Ylang-a-long: A round-up of Ylang Ylang perfumes
Single-note explorations can be a dangerous thing. Sometimes you realize you love almost everything about a note, making you hungry for even minute variations o... Read more.
Osmanthageddon: A round-up of osmanthus perfumes
Osmanthus is a shrub native to the warm, temperate zones of mostly Asia – Japan, China, Korea, the Himalayas. Which is probably why, living in a country where... Read more.
Conversations with the Artisan: Ensar of Ensar Oud
Sri Lanka Distillery Welcome to the third interview in the Basenotes series called Conversations with the Artisan, the aim of which is to introduce readers to t... Read more.
Conversations with the Artisan: Trygve Harris of Enfleurage
Trygve Harris is unusual, even among artisans. She is a woman, but even men in the most culturally closed, patriarchal societies of the world respect her. She&#... Read more.
The Murky Matter of Musk
Musk: what is it? Musk is a grainy, aromatic reddish paste formed within the glandular musk sac of the male musk deer. It contains a rundown of his most importa... Read more.
Conversations with the Artisan: JK DeLapp of The Rising Phoenix Perfumery
I’ve been researching and writing about attars, ouds, and sandalwood for a book for over a year now, and one thing that has struck me the most is this: if... Read more.
Summer Fragrances for People Who Hate Summer & Also Summer Fragrances
Credit: Adobe I don’t know about you, but traditional summer fragrances bore the living daylights out of me. Summer is bad enough without having to deal w... Read more.
The Basenotes 2016 Christmas Gift Guide
Let’s admit it – we are a tough bunch to shop for. I mean, what exactly are you supposed to get someone who has 17 variations on amber? That ... ... Read more.
Ambergris: Myths, Truths, and Half-Truths
A trunk full of ambergris. Image: Claire Vukcevic A primer on what ambergris is and isn’t, plus a list of reference ambergris fragrances and attars “Are... Read more.
The Top Ten Female Designer Fragrances Every Beginner Should Sample
This title is a bit misleading. The truth is, if you’re a woman reading this, then you’ve probably already sniffed your way through 95% of the stock... Read more.