The A-Z of fragrance

Luca Turin, has, with his wife and co-author Tina Sanchez, just published the paperback edition of his revered guide to perfume and aftershave. It’s not easy to explain why a book that basically just reviews hundreds of fragrances is so good, but believe me, it is.

Partly it’s because Turin and Sanchez have approached an apparently gruelling task in such a free-spirited and romantic way, and partly because it’s intriguing to look up their review of one’s own favorites.Needless to say the authors’ opinions aren’t ‘right’, anymore than a music critic’s opinion is ‘right’, but their extraordinary knowledge means that, at the very least, they explain a fragrance’s historical and olfactive context. Combined with the advice given in some essays at the front of the book about how to choose an aftershave this is both a practical guide and a charming flight of fancy.

Perfumes by Luca Turin and Tina Sanchez, £12.99 (www.perfumestheguide.com)

Shiseido's ZEN Fragrance

It’s a bold step to name a fragrance after a 12th Century school of enlightenment, but Shiseido has never shied from a challenge. As well as being the oldest skincare company in the world (imagine trying to explain the virtues of moisturiser back in 1872), the Japanese outfit can also take credit for introducing the humble ice cream to a nation reared on Manju.
Zen may be the brand’s first scent for men, but with a number of iconic fragrance houses already under its wing (from Issey Miyake to Serge Lutens), it has an enviable talent base to call upon. Consequently this woody aromatic - created by Françoise Caron and Francis Kurkdjian - is able to blend the orthodox (bergamot, violet, patchouli) with the unconventional (Nashi pear, rhododendron) with admirable results.
It’s too early to say whether Zen lives up to the press release’s claim of containing “stress-relieving aromachological ingredients to liberate the modern man from his worries,” but i think it smells just great.
From £42 at Harrods

Man oh Man

As fragrance names go, Man, the brand new fragrance from Paul Smith, is a nice attempt at taking things back to basics - all in a masculine package that won’t look out of place in anyone’s bathroom cabinet.

Available in three sizes, exclusively at Selfridges and Paul Smith stores. From £24