With winter transitioning to spring, so is our proverbial taste in men’s fragrances. When you thought know a great smelling cologne, what comes to mind? You want to get closer, smell more of what makes this person so desirable, right?
How a cologne works depends on one’s body chemistry and pheromones. For those who don’t know, but there are four frangrance families, Floral, Oriental, Woody and Fresh. Each one is defined by their unique characteristics and use of various ingredients.
As a life-long fragrance collector of over 75-plus colognes and connaseiur of many more, I am more than qualified to be an expert of what smells good and what doesn’t.
Floral fragances are perfect for the spring and summertime, as they usually smell like fresh-cut flowers or have a powdery note to them, thanks to containining notes such as rose, jasmine and lily.
My personal favorite–and I am a bit biased–are Oriental fragrances which could best be descried as seductive and exotic, thanks to containing notes such as anise, amber, vanilla, musk and sandalwood, and tend be opulent and rich. Examples of Oriental fragrances that I personally own are from the amazing Habibi New York house, which I have Honeyed Tobaacco and Oud, Desert Oud and White Morroccan Leather.
FYI, anything containing oud, is hot right now, look no further than Tom Ford’s Oud Wood.
Woody fragrances, which are my second favorites are warm and earthy, thanks to having notes such as sandalwood, velviter, oak moss, leather and amber. One of my new personal favorite colognes that I recently acquired is Burberry’s Hero EDP, which is sharp and perfect for formal use.
Lastly are the fresh fragrances. Trust me! if you’ve been in South Beach, Los Angeles or any coastal city, these scents evoke smells of the ocean. While I don’t own a lot of fresh fragances, these are some of the best in the industry, such as Gentleman Society by Givenchy and smell exactly as they are described. Fresh, clean and bright, thanks to notes such as grapefruit, sage and bergamot.
These would be considered best for daytime use, and are also SFW as well! You’re welcome, Human Resources!
Certain colognes just seem to “click” and project their scent better than others. You want a cologne that isn’t too heavy and intoxicating, but at the same time you want that guaranteed PDP that’ll help you close the deal!
If you made it this far, you already know…
Below are my top five men’s panty-dropping fragrances to buy in 2024!
(Editor’s Note: I own all of these, by the way 😉 )
Viktor & Rolf Spicebomb: If there is a perfect daytime scent that could be used to close the deal, it is this so-called “sex bomb” from Viktor and Rolf that first dropped in 2012.
Thanks to a sexy and delicious mix of bergamot and pink pepper for a top note, a middle note of cinnamon and red pepper before drying down to a base of leather, Spice Bomb might as well be called Love Potion No.9.
Other ingredients included are: saffron, velviter, elemi, grapefruit and tobacco. It is one of the top men’s fragrances of the past decade for a reason.
Carolina Herrera Bad Boy (Le Parfum): New to the party in debuting in 2021, Bad Boy from the house of Carolina Herrera lives up to its name in a bold and edgy manner. Thanks to ingredients such as geranium, black pepper, leather, vetiver and cannabis, Bad Boy needs to be in every player’s date night bag.
Givenchy Gentleman Reserve Privee: If James Bond owned a second cologne aside from his believed Floris No.19, it would be this smooth amber-vanilla operator from the famed house of Givenchy. Launched in 2022, Reserve Privee is a masculine scent that has a top note of bergamot along with whiskey, amber and woodsy for middle notes.
Low notes of chestnut and iris add a smooth and timeless blend following, making this latest addition of Gentleman one of the best and top men’s colognes for 2024 and beyond.
DIOR Sauvage EDP: The boss daddy of them all. Sharp, sensual, dominating and powerful. Sauvage Dior is THE men’s cologne to have in your collection right now.
A fresh and aromatic scent launched in 2015, Sauvage is both sensual and fresh thanks to top notes of Calabrian bergamot, pepper, middle notes of sichuan pepper, lavender, pink pepper, vetiver, patchouli, geranium, elemi and low notes of ambroxan, cedar and labdanum.
While Sauvage may be more of a fall/winter scent, it is well-rounded enough to be worn in spring and summer. Regardless of season, Sauvage is a scent that every man needs to have in 2024.
Azzaro The Most Wanted: Last, and certainly not least, you have possibly the hottest and sexiest men’s fragrance on the market now in Azarro’s The Most Wanted. Launched in 2021, this amber spicy delight would be the equivalent of the F-35 Stealth fighter in men’s fragrances, as it is subtle, low-key and simply dangerous in the wrong hands.
Perhaps it’s the classy, dark and slick six-shooter gun barrel design to the “bad boy villain” vibe it gives of, thanks to its magnetic combination of a single top note of cardamom, along with a middle note of caramel and for a low note, it has woody amber, bourbon vanilla and velvtier accord.
Translation: it is spicy, sweet and sexy. Buy without hesitation!