El Paso by Lomani

I received it as a gift back in 2007, a year of extreme heat in which smelling it became a torture, and I used it only twice. Nothing fresh appealed to me, and now that I see the note list, I think I understand why. The first thing I remember is its honeyed sweetness, I deduce from the overloaded spices and the treatment of the jasmine, plus a certain heaviness, powdery quality, and intrusion that could be attributed to ambergris and musk. The woody base didn’t help either to remove the olfactory fatigue it caused me just by opening the lid. I see they don’t include the leather accord I perceived back then, which added a warm and velvety tone. If I had to summarise it, I’d say it smells like potent, camphorated peanut skin. I’m not saying it’s a bad scent; in fact, it seemed masculine and elegant to me. Simply, I happened to encounter it at the wrong time, in the least appropriate season to spray it on skin or clothes. I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone under thirty either.

I remember receiving it as a gift back in 2007, in a year of extreme heat; smelling it felt like a torture, and I only used it twice. Nothing fresh appealed to me, and now that I look at the notes, I think I understand why. The first thing I recall is its honeyed sweetness; I deduce this comes from the overloaded spices, the treatment of the jasmine, and a certain heaviness, powdery quality, and intrusion that could be attributed to ambergris and musk. The woody base didn’t help remove the olfactory fatigue it gave me just by opening the cap. They don’t include the leather accord among the notes, which I perceived at the time and gave it a warm, velvety tone. If I had to summarise it, it smells like potent, camphorated peanut skin. I’m not saying it’s bad; in fact, it seemed masculine and elegant. Simply, I happened to meet it “at the wrong time”, in the least appropriate era to spray it. I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone under thirty either.

I’ve read very positive reviews of a 90s fragrance and some older ones from 2020. I tried El Paso, October 2022 batch. The bottle is pretty and original; the label looks like a tequila bottle. At first, it barely projects, smells generic, citrusy, with very faint geraniol and lavender. It struggles to heat up on the body to evaporate the alcohol. Afterwards, everything stays close to the skin, and there it finds its original and pleasant notes: a toned-down and sweetened juniper with nutmeg, clove, moss, and musk… but it doesn’t project, it stays on the skin. If you overapply, it ends up lacquered and sticky. For it to be usable, it should be an Intense version of the current one. This is the perfume for not wearing perfume. A trap purchase that leads nowhere. With six trap purchases, you get a good perfume like Terre d’Hermès.

This Lomani fragrance will appeal to those who love classic Carolina Herrera, but even more to those who prefer Cacharel pour homme, and most of all to fans of the classic Issey Miyake. It opens with a very citrusy note, as if you were squeezing the fruits, softened slightly by lavender. Then comes the clove, and nutmeg adds a subtle intrusive touch, though not as pronounced as in the aforementioned scents. It also reminds me of Encre Noir Sport in the dry-down, as the woody notes acquire a vetiver-like nuance; it’s subtle, but it’s there. I don’t detect the effect of sandalwood or musk. As I said, if you are a lover of Issey Miyake (and similar), you will almost certainly enjoy El Paso, because although there is no yuzu here, the resemblance is undeniable. The quality/price/performance ratio is excellent; on my skin it lasts over 10 hours without being overpowering, with the first three hours clearly perceptible at a distance. It’s not quite my style among citrus fragrances, nevertheless it is a good fragrance. Au revoir!

Before I begin, let me clarify two things. First, talking about El Paso makes it hard for me to be impartial; although years have passed since I used it, memories flood back as soon as I mention it. It was my first imported perfume, the one I wore when I met my wife and my daughter’s mother, the one that accompanied me through an unforgettable era, and with which I started to take an interest in quality fragrances. Second, I agree with other users: it’s impossible it launched in 2002; I knew and bought it back in 1994/1995. At the time, as it wasn’t from major corporations, it had an attractive price, and combined with its striking and original packaging, it caught my attention in a perfumery, and I tried a tester… it was instant attraction. Today, from a distance, I recall its citrus and spicy blend, its excellent longevity on skin, and its distinct scent unlike any other I’ve known… a masculine, timeless fragrance, perfect for men of all ages and personalities, young or older, formal or informal. It has left a pleasant memory in my olfactory mind.

I have worn this since 1997. A fragrance that captivated me. The last one I acquired was in 2012 or 2013 and it has changed a little. A citrus aroma with cloves. I really love it and I don’t understand why it is so inexpensive; in my opinion, it is of very good quality; if it bore the label of Armani, JPG, or YSL, I am sure everyone would be talking about it.

I searched another database and El Paso is from 1993, which is why testing it immediately reminded me of another fragrance from that era that I adore. At first, I thought of Oscar for Men by Oscar de la Renta, but it didn’t last. Soft lemon, bergamot, and lavender with stronger thyme and eucalyptus. After three hours, clove and nutmeg become prominent, along with juniper berries, at which point it resembles Herrera for Men by Carolina Herrera (1991) quite a bit. It’s not a clone, but it’s very similar in several phases. At seven hours, eucalyptus returns with cedar and some musk. At ten hours, oakmoss and sandalwood emerge. Finally, at twelve hours, there’s a powdery floral sensation with jasmine and perhaps oakmoss. It shares five notes with Herrera across its entire aromatic pyramid. It lacks Herrera’s tobacco, but clove, lavender, sandalwood, ambergris, lemon, and green/floral notes bring it very close. It also vaguely recalls Oscar for Men (1999), sharing seven notes across all phases. The trail is heavy for the first two hours if over-applied, but generally moderate and well-behaved, with longevity of over 12 hours. It’s an excellent alternative to Herrera and Oscar for just over $10 for 100ml, a real bargain. It’s like a ruder version of Herrera, but no less interesting for that. The sample is current. I recommend it for winter or intermediate seasons, daytime wear.

I first used it in 1999, so it’s impossible it launched in 2002. It’s a marvel: very cheap yet offering what expensive fragrances provide. It’s woody and spicy, a leathery scent that transports me to a fresh, damp forest with bark everywhere. It has great personality and is distinctive. I believe the star note is clove. I feel it was reformulated as it’s different since 2000, but it remains excellent. If you see it, don’t hesitate to buy it; it’s cheap and no longer easy to get hold of.