Reading a Perfume, Note by Note
Note by Note is eight essays, one for each bottle in Chapter One. Each explores the fragrance’s published notes and the contrasts between them.
Following the description
A note describes an olfactory impression; an accord combines materials into a distinct effect. Neither is a complete ingredient list. The Note Pyramid Is a Marketing Diagram examines top, heart and base descriptions. These essays use the published notes without treating them as a fixed timetable on skin.
Short lists
03 Space Between Us pairs musk with iris and orange blossom. 04 Tea Beneath Clouds brings bergamot to oolong tea, fig and musk. 07 The Last Golden Hour has amber and blonde tobacco, with bitter orange, dried fruit, rum, tonka and vanilla.
Notes that come back
The essays describe each note’s sensory character, then show how it sits beside the fragrance’s other published notes. The same note can read differently in another pairing.
- Musk takes different forms in 03 and 04. Musk, Tea and Citrus in Chapter One compares them with the citrus-forward 06.
- Smoke appears against fruit and birch in 01, beneath plum in 05, and in the black tea of 08. Three Kinds of Smoke compares them.
- Dry amber sits beneath mango in 02; amber also warms the tobacco of 07 and the tea of 08.
- Tea appears twice, as oolong in 04 and black tea in 08. How Tea Got Into Perfume tells how it got there.
- Pineapple leads 01, while 02 leans into mango and pomelo. Four Bright Openings covers the citrus starts of 01, 02, 06 and 08.
The eight essays
- 01 Before The Crown, Note by Note: pineapple, citrus, birch, smoke
- 02 What Remains of Summer, Note by Note: mango, pomelo, ginger, dry amber, vetiver
- 03 Space Between Us, Note by Note: musk, iris, orange blossom
- 04 Tea Beneath Clouds, Note by Note: bergamot, oolong tea, fig, musk
- 05 Plum Beneath Snow, Note by Note: plum, spice, oud, resin
- 06 Sun Through Linen, Note by Note: bergamot, orange, ginger
- 07 The Last Golden Hour, Note by Note: amber, blonde tobacco, bitter orange, dried fruit, rum, tonka, vanilla
- 08 Beyond The Horizon, Note by Note: bergamot, ginger, black tea, amber, woods
Where to begin
Start with the bottle closest to what you already wear. The scent guide sorts all eight by family, and The Notes lists every note from A to Z with the fragrances that carry it. If you would rather ask, write to Dave. Include the notes you enjoy and any fragrances you are choosing between.
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Source on perfumery materials: The Society of Scent: note and accord. This describes a material generally, not the ingredients in an Aether formula.
In this essay
All eight
01 Before The Crown
Pineapple, Citrus, Birch, Smoke
From $35.00 · 10 ml
02 What Remains of Summer
Mango, Pomelo, Ginger, Dry Amber, Vetiver
From $35.00 · 10 ml
Few left in 30 ml
03 Space Between Us
Musk, Iris, Orange Blossom
From $35.00 · 10 ml
04 Tea Beneath Clouds
Bergamot, Oolong Tea, Fig, Musk
From $35.00 · 10 ml
Keep reading
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Ginger and Spice in Chapter One
Ginger with orange, mango and black tea, and spice with plum and resin: four Chapter One extraits carry heat. How they differ, and where to start.
Read the essay: Ginger and Spice in Chapter One -
The Ambers of Chapter One
Dry amber under fruit, amber woods under tea, amber with tobacco, resin under plum: four Chapter One extraits are warmed by amber.
Read the essay: The Ambers of Chapter One -
The Fruit of Chapter One
Cool pineapple, ripe mango and pomelo, dark plum, dried fruit with rum: four Chapter One extraits carry fruit. How they differ, and where to start.
Read the essay: The Fruit of Chapter One
