Aaron Hope 
Sneaker variety seems to increase with each passing year. This is a very good thing for enthusiasts at all levels. There is more good stuff to go around these days, more ways than ever to carve out your unique personal taste in footwear. The options available these days are so numerous, there are quite a few models out there with multiple different variations they can release at one time. The Air Jordan 1 is a prime example.
With the original 1985 hightop having returned to our consciousness by way of regular releases throughout the last year, the demand for AJ1s proved so strong that even with the Retro High OG pairs, Jordan 1s still moved units across a variety of additional styles. We’ve broken down the differences between two of the midtop variations here today: the established Air Jordan 1 Mid and the new Nouveau style that adds a few upscale details you’ll see explained in the following pages.
The Air Jordan 1 Mid Nouveau is available now on Sneaker Politics in two new colorways.
TONGUE
The Air Jordan 1 Mid Nouveau debuts a new leather tongue tag that folds over the top. The embossed logo and tagline hidden on the inner side set the Nouveau apart as a premium build.
The traditional Air Jordan 1 Mid that’s been in circulation for much of the 2000s has a simpler nylon tag tied in with the tongue piping with its bottom secured about one tag’s length above the lace loop.
PERFORATIONS
Extending the Jordan 1 Mid Nouveau’s luxurious feel is a set of brogue-ish perforations on the sides and toes resembling traditional dress shoes.
The classic AJ1 Mid uses a more traditional toe perforation panel that it shares along with the likes of ’80s basketball classics the Dunk and Air Force 1.
LOGO
The Nouveau’s leather tongue tag debuts a new embossed ‘AIR JORDAN’ and Jumpman logo cityscape insignia. Hidden on the other side is a tribute to the Jordan 1 legacy: ‘ANTI-GRAVITY MACHINES Since 1985’. The luxury vibe extends to the rear where the Nouveau simply eschews the Jumpman typically embroidered on the Mid’s heel.
Air Jordan 1 Mids debuted a new Jumpman plus ‘AIR’ tongue tag that has appeared on the non-OG Retro Highs and continues to this day, also on most lowtop pairs.
MATERIALS
Another way the Air Jordan 1 Mid Nouveau sets itself apart from most AJ1s is the use of luxurious materials like these detail-rich tongue tags, velvety nubuck on the upper and waxed laces that finish off the classy vibe.
The classic Mid doesn’t restrict itself solely to any one style of expression, which gives it freedom to experiment with a range of colors, blocking patterns and materials. This variety with plenty more potential still to come is the reason the Mid has remained so prolific over the past dozen years. One particular combination of materials and mods just happened to turn out so well it got its own name, which, now that you’ve read this is both new and known: ‘Nouveau’.
