Last week I looked at the basics of how to layer fragrances so that they complement each other and help build up a signature scent. This week, however, I want to do something a bit different and focus on one specific brand: Tom Ford. None of the previous columns have been brand-specific before, but there’s clearly a demand for short-and-sweet lists of popular labels so expect a few more of these in the coming weeks. I want to look at brands like Amouage, Creed, Aqua Di Parma, Kilian and a few others, but I think starting with Tom Ford is a good way to kick things off given the brand was only recently sold for $4.15 billion.
After all, Tom Ford perfumes – while some have definitely missed the mark over the years – are still some of the industry’s most popular for both men and women. With the addition of the Tom Ford Private Blend, it’s also one of the few well-known labels that blur the lines between designer fragrances and niche perfumery.
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Best Tom Ford Fragrances For Men
Black Orchid
It may be one of the safest Tom Ford fragrances, but Black Orchid is incredibly popular for good reason. It’s dark, skews gourmand with a gorgeous base of Mexican chocolate and patchouli, and is one of the best anchors for layering that I own.
Top Notes: Truffle, gardenia, black currant, ylang-ylang, jasmine, bergamot, mandarin orange, Amalfi lemon
Middle Notes: Orchid, spices, fruity notes, lotus
Base Notes: Mexican chocolate, patchouli, vanilla, incense, amber, sandalwood, vetiver, white musk
Tabacco Vanille
Tom Ford perfumes are at their finest when they’re blending those overtly masculine notes with sweet, gourmand nuances. Tabacco Vanille embodies that approach, with a seductive and heady rush of tobacco leaf and spices followed by a dry-down that’s dry, fruity and woody.
Top Notes: Tabacco leaf, spices
Middle Notes: Tonka bean, tobacco flower, vanilla, cocoa
Base Notes: Dry fruity accord, woods
Oud Wood
Oud Wood is perhaps the most well-known men’s fragrance from Tom Ford, and similar to Black Orchid, it’s one of the safest. That’s not a bad thing. Safest here, means versatility and makes it a good layering base, with pops of rosewood, cardamom, Chinese pepper, tonka bean, vanilla and, of course, oud.
Top Notes: Rosewood, cardamom, Chinese pepper
Middle Notes: Oud, sandalwood, vetiver
Base Notes: Tonka bean, vanilla, amber
Ombre Leather
Ombre Leather is confident and powerful. It’s the finest example of a Tom Ford perfume that really echoes the label’s reputation for being quite suave. Even more so given it’s not as overpowering as the name would suggest, contrasting a lot of those heavier notes like patchouli and leather with lighter, spicier ones like cardamom and moss.
Top Notes: Cardamom
Middle Notes: Leather, Jasmine sambac
Base Notes: Amber, moss, patchouli
Lost Cherry
The four Tom Ford perfumes listed above are all vastly different from Lost Cherry, so consider this a bit of a rogue choice. The unisex perfume is, however, one of the most reliable and distinctive in the Tom Ford Private Blend collection with notes of cherry – of course – offset by nutty bitter almond, Turkish rose and a complex base that ties it all together.
Top notes: Bitter almond, liquor, black cherry
Middle notes: Sour cherry, plum, Turkish rose, Jasmine sambac
Base notes: Tonka bean, vanilla, cinnamon, Peru balsam, benzoin, sandalwood, cloves, cedar, patchouli, vetiver
