It’s that time of the year friends! The turkey is gone, the ham has been devoured, the presents have been opened, and the year is about to come to a close. It’s been a good year for fragrances in general, and while there have been some odd releases, there have also been some real bangers. Starting off with a brand that shot up to the top of the rankings with me this year, Xerjoff.
Winners:
Iommi Deified by Xerjoff
I’ve been buying decant after decant of top fragrances from Xerjoff and I really don’t know why I just never dipped my toes in this brand until now. If you haven’t yet now’s your chance, they have some really good fragrances. I’m going to start with Deified since this was a recent release in 2024 and is also the second Iommi fragrance to come out by legendary guitarist, Tony Iommi. The first fragrance had a lot of essences of rock lifestyles (smokiness, booziness, etc). I think out of the two of these Iommi fragrances, the original was more likable than this newer release but I’m for it and I like it.
Saffron, apple, cinnamon, leather, rose, papyrus, patchouli, musk and moss are the notes in this fragrance. The mixture of leather with the patchouli really put it over the top for me and the other notes are just along for the ride. Give this one a try right here.
Creed Centaurus
Creed released eight fragrances this year and while 5 of these were re-releases, the three they did release were hit or miss with me. The best out of the bunch in my opinion was Centaurus. Notes are cinnamon, tobacco, cardamom, pink pepper, sandalwood, patchouli, heliotrope, geranium, jasmine, benzoin, bourbon vanilla, tolu balsam, tonka bean and Ambroxan. Both Centaurus and Delphinus were released at the same time, and I reviewed them both here. It’s a beautiful fall weather fragrance with a lot of different notes that just keep on giving throughout the mid and dry down. Centaurus got an 8.9/10 from me and if you haven’t given this one a try yet, grab one here.
Prada Luna Rossa Ocean le Parfum
I never thought that a fragrance that has essentially come out over and over again would actually make it in my year in review as a new release but here we are. The Ocean line from Prada is now one step away from completing the cycle (edt, edp, parfum & elixir) and while the EDT was a good introduction, the EDP was lacking a lot in clear differences from the original. So why then did le Parfum make the cut? It's just different, which makes it better. The previous iterations of this fragrance were in line with other fresh fragrances giving an almost greenish aromatic type of vibe. Le Parfum on the other hand, this one went the route of more of a woody type of fragrance while still maintaining the DNA of the line. The notes are simple; lemon, saffron, amber xtreme and oak. That’s all it needed to make it different enough and actually make me really like it. You can grab all three here and see for yourself. The Le Parfum is a great addition to the Ocean lineup and now I’m excited to see if an Elixir will make an appearance or not.
Tilia by Marc-Antoine Barrois
This is definitely one that not a lot of people have heard of, including myself until this year. This fragrance came from WAY out of left field and is a homerun for me. It’s a floral powdery fragrance that somehow works for both men and women. I’ve not been a huge fan of floral fragrances in the past, but this one just works. Lime blossom, jasmine sambac, broom, heliotrope, vetiver, orange blossom, ambrofix and Georgywood round out the notes for this one. Marc-Antoine Barrois also has some great fragrances like Ganymede and B683. Quentin Bisch is the nose behind a lot of these fragrances and has an exceptional track record with fragrances from Parfums de Marly, Mugler and Jean Paul Gaultier. This is a niche brand out of France, and they have some great fragrances you really should try. Tilia is one you should start with though and it’s just a great springtime fresh fragrance. Highly recommend.
Mystic Bliss by Goldfield & Banks
Goldfield & Banks is another lesser-known niche company that makes some amazing fragrances with ingredients and oils right from their backyard in Australia. We got a couple of new one’s last year but alas, this year there was only one. It’s another unisex fragrance that is an all-year all-situation fragrance. This fragrance genuinely has a wonderful way of smelling like nothing else you’ve ever smelled before and that’s what I truly love about Goldfield & Banks fragrances. Their raw ingredients and amazing notes make up for some elegant smelling fragrances without breaking your bank account. Fig, mint, cassis, kunzea, cedar, orris and incense are the notes in this fragrance. It’s green but floral, woody but aromatic, sweet but spicy. It somehow hits every checkbox and the fact you can wear this anywhere and anytime means it doesn’t have to move in rotation, which is a huge plus. Try this one out right here!
