Although gourmands tend to be extra popular around the holidays, perfumers are stretching the category well into spring, according to Alexis Grugeon, a Paris-based perfumer at Givaudan.
Grugeon believes that fruit-and-gourmand scents — like Burberry Her Elixir de Parfum, an ambery, fruit-forward fragrance with notes of strawberry, blackberry, and vanilla — could be big.
Meanwhile, Bryson Ammons, New York City-based perfumer and founder of The Alloy Studio, predicts the gourmand category will skew a bit more vegetal and even savory.
Rather than leaning on obvious dessert notes like chocolate or coffee, perfumers are experimenting with compositions that feel closer to “food that you see in everyday life,” said Ammons.
Case in point: Pho Breakfast by d’Annam, a fragrance heavily inspired by a comforting bowl of pho. Spicy and woodsy, it contains notes of cardamom, cedarwood, fresh basil, and star anise.
