This was very nice in many ways, a spicy yet clean scent with the right amount of depth but still incredibly accessible and crowd pleasing. I think due to the relative boldness of Icon Absolute I was expecting this to be even more luxurious and some how even louder but it isn't. Reserve is the key to this and it plays it's hand well. The opening is mysterious, clean masculine woods very subtle, vetiver and some peppery spice with a smooth cardamom vibe. It's very much a raw stripped back L'Nuit de Homme and definitely more in the vein of the original Icon. It dries down to a heart of deep and satisfying woods (which is apparently ebony) and it's really lovely there's also a creamy sandalwood at the base. So all in all a decent fragrance, well it's not without it's issues. The facts are this scent is very subtle, the quietest so far in the Icon line and longevity was not great. However, I have only worn once and I really didn't spray much at all, so I could be being unfair to Icon Elite. I really need to try this fragrance again because I definitely liked it, wouldn't go as far as to say I enjoyed it but I'd definitely give it another go. Update: Having given this another go I have to say it really resembles Paco Rabanne XS or Creed Himalaya but crucially with a more amped and soapier focus on cardamom. This is the heart of the fragrance but there's hints throughout at a softer drydown, which last time revealed that exotic wood and santal vibe I liked let's hope it does the same now I'm wearing a proper application. I have to say this is a pleasant masculine scent which I have a soft spot for because of the assoiation with Paco XS, a scent from the 90's I'm coming to realize, I really miss. Good but not great, more palatable to my nose than the other versions, although I'm okay with them too.