APOM by Maison Francis Kurkdjian
Aside from Baccarat Rouge and Grand Soir that made MFK super popular, there are some other really good fragrances worthy of being mentioned, APOM being one of them. The vibes I get from this fragrance is old-fashioned, expensive, clean as well as bright. It’s not overly leaning one way or the other in terms of gender, but it is another fragrance that doesn’t care if it’s spring, fall, winter, summer, day or night. You can wear APOM for honestly any day, date, time or occasion. My one and only gripe with all things MFK is longevity. I find these fragrances don’t last as long on my skin as others and wanted to point that out. Other skins may absorb the oils differently and some may find these last all day. Not for me. Notes are orange blossom, white musk, lavender, amber, ylang ylang and vanilla. This is a really great addition to an already stellar lineup from MFK and the scent is fantastic. Just wish it lasted longer.
Lovers by Louis Vuitton
This fragrance has been spoken about multiple times and for good reason. Released this year Lovers stood out in the store immediately to me and I wasn’t even going to buy this one in the first place. If any of you know, every time I went into the LV store, my mind was set on buying Pacific Chill, but something always caught my eye, and I caved and bought something else. Eventually I went back and got Pacific Chill in my collection, but Lovers was an immediate purchase without question. Galbanum, bergamot, ginger, solar notes, sandalwood and cedarwood are the notes and this is yet another anytime/anywhere fragrance. I find this fragrance not only has an amazing scent profile but also has the longevity, projection and compliment attraction we all yearn for. If you haven’t tried Lovers yet, even after all I’ve written about it, please do yourself a favor and add one to your cart right here. This fragrance is still a solid 9/10 for me.
Weird Releases of 2024:
Y Elixir by Yves Saint Laurent
This was a mega flop for not only me, but a lot in the community and for many ways. To have a fragrance come out priced at $180 for 2oz and be subpar at best is a crime against all fragrance enthusiasts. If they came out with Sauvage Elixir and it was enough for people to gravitate towards and even big enough for them to eventually release a larger bottle of it, then they obviously did something right with the formulation of that elixir. YSL though? Didn’t.
Lavender, geranium, frankincense and oud are the notes. That’s it. Longevity is only around 6 to 7 hours, not a whole lot for an elixir – and the sillage is low. Every factor that would make an elixir an elixir this fragrance didn’t come close to. Any other YSL Y fragrance will do a better job than this did, and I’d recommend the EDP Intense. Fantastic value for your money AND it’s a foll 100ml bottle as well. Y Elixir is the most head scratching release of 2024 by far.
H24 Herbes Vives by Hermes
Hermes has some really good men’s fragrances with their H24 line as well as their Terre D’Hermes line. Their TDH lineup is probably one of the more classic, old-school men’s fragrance lineups that I can recall, and they are all similar, but have differences in terms of their concentration. H24 EDP is a vast difference compared to the EDT, but when they released Herbes Vives this year, I was excited to try something different…or so I thought.
Herbal notes, pear and Physcool are the notes that round up this question mark of a fragrance and I’m here to tell you it smells exactly like the EDP. Yes, there are subtle differences, but those differences are really minor by comparison to something like TDH EDT compared to the EDP or even Eau Givree. I just can’t seem to wrap my head around why someone would release something that smells way too similar. Like, if you need someone to be your official sniffer that puts the previous iteration on one hand and sprays the new on the other and can tell you thumbs up or thumbs down if you have a winner or not…I have spare time. This one is a good fragrance, but not worth having multiple in your arsenal.
L’Homme Ideal Parfum by Guerlain
I’ve written about the Ideal line before and I’m not afraid to say that I’m just not a fan. Never have been and there’s nothing in their upcoming portfolio that ever will make me a fan. There was one though, and that was the Ideal Extreme that won me over. But I gotta say, one out of a lot isn’t enough for me. So, when you release a Parfum version of your already almond-saturated lineup and have it smell like almonds again…almonds are almonds no matter if you slice it, halve it or crumble it. There’s something about using a nut as your base for pretty much all of your fragrances that is a hard pill to swallow. And it’s not just this lineup, there a LOT of fragrance lineups that do this and it’s wrong on so many levels. Amaretto, leather, musk and patchouli are the notes here. If you know me, you know I love patchouli but not mixed with almonds. Keep almonds surrounded with coconut and milk chocolate and I’m filled with joy.
Final Thoughts
2024 was a good year in my opinion, but for some, an odd year for releases. I hope you enjoyed my list of fragrances that I though stood out over the rest. Which was your favorite? For 2025, I strive to fall more in love with more lines of niche fragrances than I did in 2024. The introduction of Xerjoff for me was an extreme eye opener and I want more and more new brands to grace my desk from Decant House. I hope your new year is prosperous, healthy and happy. Cheers to the new year and I’ll catch you all in the next one!
