Best 10 Fragrances for 2023 Hernando Patrick Courtright and Sandi Lundberg
Now that you have heard from Ermano and me, (our best fragrances of 2023 here) and (The Top 10 Perfumes 2023 here), Ida and Lauryn, J WeareScentient and Nicoleta, Karl and Michael, Danu and Rachel we continue our Top 10 Perfumes of 2023 overviews today with Sr. Contributor and New York City Brand Ambassador (also my MVVP) Hernando Patrick Courtright who is a New Yorker and Contributor Sandi Lundberg who hails from the Southwest. I paired them together since they have been with ÇaFleureBon since our inception in 2010. There are no overlaps in their selections. Now it’s time to reveal their respective Best 10 Fragrances for 2023 –Michelyn Camen, Editor-in-Chief
Best 10 Fragrances for 2023
Live events are my way to meet brands and discover new scents. 2023 started with the launch party for Parfums de Marly’s Valaya which immediately was a lock for my Top Ten list, Trends I found striking: Vanilla trending (again) with D.S.& Durga’s Deep Dark Vanilla being one of the more complex versions released this year. Clean scents rose in currency. I fell for Ourside Nostalgia Eau De Parfum (Composed by Darryl Do of the Delbia Do Fragrance Lab). Bespoke and custom fragrance-making keep gaining in popularity judging by Olfactory NYC’s expansion with their custom blend-your-own fragrance process and Glossier You, a fragrance formulated with notes that work with one’s skin’s temperature to unfold throughout the day. Both brands resonate with a younger demographic. Lastly, tobacco as a note has roared back judging by several year-end releases. At the end of the day, you can’t smell everything you want but if you try sometimes, well, you might smell what you need. Top 10 in no particular order:
collage by Olya Bar©
D.S.& Durga Deep Dark Vanilla (David Moltz): I adore patchouli and love vanilla. Vanilla is a note not generally associated with David Moltz. I was curious. No sweetness here. And Patchouli? This is not the head shop kind of the hippie generation. The aromas here are extremely rich, deep, and earthy. Leans masculine (but all the women are wearing it). A complex one indeed. @dsanddurga
Parfums de Marly Valaya (Quentin Bisch): Just gorgeous. Valaya, one of the first fragrance launches of the year was a lock on my Top Ten out of the gate. This modern sensual musk is ethereally soft and creamy. Caresses your skin. The Bergamot and White Peach flows into the Orange Flower and Vetiver is just divine. white floral envelopes you. The powerful citrus and vanilla work beautifully together. This is a compliment-getter. A scent to impress. @parfumsdemarly @quentinbischperfumer
Maison Francis Kurkdjian Aqua Media Cologne Forte Eau de Parfum (Francis Kurkdjian): The fourth release from the Cologne Forte Collection, Aqua Media, a more citrus and green spin than aqua (which is fine for me) is nice and bright and aromatic This one grew on me. Smooth and easy. A modern summer fragrance on repeat. Let the sunshine in! @maisonfranciskurkdjian
TOM FORD Myrrhe Mystere (Rodrigo Flores-Roux): Just in time for the cold weather. Myrrhe Mystère from the Private Blend Collection embraces Myrrh and more Myrrh. Not too sweet, not too groundbreaking but just right on me. Maybe my Catholic upbringing drew me in. A dry amber that’s dark, smoky, and resiny. Alluring yet warm and smooth. Watch out, you will get followed! @tomfordbeauty @rodrigofloresroux
Aedes de Venustas Café Tabac (Bertrand Duchaufour): An early Christmas present just dropped and, in my opinion, the last significant release of the year. As the saying goes, timing is everything and the timing is right now for this wonder. The name was inspired by the iconic 90s bar in the East Village and scented synchronicity as later Co-owner Robert Gerstner was traveling with Bertrand Duchaufour in the Dominican Republic and while in a cigar factory, he asked Duchaufour, “Can you bottle this,” and he indeed he did. This sensual wonder is homage to tobacco, but is a multi-layered wonder. @aedes_de_venustas #bertrandduchaufour
Ormonde Jayne Arabesque Eau De Parfum (Ormonde Jayne Studio): Arabesque is the latest release from the Four Corners of the Earth collection. Here I am transported on a journey to the Middle East. The elegant underflow of the Oudh and rose is fresh and elegant with jasmine giving it just a hint of decadence. Linda Pilkington and her studio have constructed a timeless perfume that is perfect for all seasons and day and night. And how good is that! @ormondejayne
