THE MODERN MEDITERRANEAN
Perfumer H’s Angelica is a contemporary twist on the classic orange-and-lemon combination: it has a strong note of bitter fruits, fused with tangy herbs and hypnotic notes of angelica, musk and amber with a touch of frankincense. ‘I love to smell deeper fragrances on the skin,’ explains the founder and nose Lyn Harris, ‘rather than the traditionally lighter colognes. Sweat, heat and happiness require a fragrance with depth.’
A burnt, darker notion of citrus has the added advantage of making a scent more long-lasting, something that the perfumer Christine Nagel has achieved (while admitting the process was ‘challenging’) with Hermès Eau De Citron Noir, inspired by limes and lemons that, when left in the sun on the sand to boil and bleach in the heat, exude a smoky, leathery, woody smell. Another bitter take on a zesty perfume, Acqua di Parma’s Blu Mediterraneo Chinotto di Liguria has a suggestive sweetness that makes you want to bask on a sunny rock, catching the scent of the sea, this time interpreted with a touch of mandarin, jasmine, geranium and refreshing cardamom and rosemary. (Liguria is on the north-western coast of Italy, for anyone booking their flights now.)
Meanwhile, Annick Goutal’s Bois d’hadrien is an ode to one of my favourite tangy summer colognes, Eau d’hadrien, launched in 1981. The original was like a gin and tonic on a summer’s evening. This is like a walk through Tuscan hills – as though the pines have been warmed by the heat of the sun beating down all day on them – with a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice
awaiting when you get home.