Spray and Pray Experiment #0007: Cool Water and Voyage

In a previous experiment, an acquaintance said they liked the combination I presented in Experiment #0004 on her son, and requested that I try another combination with Cool Water and another summer fragrance outside of Chrome.

Naturally, I granted the request, and let the acquaintance pick the second fragrance. She chose Nautica Voyage. Admittedly, I was disappointed with that choice, as I already worked with Voyage in Experiment #0001, combining it with Encre Noire.

Rather than be upset with a double repeat, I will go forward with it, and take this as an opportunity to confirm and compile additional data on both fragrances.

Fragrance 1: Cool Water

Most of us are familiar with this famous fragrance from the 1980s.

For those who are not familiar (or do not want to read back), Cool Water from Davidoff (a Coty fragrance) is a sharp and fresh fragrance that is best in the summer. It starts off fresh and herbal, but tones down to smoky and woody notes as the fragrance dries down.

Fragrance 2: Voyage

Most of us are also familiar with Amazon’s best-selling men’s eau de toilette from the 2000s.

For those who are not familiar (or do not want to read back), Nautica Voyage (another Coty fragrance) is a summer fragrance that starts off fresh, but adds floral and earthy notes in the dry down.

Strengths and Weaknesses:

Normally, I have this in the description of each fragrance, but Cool Water and Nautica share similar strengths and weaknesses.

On the positive side, both fragrances are versatile and usable in most social situations. Both fragrances also have an overall clean smell profile.

However, both fragrances have mediocre longevity, are useless in the winter, and are too well-known to where anyone smelling the fragrances would shrug them off as something familiar.

Specifically, Cool Water has a tobacco smokiness that some people love, while others shy away from (especially the younger crowd). Meanwhile, Voyage has the scent that shower gels copied to where Voyage receives scorn over it.

The Details:

Now that I went into detail about the fragrances, this is how I handled the experiment variables. This does not change with each experiment, but I always add in the information:

• I sprayed the fragrances in the order listed. Fragrance #1 (Cool Water) as the stronger fragrance goes first, followed by the spray of Fragrance #2 (Voyage).
  
  
• I sprayed each scent once on two pieces of paper. One goes in a fridge at 40° F / 4.4° C to simulate a cooler environment. The other remains in a heated and humid bathroom temperature of 86° F/ 30° C to simulate a warmer or tropical environment.
   
  
• I also sprayed each scent once on a pulse point where the skin is clean and unscented to see how it works on me.

The Hypotheses:

1. The fragrance should start off with a super fresh bomb, with extra emphasis on the mint note, which both fragrances carry.
    
   
2. Florals mute smoky tobacco notes to enhance themselves. I expect Cool Water to lose the smokiness. The geranium and jasmine notes in Cool Water may stand out more when combined with Voyage’s Mimosa and Lotus notes. This should create a fresh and floral scent profile.
    
   
3. The base notes for both fragrances are similar enough (Woods, Amber, Moss, and Cedar) that it should make little to no difference as the fragrance fades.
   
   
4. Neither fragrance is a long-performer. I do not expect a ten-hour miracle performance here, but if the combination lasted for at least six hours in the cold, I would consider it successful.
   
   
5. The projection and sillage trail may improve slightly because of similar top and heart notes.
   
   
6. Since I am predicting a fresh and floral combination, it is reasonable to predict the experiment will produce a unisex fragrance that dries down to a more masculine scent.
   
   

The Result

• The florals in Voyage did not mute the tobacco note in Cool Water; the tobacco note is outright undetectable.
  
  This is terrible for people who love Cool Water because of the smoky aspects. However, people who find the fragrance dated because of the smokiness will appreciate this.
  
  
• The scent is fresh and strong in the opening, with hints of florals. 
   
  
• The prominent base note in this combination is amber and light musk. It overtakes the woody scent profile in both fragrances.
   
  
• The scent lasted five hours in the cold, and eight hours on the skin and in the heat. It is better than expected, but nobody should expect the combination to last from morning to bedtime, or to become a cool weather fragrance.
  
  
• Projection slightly improves, but there was a significant enhancement to sillage, as the scent lingers after vacating an area for several minutes.
   
  
• The combination keeps the social versatility of both fragrances. The sillage is debatable for the office or gym, but being a fresh scent, it is unlikely to offend.
  
  
• The scent is unisex all the way through. Think back to the 1990s, when it was popular for women to use Green Irish Tweed as their fragrance.
  
  That should not be surprising, as people describe Cool Water as a Green Irish Tweed clone with smokiness, and this experiment took away the smokiness that differentiated it.
  

Additional Experiment Notes:

I created this section for moments when I reuse a fragrance in a combination, detailing more information or scenarios to use in the future.

• The tobacco note that gives Cool Water the smoky flavor is volatile and diminishes (or disappears) with the presence of stronger floral notes.
  
  The next experiment involving Cool Water should attempt to preserve the smoky aspects.
  
  
• The floral notes in Nautica Voyage add brightness to a fragrance and can make a masculine earthy or woody fragrance cross into unisex territory.
  
  The next experiment involving Voyage should combine with a scent that is also bright or unisex and see where the combination lands.

Overall: Success! 😁

When I walked out in public with the scent, multiple people said positive comments about the fragrance as I passed by or stood nearby. I admittedly do not expect compliments for a fresh scent, so it came as a genuine surprise.

Despite my hesitancy to use two repeat fragrances in the same experiment, it turned out to be one of the best combinations in the experiments to this point.

On a side note, I will buy my acquaintance a dinner for suggesting a wonderful combination on a whim!