Thameen Fanfare Cologne Elixir (Bruno Jovanovic): Love the juicy Citrus Accord. Classy and classic, brisk and aromatic, floral and lively. A grown-up scent. Vermouth! Well balanced. Please, take me to the Flower market. This was on speed dial over my Spring and Summer. Sunny days with a hint of dark clouds for good measure. The first in the Britcologne Collection. Hooray! @thameenfragrance @cchonguk @brunojovanovichperfumer
Abel Black Anise (Isaac Sinclair): This might be a take-it-or-leave-it scent. I take it. Oddly enough, I get a Pomegranate note here. Maybe it’s just the Black Anise camped out on the cassis. That must be it. A vigorous smoky amber that has a rich sensuality to it at all at once. And that late-night smoky tobacco is an audacious head-turner. All night long. And, one hundred percent natural. That’s how you do it! @abelfragrance @francesshoemack
By Killian Smoking Hot (Mathieu Nardin): The most recent addition to By Kilian’s “Smokes Collection” is a sophisticated modern spin on that smoky boozy night out that you can’t remember. A luxurious candy apple coated with cinnamon kicks open the door with an audacious murmur of Bourbon Vanilla trailing it which further contributes to the untamed wildness of a tobacco haze. Somewhere the siren song of a hookah pipe is calling you. @killianparis @mat_nd
Parfums Quartana Forest of the Golden Dream (Celine Barel): Modern Fougere that is bright and clean. A complex uplifting green healing scent that’s complex with so many notes that it’s hard to find the trees for the pine forest. So, a tree falls in a forest and no one hears it, does it smell? The answer is yes, as Joseph Quartana envisioned it. @parfums_quartana @celinebarelperfumery
David Seth Moltz and Kavi, Founders of D.S. and Durga courtesy of David Seth Moltz
Best 10 Fragrances for 2023 Best Independent House D.S. & Durga: Uber Hip niche fragrance house D.S. & Durga led by husband-and-wife team David and Kavi Moltz doesn’t rest on their laurels. Opening boutiques in Venice, California, and the Upper Eastside of Manhattan this year, collaborating with The Carlyle Hotel, releasing a tennis-inspired scent Crush Balls leading up to the US Open, launching a Bath and Body line, and putting out a collection of twisted Limited Editions is awesome. @dsanddurga
Beach Geeza Monkey’s Blood and Ryan Hunts for ÇaFleureBon©
Best 10 Fragrances for 2023 Best Artisan Perfumer: Ryan Hunts of Beach Geeza. Ryan Hunts, Perfumer and founder of Beach Geeza, who presented at Sniffapalooza’s Spring Fling is a perfumer to watch. I particularly am a fan of 2023’s Monkey Blood. Cherry and spice…more naughty than nice.@beachgeeza @thatguyryanhunts
-Hernando Patrick Courtright, Senior Contributor and NYC (and beyond) Brand Ambassador
Best 10 Fragrances for 2023
My love for fragrance goes way back to my childhood, but was only recently rekindled when I became a clinical aromatherapist in 2003. I am sure there are many whose passion for perfume started from this very point. Here are my10 Best Fragrances of 2023 (alphabetically by perfume name) and two Honorable Mentions:
The 7 Virtues Cherry Ambition (Julie Pluchet of CPL Aromas): I have followed the work of Barb Stegemann for some time now and she is a remarkable woman. The 7 Virtues mantra, MAKE PERFUME NOT WAR, resonates in 2023 more than ever. If you desire confidence in any aspect of life, try this cheery cherry. It is a rare beauty created with sustainable sandalwood and upcycled cognac. @the7virtues @barbstegemann
For The Scent of It Dreaming in Tonka (Michael Schrammel): From a dream to the manifestation of remarkable quality, this fragrance takes your dreams to a higher realm. It wraps you in a cloak of transparent Lame` (a fabric) with an array of metallic threads and an otherworldly light with a fringe of Bourbon, Vetiver, Amber, Sandalwood, and Tonka Bean, leaving a trail behind you. @forthescentofit
Nicolai Parfumeur Createur Iris Médicis Intense (Patricia de Nicolaï): Madame de Nicolaï has created an authentic and intense Iris perfume with vitality, like a few of the hybridized Iris bulbs I received and planted from a dear friend in Colorado years ago. She crossbred some strictly for fragrance and their beauty. Iris Médicis Intense is lovely, spicy, and floral, with the base notes true to the artistry of Patricia de Nicolaï. I love Iris Médicis, and I get so many compliments (someone chased me down wearing it). @nicolaïparfumeurcréateur
