The best black-tie scents for party season
What's the best accessory for your tuxedo? A scent that helps you stand out in a sea of dinner jackets – and here are six that suit
When I’m not tapping away on substack, I’m the Head of Content for Walpole (aka the industry body for the British luxury sector). Each year, the organisation throws a rather wonderful soiree to celebrate all the achievements of its 250-plus members and beyond at a glittering event in Mayfair. As you can imagine, black-tie is strictly the dress code and for the past three years, the evening has given me an always-pleasurable excuse to dust off my dinner jacket and dickie bow. This year, in a rather unexpected twist, I find myself without a tuxedo – I am currently having one made for me at Anglo-Italian in Marylebone. Life achievement unlocked, as they say, but it means that I need to wear my husband’s Drake’s tux tomorrow night. However, this whole process has got me thinking about how I can still feel like myself in someone else’s DJ. As with so many things, the answer – of course – lies in scent.
There are certain scents I consider ‘black-tie’ scents and, frankly, I’m not sure what the exact criteria for this is. That said, I think my thought process is born out of the idea that, as a man at a black-tie event, you are often just one tuxedo amongst many. And while you can stand out with little flourishes of personal style (a smoking jacket here, an opera pump there), ultimately a black-tie dress code for men has a large degree of uniformity. Scent is one of the few accessories that can set you apart.
With that in mind, one factor is definitely the strength of the scent itself. I think whatever you choose, it should leave a lasting impression whether on first handshake or the dancefloor. I would recommend a stronger eau de parfum for this or those remixed versions of juices that are highly concentrated showcases of the top notes of a classic (often labelled as an ‘absolute’ or an ‘intense’ edition). These tend to be bolder, deeper, more intoxicating, and stay present on your skin into the early hours.
As a man who usually tends towards the watery, citrusy and/or floral, black-tie events are a time to lean into notes that reflect the decadence of the evening: whisky, heavy woods, rich spices, leather and tobacco. Above all, I gravitate towards the dark, sexy, alluring – notes that make you feel powerful thanks to their deep, lingering glamour.
Colonia Essenza by Acqua di Parma
There are few fragrances that scream ‘proper gentleman’ like Acqua di Parma’s Colonia, with its time-honoured mix of Sicilian citruses, rosemary, sandalwood, florals and patchouli. This remix takes that gentlemanly signature and amps it up to eleven, boosting the neroli, musk, vetiver and amber notes for a deeper, soapier, headier take on the classic. I mean, come on, it’s even dressed in a tux.
Colonia Essenza eau de cologne by Acqua di Parma, £147 for 100ml. acquadiparma.com
Benjoin Bohème by Diptyque
A scent that screams opulence and warmth thanks to a huge, creamy hit of benzoin – a rich, rounded, vanilla-like resin. It’s ambery and woody, with a little soft soapiness from an undercurrent of patchouli. For me, this is what a sepia photograph would smell like.
Benjoin Bohème eau de parfum by Diptyque, £215 for 75ml. diptyqueparis.com
June 28 by 19-69
If you’ve read my recent interview with perfumer Johan Bergelin, you’ll already know that what I love about 19-69 is the house’s use of storytelling in scent. June 28 is inspired by the Stonewall Uprising – the 1969 riot outside the Stonewall Inn gay bar in New York City, widely acknowledged as touchpaper for the modern LGBTQ+ rights movement. The scent is hypermasculine in a Tom of Finland sort of way – rich with seductive, tactile leather notes (from castoreum reproduction) and the sweetness of hot bodies in motion from a combination of honeyed saffron, resinous myrrh and cumin (which has a sweat-like vibe). It’s dark, animalic, and very, very sexy. A juice that, just like the protesters who inspired it, makes its presence known.
June 28 eau de parfum by 19-69, £158 for 100ml. nineteen-sixtynine.com
Ombré Leather Parfum by Tom Ford
The hedonistic leather note is the star of this scent, under which you can sense a musky, almost-hay-like wisp of tobacco. However, what I especially appreciate about Ombré Leather above a lot of other leather-forward fragrances is that while it is rich and sultry, there is a lightness to this juice thanks to sweet, green jasmine and earthy violet leaf. Like a saddle hanging in a stable, there’s a real cowboy vibe to this one – a rugged counterpoint to an evening spent in rarified surroundings.
Ombre Leather Parfum by Tom Ford, £135 for 50ml, tomfordbeauty.co.uk
Velvet Rose & Oud Cologne Intense by Jo Malone London
Rose and oud is a classic combination – and there are plenty of examples out there. What sets this particular example apart is the beautiful way the perfumer has handled these main notes, where one doesn’t drown the other. However, these two stars are complemented by a supporting actor in the form of a praline note, which brings a smooth, rich edge to the overall effect. Soft, suede-like and seductive – a dark floral that remains intriguing all night long.
Velvet Rose & Oud Cologne Intense eau de cologne by Jo Malone London, £160 for 100ml. jomalone.co.uk
Pepper by Perfumer H
Most of the fragrances I have spoken about above err on the warmer side, but if something cooler is more your thing, consider Pepper by Perfumer H – the fragrance house by legendary British nose, Lyn Harris. This opens with a fresh, chilled zing of cracked black and pink peppercorns, before softening into a drydown dominated by bracing-yet-resinous elemi, fuzzy-musky cashmeran and green-woody balsam and cedar. Crisp and assertive, dry and sophisticated.
Pepper eau de parfum by Perfumer H, £620 for 100ml. perfumerh.com
Do you have a scent you wear with your black-tie that I’ve missed? I’d love to hear what it is. Let me know in the comments section below…