Choosing a signature scent is difficult at the best of times, but winter is an opportunity to experiment with fragrances: since there’s little to no risk of it going haywire with the heat.
In the depths of winter, our sense of smell shifts, to compensate for cold weather and a lack of perspiration — in turn, making certain perfume notes sing. That said, you won’t find us prescribing a mandate made up of oud and wood smoke exclusively: if you’re partial to citrus, we’ve been sure to source you something too.
For your humble consideration: all of our favourite men’s winter fragrances for 2024. Peruse them below.
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The Best Winter Fragrances You Can Buy In 2024
19-69 Invisible Post
Heart notes: Palm leaf, blackcurrant, cyclamen
Base notes: Sandalwood, Virginian cedarwood, tonka bean
Popular Swedish fragrance brand 19-69 offers an exceptionally woody, slightly fruity scent with Invisible Post. It’s a unisex Eau de Parfum with an impeccable nose bursting with green fig, blackcurrant, and Virginian cedar wood.
If you like your men’s fragrances that skew gourmand, then it’s going to be hard to pass up a profile that opens with the likes of fig and tangerine, lingers on blackcurrant and cyclamen (a kind of perennial tuberose), and closes with sandalwood and tonka bean.
Penhaligon’s Terrible Teddy
Heart notes: Leather
Base notes: Ambroxan, cedarwood, vetiver, wood, patchouli
As a brand, Penhaligon’s prides itself on ever-changing fragrance “journeys”, whereby each perfume will change throughout its wear. Not so with Terrible Teddy, a smoky resinous incense fragrance.
Rather than being an indictment of the fragrance, this linearity is a huge asset: the incense is light, with woody green undertones, and the leather is a soft suede – a more sophisticated cousin of Tom Ford’s Tuscan Leather. On the dry-down, expect warm notes of ambroxan to mirror the shortened daylight hours of the season.
Nasomatto Duro
Heart Notes: Animalic
Base Notes: Smoky
Maybe the quote, unquote ‘darkest’ scent on our list, Nasomatto’s ‘Duro’ is a smoky incense-perfumed wood, evoking the hardwood furniture of a beautiful European antiques store.
Formulated with plenty of staying power, our advice would be to request a few testers before committing to a whole bottle.
D.S. & Durga Burning Barbershop
Heart notes: Lavender absolute, tuberose, turkish rose
Base notes: Burnt oil, vanilla, hay
Of all the ‘masculine’ scent profiles, the barbershop fragrance is an oldie (but a goldie): think creamy lavender, lathered-up oakmoss, fougère aromas, and a lemony tang.
In D.S. & Durga style, the brand even set one on fire (true story) in order to lend the textbook gentlemanly accords of this fragrance a complex, smoky char.
Pro Tip: If you want even more of that Victorian vibe, we’d suggest ‘Perfecto Fino’ by Czech & Speake.
Maison Margiela Coffee Break
Heart notes: Lavender, coffee, milk, tonka bean, benzoin, cypriol oil
Base notes: Vanilla, cedar, vetiver
Loosely inspired by the water-slicked streets of Stockholm, this fragrance evokes a cosy cup of coffee in the open window of a Swedish café.
Vanillas, lavenders, nutty milk, patchouli and a touch of espresso combine into an invigorating cuppa. Although a handful of Margiela scents have been unable to escape allegations of underwhelming performance, we’re glad to report that doesn’t include Coffee Break.
Escentric Molecules Molecule 01
Heart notes: N/A
Base notes: N/A
Famously mercurial in its performance, this perfume smells differently on each wearer, thanks to its composition around a single note of Iso E Super.
From pencil shavings to musky cottons, the sheer range of smells that this bottle is capable of generating must be sprayed to be believed. ‘Molecule 01 + Black Tea’ is also a winner for those in search of a similar scent with a greener, tannic touch.
Gucci Guilty Elixir
Heart notes: Orange blossom, orris, osmanthus
Base notes: Vanilla, ambrofix, benzoin, patchouli
Mass-market designer fragrance? An orange blossom by any other bottle would smell as sweet. This sugary floral fragrance is an elegant take on Gucci’s best-selling Guilty.
Opening with cold spices and orange blossom, it blooms over time into a warm, woody vanilla composition. A true stand-out from other (mostly generic) designer fragrances, and not for the faint of heart. If too vanillin: ‘Gucci Guilty Absolute’ might be worth further investigation.
Le Labo Vetiver 46
Heart Notes: Guiacwood, cedar
Base Notes: Amber, vanilla, Javanese vetiver
Haitian vetiver combines with a gummy olibanum, in a bouquet that almost defies description.
Le Labo’s wintriest formulation, this icy blast of resinous spice immediately evolves into a creaky wooden musk – like an antique pew in an overgrown chapel.
Serge Lutens Chergui
Heart notes: Honey, musk, incense, tobacco, amber
Base notes: Sandalwood
The perfect winter scent? Christopher Sheldrake designed Chergui to be an unfailing winter performer for Serge Lutens, giving the house a spicy amber perfume of considerable depth and unisex appeal.
This fragrance’s characteristic notes of honey, iris, musk, sandalwood, amber, and rose are all you’ll need emanating off of your skin on a cold winter evening.
Creed Green Irish Tweed
Heart notes: Violet leaves
Base notes: Mysore Sandalwood, ambergris
A classic scent of some distinction, Green Irish Tweed is one of Creed’s signature best-sellers. Reminiscent of a stroll through the lush, rolling hills of the Irish countryside, Green Irish Tweed is equal parts masculine elegance and rugged beauty.
Rich and fresh thanks to notes of French verbena, Florentine iris, lemon verbena and violet leaves, balanced against ambergris and sandalwood, the sleek matte bottle looks as good as its contents smell.
Of course, over the years Creed has unveiled newer expressions of this signature product, but for a classic, powerful, and immediately distinctive men’s winter fragrance, OG Green Irish Tweed is best Irish Tweed.
Memo Paris Russian Leather
Heart notes: Clary sage, nutmeg, rosemary
Base notes: Cedar leaves, guaiac wood, patchouli, pine, tonka bean, leather, cypress
Memo’s entire leather line is one to try – if only to see how far a note as seemingly ubiquitous as ‘leather’ can be stretched.
Russian Leather is a pine-forward fougère: mixing dusty, barbershop-style florals with accords of woody leather. If you enjoy the woodsy effect, our advice would be to also order testers of ‘Sherwood’: another inventive recipe by Memo that combines creamy oak, carrot seed, and powdered rose.
Comme des Garçons Blackpepper
A strong, forceful opening of black pepper sets the bar high for the appropriately named perfume from Comme des Garçons.
The roasted woody accord couldn’t be more on-point for winter, suffusing a bouquet of brooding musks and tinges of green with the bright intensity of freshly cracked pepper.
If you enjoyed this seasonally specific guide to the best winter fragrances for men, be sure to check out some of our other grooming content:
