Best Juniper/Juniper Berry fragrance under $85

L’Humaniste has a juniper berries note. A good one for hot weather.

I’d say Voyage d’Hermes, which you can readily find at a discount. It’s wonderful, especially in warm weather.

Cerutti 1881 is a real delight. A very wearable fougere with a crystalline, translucent juniper and pine top note. None of the sweaty thickness of say Jicky or Drakkar Noir, not overly complex either.

Hard to go wrong, even if it doesn't do it for you, I bet you'll still end up wearing it, it's such an easy reach in warm weather.

LL Cool Spray said:

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Wait... whut? ...how did I never notice the juniper berries in Curve?!??? And why am I asking you?!?

Curve is such a unique scent. It has a bajillion notes, blended surprisingly well. And it has that Claiborne base which wears, again I say, surprisingly well. It's very 90's-designer, but it doesn't smell cheap. And since it's not aquatic, it doesn't really smell like the era its from, which helps to keep it from smelling dated. I've said this before and I'll say it again: If Curve had been released by almost any house other than Liz freakin' Claiborne, it would still be sold for full price at fragrance counters today. Claiborne immediately flooded the market, then bombarded the market again ten times over with a flood of flankers.

Once a company teaches customers their product is cheap, it doesn't matter how good the product is. Customers will think it's cheap. And there's a huge difference between teaching customers your product is a bargain vs teaching them it's cheap. Flooding Ross, Marshall's and TJ Maxx meant the product was cheap.

Curve was released in the mid 90s. It's nearly 30 years later and people still remember the name as being something cheap, which is ironic since Curve is one of my most complimented scents. If I'm letting a friend sniff through my wardrobe and she sees the bottle, I'll always get an eyeroll and a comment like "You wear that?" But if I'm giving a friend sprayed paper to smell without telling her what the scents are, women always pick Curve as one of their favorites (the others are usually things like Reflection Man, Royal Oud, Hanae Mori HM EDT if she's younger, 1725 if she's a bit older, etc).

Curve is a people pleaser.

showpony said:

I’d say Voyage d’Hermes, which you can readily find at a discount. It’s wonderful, especially in warm weather.

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One of these days, I need to get samples of Voyage d'Hermes and Voyage Parfum. It's funny how easy it is to overlook scents when they're readily available at stores nearby. And then, one day they're not.

Isn't Pino Silvestre also quite juniper-heavy? Haven't worn it for a long time, but that's how I remember it.

Mr. Spritz said:

Cerutti 1881 is a real delight. A very wearable fougere with a crystalline, translucent juniper and pine top note. None of the sweaty thickness of say Jicky or Drakkar Noir, not overly complex either.

Hard to go wrong, even if it doesn't do it for you, I bet you'll still end up wearing it, it's such an easy reach in warm weather.

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Came here to mention the humble and venerable Cerruti 1881. Very under-rated scent by today's standards and priced very well. It might not be juniper-centred, but it's definitely in there and it makes for one heck of a good scent year-round.

rum said:

Came here to mention the humble and venerable Cerruti 1881. Very under-rated scent by today's standards and priced very well. It might not be juniper-centred, but it's definitely in there and it makes for one heck of a good scent year-round.

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I tried this back in March 2019 with a vintage mini bottle and stated that it was dated, "the way my church's annex smelt when I was kid, kind of cleaner-/detergent-like." Could I have gotten a bad bottle? All indicators point toward me liking it.

Professor Value said:

Could I have gotten a bad bottle?

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Possibly. Or maybe it just doesn’t work for you.

Professor Value said:

I tried this back in March 2019 with a vintage mini bottle and stated that it was dated, "the way my church's annex smelt when I was kid, kind of cleaner-/detergent-like." Could I have gotten a bad bottle? All indicators point toward me liking it.

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Maybe, but I think an initial negative reaction will taint your impression. I can see a comparison to pine-sol or something since it is both piney but light. I let a girl I know smell it and she said it smelled like piss, but she was in a bad mood that day. I think I read the original is a bit sturdier and animalic maybe? Not sure how that would work, but the one I have is Coty and very easy to wear.

Mr. Spritz said:

Maybe, but I think an initial negative reaction will taint your impression. I can see a comparison to pine-sol or something since it is both piney but light. I let a girl I know smell it and she said it smelled like piss, but she was in a bad mood that day. I think I read the original is a bit sturdier and animalic maybe? Not sure how that would work, but the one I have is Coty and very easy to wear.

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I've got a feelin' that I'm goin' to buy a mini of the current version.

If purchased from a discounter, Floris Jermyn Street would hit right around the top of your budget. Sharp, fresh, and clean. Juniper and green rather than earthy vetiver.

This community is so generous and knowledgeable. Thank you. But perhaps I should also curse you for stimulating my FOMO network!

L'Homme Blanc Individuel said:

One of these days, I need to get samples of Voyage d'Hermes and Voyage Parfum. It's funny how easy it is to overlook scents when they're readily available at stores nearby. And then, one day they're not.

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With Hermes, the rule is if you see it and you want it, buy it now. Fragrance and everything else! You never know if, or when you’ll see it again. They are the most frustratingly opaque company to deal with.

On the high end of your range, but Winter Light by TRNP (used to be able to find bottles for $100) and Tsuki by Di Ser are my favorite junipers. Both are natural, so extremely authentic juniper notes, but also not very long lived.

I know it'll be way over budget but Gucci Rush makes the best use of juniper I've come across. It's great stuff.

Professor Value said:

I tried this back in March 2019 with a vintage mini bottle and stated that it was dated, "the way my church's annex smelt when I was kid, kind of cleaner-/detergent-like." Could I have gotten a bad bottle? All indicators point toward me liking it.

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I've had a vintage bottle wherein the top notes definitely went off. Was really great after an hour or so though.

Davidoff The Game if you like 1 million but want to reimagine it with a cooler juniper/iris-berry sweetness instead of the warmer rose/cinnamon/amber. Doesn't sound like they should be similar but somehow are.

Davidoff The Game Intense is also a juniper oriented scent. It's darker and more elegant than the original which is more fresh/sporty/sweet. Dark juniper, dark smooth woods (sort of a smooth sweet oud like note) a sort of cherry cola vibe all wrapped in an ethereal iris note. Great stuff.

My favorite Juniper Berry fragrance was discontinued. Acqua di Parma - Ginepro di Sardegna It's very nose pleasing and mass appealing. I cannot believe they stopped selling it. I don't know if there is a bottle that can still be bought that is affordable from a private seller. The few bottles selling on Ebay are around $400. It's one of those discontinued tragedies. Great art lost because it just wasn't marketed properly or focused on. Lost among a counter of too many generic citrus scents in the Blu Mediterraneo line. I mean, it smells nothing like the other fragrances in the line and that is why I think it failed. Had it been set apart with its own branding I think it would have done better.

tspencer said:

The few bottles selling on Ebay are around $400.

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Try Mercari.