Arquiste L’’Or de Louis (Rodrigo Flores-Roux): A luscious fruity floral full of vibrancy with a sweet-tart twist, followed by eutrophic musky, earthy honeyed wood ignited into a fabulous luxury of smoke containing all the notes, greeting you to a cozy enchanting escape. If you have never experienced full-bloom orange fields, you are missing out; this fragrance, however, can take you there any time or day. @arquiste @rodrigofloresroux
Gallagher Fragrances Purple Powder (Daniel Gallagher): Purple Powder is a complex, multifaceted gem that takes its time revealing its hidden opulence while taking you through an extraordinary journey. I love the ever-present notes of a beautiful heart note patchouli and the sweet, rich, syrupy vanilla in many of Daniels’s fragrances. Purple Powder caresses like an illuminating shield, yielding its power and beauty for all to experience. @gallagherfragrances
La Fleur By Livvy Resilient MB (Olivia Larson): Resilient is a custom-made fragrance for the Molly Brown House Museum. Resilient is a tribute to the many parts of the world Molly and her husband traveled to. Resilient is an impressive tea fragrance dripping with herbaceous & citrus notes with a lovely, sweet, woody dry down. With this gorgeous perfume, you will embark on a unique, surprisingly beautiful world adventure and a sweet ending. @lafleurbylivvy
Meo Fusciuni Sogni (Giuseppe Imprezzabile): Sogni is a unique experience of woods aged by time, the elements, and the encroachment of the lush green vegetation fed by rain, wind, and sun. You taste of the roasted green tea and rice before the Kodo (heartbeat, the primal source, or the way of fragrance) note transports you to a magical place of dreams. @meofusciano_parfums
Wit & West The Violetear (Whitney Swales): The Violetear opens with a mystical flittering of bergamot flanked by the other delightful waftings from a stunning garden cared for with loving, grateful hands. It is then mixed with the components of the earth to create a beautiful Fougere that dances on your skin. It is not an overpowering fragrance but has an astonishing, lasting presence. @witandwest
Olivier Durbano White Stone Prophecy 19: I.0 (Olivier Durbano): White Stone Prophecy spoke to my soul deeply and revealed a new blank page of my life. A page that goes beyond a new chapter to become an entirely new book of my life. I write this book with a transparent pen that reveals itself only to me. In it are the pure and authentic parts of myself that have been tumbled over time and experience to smooth out the rough edges and reveal the sacredness of the divine within. @olivierdurbano
My Best 10 Fragrances for 2023 Honorable Mentions are equivalent to Best of Scent awards:
For The Scent of It Dreaming in Oud (Michael Schrammel): Dreaming in Oud is a whispering, soft, sweet, spicy Oud that will wisp you gracefully through clouded dreams. @forthescentofit
Meo Fusciuni Viole Nere (Giuseppe Imprezzabile): Viole Nere starts with a crisp, clear, bright, and floral note and then evolves into a sweet powder refined by the earth elements.
–Sandi Lundberg, Contributor
For our Best 10 Fragrances of 2023 Giveaway
Thanks to the generosity of Joseph Quartana we have a 50 ml bottle of Parfums Quartana Forest of the Golden Dream for a registered ÇaFleureBon reader in the USA ONLY
Thanks to the largesse of Nicolaï Parfumeur-Createur we have a 100 ml bottle of Iris Medicis Intense for one registered reader worldwide (excluding South America and the UK).
Please leave a QUALITY comment with your thoughts on Hernando’s and Sandi’s selections of Best 10 Perfumes of 2023, where you live and which you would like to win. You must be a registered reader. Draw closes January 3, 2024.
Please check the giveaways that are still open from Ermano and Michelyn 2 Meo Fusciuni Viole Nere, Matière Premiere, Olfactive Studio Smoky Soul USA, Part 3: Ida’s and Lauryn’s Top 10 Perfumes of 2023 choices which includes draws for Azman Risk, Angelos Creations Olfactives Karikia and Olivier Durbano White Stone Prophecy 19:0.1.Part 4 includes giveaways from Nicoleta’s and J Wearescentient’s picks Francesca Bianchi Byzantine Amber and Parfums Artimique and Karl’s and Michael’s Part 5 with Electimuss London Vanilla Edesia and Gallagher Fragrances Purple Powder. Part 6 with Danu’s and Rachel’s choices of Kajal IV and Stora Skuggan Hexensalbe. Join us tomorrow with part 8 (the Finale) as we wrap up ÇaFleureBon’s Best 10 Fragrances for 2023 with Olya and Steven.
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