Aurés
Avon (1985)

Avon Aures is either a strange nod to tradition, or a symbol of just how out-of-touch Avon had become with what was current halfway into the 80's. History shows the 60's and 70's were great times for Avon masculines; mostly solid if tried-and-true "plain" stuff with a few unique entries here or there, and the occasional cash-in made up the bulk of their foray into men's fragrance, but once they entered the 80's, they seemingly fell flat on their faces in the creative department. Everything masculine with the Avon label felt like shameless snake oil, or just plain detached from the market it was serving. It was also around this time Avon started bringing in outside designers and celebrities to add a bit of prestige to their lines since they were being overtaken by new designers coming slightly downmarket and cosmetic megacorps doing much the same thing Avon was, but this scent isn't one of those brand collabs. Aurés (1985) from every angle looks like an 80's powerhouse: it has a futuristic square and concave bottle (futuristic for the 80's), a mysterious name, and a reddish glass that implies something warm and rather sharp or potent, but when one unstops the decanter and takes a whiff, one is greeted with a painfully traditional barbershop fougère the likes of which would have seemed appropriate decades earlier. The only nod to the current day the scent itself contained was a floral tarragon touch in the top and middle. Aures is certainly no Fougère Royale (1882) or even Zino Davidoff (1986), but it had something light and dandyish in the top that fades into powdery barbershop tones later on, making it between styles. Maybe Avon thought it needed more staples after a few bizzare experiments earlier in the decade? Who knows?

If you sat this next to me blind and asked me when this was made, I'd say it came out mid 20th century or perhaps earlier. It could give Canoe (1936) or Caron Pour Un Homme (1934) a run for their money in the tradition department, and also could seem like a gentler sequel to Avon's own Tai Winds (1972), reformulated without the "green" oriental overlay that keeps Tai Winds stuck in the late 60's early 70's time period. Aurés is certainly a sheep in wolf's clothing, and that by no means is meant to insult it's quality: this is a very rich, creamy, and quite excellent barbershop fougère that takes your mind into any niche grooming establishment that dots the urban landscape. Keep in mind that this came out in 1985 dressed like a then-modern powerhouse, at a time when people weren't ready to be retro and the older-style fougères this smelled like were just starting to hit drugstore-level ubiquity (or discontinuation), so they weren't old enough to feel dated, just perceptibly cheap and past-tense. Considering this also came out the same year Avon released their designer collab masculine, Louis Féraud Pour Homme (1985), it kinda shows how out-of-touch Avon were. The scent opens with creamy lavender, heliotrope and only a slight pinch of bergamot, with some soft muguet and orris. The middle phase has all the usual players, with sage, carnation, and meaty tarragon to give it manly hefy. The base is vanilla, tonka, oakmoss, musk, and the usual Avon amber melange. If this was stronger, it could be a nice barbershop niche scent, but alas it's an Avon eau de cologne so reapplication will be needed. It also comes in aftershave plus soap on a rope, and I imagine would make a good total shower suite if not for it's scarcity (you're better off hunting down Tai Winds which is more plentiful despite being older).

I imagine this didn't sell well, and outside of some novelty repackaging, including a Father's Day 3oz crystal flask two years later, was kaputsky fairly quickly. Overall, Aurés is a great masculine smell for the 1960's but made in 1985, rife with lavender, dandy florals, lots of nice tonka and other fougère tropes; it feels great after a shave or for casual wear. You'll have to hose down in Aurés if you want it lasting more than a few hours, so I'd keep it's use for evenings at home. Aurés is an anachronism for the "loud and exciting" 80's period, but now that another 30 years have been thrown on top of it, the scent can finally be appreciated for what it is. Avon has always been great at traditional designs, but sadly it liked to package and repackage them as new and different throughout the years like nobody would notice, or maybe this was made in 1985 for the dad or grandad who wouldn't wear Féraud Pour Homme but wanted something modern in "appearance". Either way, it was a clear sign of murkey waters ahead as Avon would plunge further into outdated or increasingly derivative scents, alongside it's celebrity cash-ins, until the ship started turning around in the 2000's. This is really Tai Winds 2.0 without the far-east twist, and probably the nadir of their malaise 80's period for masculines. I like it, and it's quirky like most vintage Avon, but not something I recommend hunting down unless for collector's purposes, as you won't want to use it, since there are better and more easily-replacable fougères out there much more worth your attention, even if the flowers and tarragon is neat. Smells like 1885, housed in a bottle from 2085, but sold in 1985 by Avon... It's Back to the Future: Barbershop Edition! DeLorean and hoverboard not included.