What's doin Ainslie,
I'm sorta unsure myself why the prices on currently made Yatagan varies as it does, but it sure does. Bought some a while back for under $30 I think and it's fine.
Now this fragrance has been reformulated over the years and some of the earlier incarnations will sell for more cash. Occasionally the first 1970s version will be seen for sale and that stuff can get a little pricey. Few months back I saw a two ounce bottle of the EdT sell for about $100 or maybe a little more. Heh, I put a bid in but wasn't even close.
I can tell you that version and the currently produced one smell quite different from each other. Yep, the vintage juice is more intense, and the celery/pine notes really pop! That's the reason the older stuff sells for what it does.
For the heck of it, I'll include a pic of my lucky day estate sale find a couple years ago. Sadly, both small two ounce bottles are well over half empty by now, even though I try and ration the stuff out. Sometimes I'll wear the current stuff instead, just to make the old juice last longer. Heh, the vintage aftershave is very nice to have in the arsenal. The set was untouched until I cracked the bottles open...can't bring myself to use the still sealed Yatagan soap. Matter of fact, the EdT that sold for $100 is the exact same EdT bottle I have. This lovely little three piece set ran me exactly $1.
This scent isn't for everyone of course, but it certainly works for me, I enjoy the newer version enough to buy and wear it, so that's saying something.
Martin
You know, another frag you might look at would be 'Havana' by Aramis. Fairly recent reissue of a great scent that's true to the original. Not expensive and very nice.