Hi Sleekit,
I went through that sandalwood thingy a while back, and I have a few options to consider. I should mention that these are gonna take you a while to carry out, but I'll figure you're on a 'serious' quest...heh.
First and foremost, don't listen to anyone else when it comes to how something smells. You know how different sandalwood scented soaps are from each other? How each company has their own take on what that should smell like? Same thing with colognes. Eveyone's being well meaning in steering you towards their favorites, but it's a total crapshoot as far as you liking what they like. It's just the way things are.
Take a look over at
Perfume Samples, Perfume Decants and Vintage Perfumes - The Perfumed Court and be prepared to do a little reading. They have the fragrances grouped by 'notes', and you'll find lots of sandalwood products to choose from. Sample sizes are available for purchase, including 'sample packs' with all sandalwood scents I believe. I've ordered from those ladies many times, and would recommend em. A bit pricy maybe, but it beats buying a bottle blind and finding you hate the stuff..........heh.
Then, when you see something you think might work, go over to
Basenotes - independent online guide to 11780 fragrances, with articles, fragrance news, 38806 fragrance reviews and more... and read about the product member reviews.
I tried many sandalwood scented EdT's, and very few actually smelled as described by others. Funny how that works, but each sniffer's different.
Hope that helps
Martin