Something in the Air

Call it fragrance’s Marvel moment. The best new men’s scents are stronger takes on category leaders.

- Justin Fenner.

Spring is supposed to be a time of renewal, when flowers push up through the frost, green leaves appear on trees, and fragrance connoisseurs switch to new, accordingly light, verdant fragrances.

But sniff the most exciting cologne launches of late and you'll find notes you'd typically wear when snow’s still in the forecast. What's more, these woody, spicy compositions aren’t novel ideas, but dialled-up extensions of existing IP. And yet, rarely has a crop of scents felt fresher or more desirable.

Take Angels’ Share Paradis, a sequel to Angels’ Share, from Kilian Hennessy’s eponymous fragrance house. Hennessy, grandson of the liquor magnate, was surrounded by Cognac vessels growing up. In this iteration, he sought to capture the raspberry and rose notes present in some of his ancestor’s expressions—and to enhance the masculine sandalwood, tonka bean, and other rich notes in the scent. “From a technical aspect, we increased the concentration from 20 per cent to 25 per cent,” Hennessy says of the pure perfume oil in the mix. The result is a complex, powerful aroma you can smell from several feet away.