Cool Water (1988)
by Davidoff

In the year 2021 and possibly after many reformulations since the late 80s, this concoction smells literally like a cheap fabric conditioner or dryer sheets. There is no class, no sophistication, just one ozonic, soapy smell that lingers. You can find it at the discounters at a ridiculously low price but it ain't worth it

It's an excellent scent, well crafted by master perfumer Pierre Bourdon and it was a genre defining fragrance. You should buy this fragrance if you want to smell like generic fabric softener. Herein lies the problem, Cool Water has become a victim of its own success. So many manufacturers of scented products have emulated the scent that it now smells just like so many shower gels, soaps, ironing sprays, fabric softeners etc.. Because it is a classic fragrance many collectors will want to have it in their collection, as I currently do. But these days there are aquatics out there that are more fresh, distinctive and modern than Cool Water. If you're looking for an aquatic cheapie it's fine, but even then I would suggest that you give Nautica Voyage a try for something more fresh and contemporary. So overall a great fragrance that in the late 80s or 1990s I would have given a thumbs up. But now I feel more neutral about it. Great in it's day but better options out there now.

I traveled to Vietnam in 2008 with two of my friends, and we were going out one night. I hadn't thought of bringing any fragrances on that trip and, to be honest, I really wasn't into fragrances at that time, as I only owned Acqua Di Gio and Code from Armani. As we were about to leave the hotel, I could smell this fresh, somewhat aquatic scent on my friend, which I found quite noticeable.

I asked him for a spray, and liked it. It performed quite well in the super hot, ultra humid Vietnamese climate. When I flew back home, I got a bottle of this, and was surprised at how low the price was. I wore that fragrance for some time, especially during summer nights. It did not seem to perform nearly as well as it did in Vietnam, though.

Cool Water has good sillage for maybe an hour or so, but it quickly becomes a skin scent. Its longevity is below average, which usually had me use another spray during the night.

It’s a pretty bread and butter fragrance, which may come in handy every now and then. I don’t wear it anymore, but honestly, I still have to give this one credit for being one of the first few fragrances that I ever bought and enjoyed.

It is a cheapie, and I suppose for anyone who’s just a casual user of fragrances, looking for a good value, this is a blue scent that you can wear occasionally on summer nights. It is not particularly refined and it definitely smells somewhat dated. Therefore, I'd probably say this is better suited for a middle aged man at this point, meant to be worn occasionally.

Cool Water was released the same year I was born (1988). And, of the handful of scents that was omnipresent (especially growing up in the 90s), Cool Water was always at the top of the list. This was one of the first scents that I remember absolutely falling in love with when I was a young lad.

Cool Water was one of those scents that I didn't identify by name until my adult life. But, after buying a bottle recently; I recognized this scent immediately, and fell in love with it all over again. So, a part of my verdict will be coming from a place of nostalgia. Nonetheless, I will be as objective as I can be.

A few sprays of Cool Water, and you're greeted with a tsunami wave of pine tree and moss. Along with the wave evergreen, is the smell of an early-spring seaside breeze and a pleasant soapy fresh scent. Add a pinch of lavender and that's pretty much the top notes of Cool Water. Even though "orange" is listed as one of the top notes; I don't detect any citrus note. Maybe, it's just me.

Cool Water has been around for over 30-years, and many people have made the observation that it smells very similar to many men's bottled bodywashes. I will attest; to me, it smells like a combination of Irish Spring bodywash mixed with Old Spice Pure Sport deodorant. That description might sound unholy to some - to me, it's simple and refreshing. But, it's not necessarily the opening notes that made me fall in love with this scent.

Top note projection lasts roughly 1-1.5 hours. But, for me, the real magic happens after this period - where the the top notes begin to peter-out, and the mid/base notes start to emerge.

After the piney, ocean/mossy opening; gradually, we are greeted with the arrival of amber, musk, and sandlewood. I'm not gonna lie, I'm a complete sucker for those three individually in a fragrance, let alone together. But, it's the addition of the cedar and pepperment that makes me love this scent.

I absolutely love the woody smell of ceder. And, the pepperment in this smells like sniffing a fresh tin of Altoids, or the minty smell of spearmint Extra chewing gum; before you chew the gum: it smells like the gum still inside the paper/aluminum sleeve.

Like many older fragrances, reformulation hasn't been too kind to it; on me, Cool Water is a 6.5hr fragrance at best. It's a shame, really. Cool Water is like that 2 1/2 minute catchy pop/rock song that you'd wish would go on longer...but, doesn’t. It's there, and then it's gone. But, the memory of it lingers with you for the rest of the day.

Who would I recommend Cool Water to? Well, that's kinda tricky. Normally I would say this scent covers a very large age-range. But, times change. Trends change. Cool Water might not appeal to young noses; they may associate this scent with guys who are old now: Fathers. Older male relatives. Teachers. Colleagues. Bosses, etc.

It is cheap though; you can get a 4.2oz bottle on discount fragrance sites and Ebay in the low-mid 20$ range all day long. Testers and smaller bottles go even lower.

Due to its aquadic/fresh nature; Cool Water is a daytime scent I would wear on spring/early-summertime day, particularly near a beach or a seaside coast. But, because it's such a versatile scent, you can throw this in your gym bag or wear this at formal occasions.

If Cool Water was a car, it would be an old, well-preserved Toyota Camry: Unassuming. Kind of boring. Simple. And, many have used it.

But just like a boring old Toyota Camry: It's cheap. It's reliable. Many people used have them; and a lot of great memories were made with them. And, it works.

It still works...at least it does for me. Maybe I'm just a rube.

4.25 out of 5.

Fresh and blue, absolutely perfect and beautiful.
I am incredibly biased when it comes to Cool Water. I love this unabashedly and will defend it's greatness whole heartedly. I wore Cool Water circa 1990- it was really my third fragrance I ever wore after Brut/Brut 33, Polo, and Drakkar Noir. I'm 50 now and due to too many factors to explain I wasn't into fragrances from the mid 1990s until last year. I don't know what kind of 'game' I have now, but there was that time in my early 20s that I seemed to have a little and Cool Water never let me down. Current formula may smell more like a 'knock off' of the original but it's insanely affordable. When I bought this the first time the guy at the fragrance counter kept referring to this as "LPR(liquid panty remover)" and as pathetic and cheesy as it sounds now, 21 year old me sure believed it to be true. I never was victim to the overuse of this and although I think I tired of it in the late 1990s, fast forward 20 years and this is still a revelation. As one of the most important fragrances of all time it must be experienced. Blind buy worthy for that alone. Thumbs UP.