel.

These aren't particularly mainstream, and I'm sure you'd have to order samples, but I think Maitre Perfumer et Gantier is a good house to explore for you, as they are niche but not that expensive (about $100 for 100ml) and they smell more raw and natural than any other house I've come across.

Some fresh or semi-fresh scents from them worth checking out

Grain de Plaisir - An herbal lemon with hints of celery seed. Very dry and not at all sweet, but not herbal in the sense that you feel like you spilled a random collection of essential oils on your skin. One of the most beautiful lemon openings I've ever smelled. The heartnotes are clean, fresh, dry, it evokes images of a virgin wheatfield on a windy summer day.

Fraicheur and Sanguine Muskissime - the drydowns of these are similar. Fraicheur starts with a berry and tart citrus, and Sanguine with the most beautiful grapefruit and blood orange, and both dry down to a fresh musky skinscent with just a hint of bitterness (not as bitter as say Bulgari PH though.) Longevity is really good, although sillage is only moderate to normal.

Centaure - Starts out with a blast of mint and lavender and a slightly bitter note that keeps it interesting (I think it's wormwood, personally). It stays cool and dark, getting more woody as it dries down.. woody and smoky and a tad bit animalic as the jasmine note rears its head (a drier, less indolic jasmine than those found in a lot of womens perfumes). Starts cool and fresh, I'd even say a bit dark and melancholic (similar vibe as I get from Burberry London, though they smell quite different), and gets more masculine, warmer and sensual as it dries down. This is a walk through a winter wood at dusk.

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And now for something you can find cheaply at TJ Maxx or the like.

Grey Flannel - starts out STRONG and green.. you'll wonder wth you were thinking a moment earlier when you decided to press the atomizer. But, within 30 minutes it mellows down and you are left with one of the most beautiful drydowns of all time. Fresh and green with a wonderful oakmoss and sandalwood note. It gets cleaner, fresher, and more uplifting as time goes by. A must try. One spray to the chest is ALL you should need, anymore and you'll be 'that guy.'

edit: and some more to check out

V&R Antidote - starts out with a nice citrus lavender grapefruit mint opening and transitions to a cinnamon and nutmeg heart with hints of jasmine, and finally a vanillic ambery base. On a card this smells thin and terrible as the heart notes are completely veiled by the top notes, it needs to be tried on skin!

Terre d'Hermes - what can I say about this that hasn't been said? I'm coming around to it myself, finally, after initially being extremely underwhelmed. It still smells a bit too synthetic to my nose, but it has a nice earthy orange, pepper, cedar, grapefruit thing going on. Very good longevity and sillage.

L'Anarchiste - not as intimidating or out there as many make it sound, but still distinctly different from anything you'll find at a department store. Lots of cinnamon, cardamom, clove and cedar leaf up top and in the heart, along with a dirty orange note (somewhat like the dirty orange in Terre d'Hermes), all of this over a base of vetiver and 'golden musks.' It does smell a bit, in an abstract way, of dried blood or 'iron' but it warms up over time and becomes a golden 'second skin' of sorts as the heart transitions into the base. GREAT in the summer, and just as great in the colder months (autumn especially, where it is absolutely perfect.) Not exactly "fresh" compared to what you have.. it's quite a bit spicier, but the aura it ultimately exudes is clean, elegant, refined.. worth a sniff.

A lot of my suggestions were simply to expose you to things you may think you wouldn't like prior to sniffing. I found that at first I went for the 'easier' scents to wear - the ones that immediately pleased the nose like Santana, Body Kouros, Passion for Men.. all scents that were rather gourmandish and had a fair bit of vanilla or something similar. They weren't really 'me' though - at least not the everyday me, and while I enjoyed them all in various ways, there was a bit of a clash between my personality and my scents and I found myself moving back towards scents that I weren't as ostensibly pleasing to the nose, but ended up fitting me much better and that I now find have more depth and are actually far more enjoyable than the scents I started with.

Of course, it is quite possible you won't go down the wrong road first, as I have, or even if you do, like me, you may think it is the right road. Only time will tell. I just think it's a good idea to expose yourself to some of the weirder or less conventional scents, as at least you'll know that other road exists and have an idea of where it heads. Which path you take will then be a more informed decision.

And the 'iron' smell in L'Anarchiste is definitely an abstract interpretation - the real smell of iron, like say after doing some bench presses, is rather revolting (actually, it's not the smell of iron at all but the smell of iron chemicals interacting with the skin).

Given the interests and preferences you've revealed so far, I'd suggest trying some of the less sweet woody, green, and fougere scents. These may share some of the elements you enjoy in the aquatics, while extending your wardrobe into new territory. If Terre d'Hermes is a little too tame and understated for you, give Declaration and/or Declaration Essence a try. THey're by hte same perfumer (Jean-Claude Ellena) as the Hermes, but I think they've got a little bit more edge to them. Grey Flannel is an excellent suggestion, to which I'd add Azzaro pour Homme, Jazz, Tuscany, and Fuel for Life.

I also have to concur with SculptureOfSoul on L'Anarchiste, and recommend in addition the same house's Caron pour un Homme. It's a very different sort of scent - bracing lavender with a vanillic base - but it's very easy to wear, versatile, and beautifully put together. Green fragrances like Devin or Comme des Garcons Calamus will give you the celan sensation you enjoy in the aquatics, but they get there by a very different route. It doesn't sound like vetiver is your thing, but you could try a woody rose scent like Rive Gauche pour Homme. It would be suitably dry, but project a very different character than the rest of your collection to date. All of these are relatively easy to find and affordable, but I think they also more distinguished than much of what's on the shelves today.

Have fun testing!

May I suggest to you L'Eau d'Hiver? It is a J-C Ellena-created scent in the Frederic Malle line. It is certainly clean and fresh.

Justin,

you may want to give loewe solo, bvlgari Extreme(the freshest of the darjeeling tea range). Its easily likable . the original and the soir are less citrus. And what is a fresh genre without LDIssey - a scent that for the past decade have not seen any imitators. the scent its citrus floral, very zen-esque, the bottle design, the scent, the label work perfect together. and Issey frag dept hvae been living off the sucess of LDIssey Ph with flakers making very little impact. the price has alwaays been on the rise. unlike some popular classics like eternity, coolwater, XS, have lowered their prices(where im from at least) The summer 08 version is retailed lower than the classic(then again most summer spawns usually are cheaper, with tthe exception of fahrenheit, ck one summer, ck eternity summer) . the only scent that drew slightl similarity is clinique happy, but Issey is still very much unique.

correct me if im wrong(naive to lanvin frags) , but i dont see maybe a sort of classic scent like Eau Sauvage? if ES is a little heavy, gucci envy is like a water down version of ES(been wearing ES since my teenage years). Its distintively yester era smelling, but very classy imo, and not over-powering or leathery)

As mentioned by Vibert, tuscany is good. in fact i use 3 aramis frags - tuscany, 900, and the original aramis, the label may be a little old but the scents are great. the balance of floral,wood and musk is often messed up by other labels, but from my own use, aramis got it well calculated. very much affordable too. nice classic non-gimmicky, not overly fashioned, great for office and dates.



btw, great collection