Fragrance families

The oldest and most transparent family: bergamot, lemon, grapefruit, neroli. Instant freshness — but citrus is volatile by nature, so classical colognes fade fast and modern compositions prop it up with musk or wood to make it last.

Character

Fresh, clean, bracing

When to wear

Heat, daytime, the office

The largest family and the most varied: from transparent lily of the valley to dense tuberose. Rose and jasmine are the two axes most compositions are built around. It can be a light soloist or a heavy bouquet, so "floral" on its own tells you nothing about weight.

Character

Transparent through to opulent

When to wear

Any season, depending on density

Fougères do not smell of fern — no such smell exists. It is an invented construction: lavender on top, coumarin and oakmoss underneath. The family that defined what "masculine" perfume sounded like for a century, from the 19th-century fougères to today’s fresh accords.

Character

Herbal, with a bitter freshness

When to wear

Daytime, between seasons

Built on contrast: bright bergamot on top against earthy oakmoss and labdanum below. That gap between opening and base is what makes a chypre recognisable, and what makes it read as grown-up. Restrictions on oakmoss mean modern chypres often rebuild the base from other materials.

Character

Dry, elegant, with a spine

When to wear

Autumn, evening, formal occasions

Cedar, sandalwood, vetiver, oud. It lasts longer on skin than any other family, because woody molecules are heavy and slow. It can be dry and pencil-like (cedar), creamy (sandalwood), earthy and smoky (vetiver, oud) — the range inside the family is wider than it looks.

Character

Warm, dry, tenacious

When to wear

Cold weather, evening, every day

Resins, vanilla, spices, balsams — the warmest and densest family. It develops slowly and projects strongly, so it wants a lighter hand than you would expect. In heat it can turn stifling; in winter it sounds exactly as intended.

Character

Warm, sweetish, opulent

When to wear

Winter, evening, occasions

Vanilla, caramel, coffee, chocolate, almond — fragrances that read as edible. The youngest family: the count starts at Angel in 1992. The line between refined and cloying is thin, which is why niche gourmands are usually dried out with smoke, spice or salt.

Character

Sweet, warm, recognisable

When to wear

Cold weather, evening, informal

Leather is not a raw material but a reconstruction: birch tar, isobutyl quinoline, styrax. It can read as suede (soft, powdery) or as tar and smoke (sharp, nearly animalic). The boldest family and the least neutral — people either love it or do not.

Character

Smoky, dry, animalic

When to wear

Cold weather, evening, for the confident