Alluring, sensual, enticing… Musk is well-known for its aphrodisiac powers. Perfumers play with a myriad of synthetic musks to fix, blend and mold ingredients in a number of intoxicating accords. These notes are clean and transparent—lending a velvety, skinny effect. Musk notes in perfume used to be processed from the actual musk glands of animals to impart a gamey, warm, and sensual texture. But this practice is illegal in modern times, and nowadays musk notes in fragrance are entirely synthetic. Musk’s tangy aroma can range from sheer, metallic and bright to very animalic and even as intimate as the scent of warm, damp, human skin. Musk adds a sultry, sensual feel to demure feminine scents, as well as making masculine notes like tobacco and leather vividly expressive in cologne. For perfume fans who enjoy the alluring scent of warm, clean, skin - musk is a must-have note in fragrance.

Peonies bright floral spark brings a note of joy into a composition unlike any other. Peony’s exquisitely soft, green, and airy qualities create an aura of youth, curiosity, and vitality and are just the ticket for anyone looking for anything other than “another grandma” perfume. Peony notes are similar to violets, only without the candy pastille edge, and work best with other light-hearted, sunlit floral notes like rose, orange blossom, and muguet. It’s a floral that’s all about spring and summer, and it’s upbeat, energetic persona is an absolute must to dispel winter’s doldrums.

Intense, piquant, and oh-so-fresh, pink pepper adds an unmatchable spiciness to accords, and is often used in fine perfumery. The nose-tingling crispness of pink peppercorns is only matched by its unique fruity facets—sometimes described as being citrus-like.

Patchouli is a deeply spiced, thickly herbal and immediately recognizable note - it’s “dirty hippie” reputation doesn’t do it justice. Patchouli’s scent lies somewhere between cumin’s sharp and acrid tang and nutmeg’s smooth, sweet warmth, and it can carry a fragrance or blend easily with other, spicier notes. It is ideal in heated, spicy perfumes that feature leather, smoke, resins, and lighter aromatic notes like lavender and geranium. Patchouli’s exotic strength can be an acquired taste in perfume, but it’s many moods and blends make it an endlessly fascinating note to explore in the spicy end of the scent spectrum.