H beauty Spotlight: These Are The Perfume Notes Everyone Will Be Wearing This Summer

Words by Maya Prever

The most exciting fragrances right now aren’t following the rules of traditional perfumery. Instead, they’re shaped by mood, memory and escapism. Some of us search for the season bottled, whereby each spritz transports us to tropical destinations worthy of making our bucket-list. Others are counteracting the summer heat with accords of cooling freshness. With the changing season evoking this scent switch-up, we’ve curated the must-know notes for summer – from nostalgic peach to the next wave of gourmands.

With 75% of our daily emotions said to be triggered by scent, according to IBM, it’s little surprise that the line between mood and fragrance is blurring. Summer memories in particular feel especially linked to scent; growing up, those few precious months felt endless and now, the act of reminiscing on the good old days has expanded from memorabilia and photographs into our fragrance collections.

This season, stone fruit notes such as peach, plum, apricot and cherry are emerging as key players within fragrance. Christine Chua at WGSN describes these notes as capturing the “optimism, warmth and joy of adolescence”, making them especially relevant in a moment where we are seeking comfort, escapism and emotional familiarity through scent. The result is a new wave of fragrances that feel uplifting yet emotionally rich, balancing nostalgia with sophistication. 

While fruity fragrances have historically leaned playful or overtly sweet, many of today’s interpretations offer far more depth and sensuality. Fragrance du Bois’ Rude Cherry – an exclusive to Harrods – is a standout example. Shadi Samra, the perfumer behind the scent, describes cherry as “sensual, mysterious and comforting”, qualities that became central to the fragrance’s identity. Reflecting on its creation, he explains how personal memory shaped the scent. “I was inspired by beautiful memories from California, where I spent three months in the summer of 2015. Almost every evening, whenever we gathered, there would be a plate of fresh cherries in front of me. Until today, that memory still represents a feeling of comfort, indulgence and warmth.”

That familiarity is what gives the fragrance its lasting impact. Layered with rich oud, musk and ambergris, the cherry note transforms into something far more complex, balancing brightness with depth. It perfectly encapsulates the direction fragrance is moving in this summer: emotionally driven scents that not only smell beautiful but make us feel something too.

While gourmand fragrances have been popular for years, they have typically been known for delivering a sweet, dessert-like scent. Yet recently, there’s been a gradual development, with a wave of ‘swavoury’ (a portmanteau of sweet and savoury) gourmands surfacing. “Gourmand is evolving from sugary sweet to more grown-up gourmands,” says Arnaud Guggenbuhl, head of global marketing, insight & image fine fragrances at Givaudan.

Notes including nuts, rice and sesame have disrupted the fragrance world, with pistachio gaining over 540,000 average monthly popularity across search, as noted in Spate’s 2026 fragrance trends report, bringing an interesting, sunscreen-like twist to scents like Tom Ford’s Soleil Blanc Eau de Parfum.

This season, fragrance is also taking inspiration from the household essential we all have in our fridge – milk - only this time we’re asking for it in our perfume rather than our tea. Suzy Nightingale, fragrance expert and journalist, is leaning into milky ‘lactic’ notes, explaining how they feel “equally comforting (like a warm-skin hug in a bottle) and slightly naughty, even subversive.” She explains how the milkiness helps anchor the other notes of a fragrance, “while softening edges of spikier materials and making you smell sumptuously delicious” And who doesn’t want that?  

BORNTOSTANDOUT has built a reputation for turning overlooked notes into something undeniably desirable and Dirty Rice captures the house’s rebellious spirit in its purest form. When crafting the scent, Jun Lim, founder and creative director, set out to bottle his most personal memory of Korea, “not temple incense, not cherry blossom. For me, the most personal answer, is the moment a rice cooker opens. The smell of home. Hot starch, a little sweet, a little animalistic.” The result is intimate yet effortlessly wearable: a comforting skin scent, leaving you yearning for a place you may have never even been.

It’s no surprise that touching grass (the act of spending intentional time in nature) has actual benefits for your wellbeing. In fact, a recent survey revealed that 80 per cent of respondents felt that nature boosted their happiness. Whether we realise it or not, most of us seek access to nature regularly; from implementing indoor-outdoor interiors in the home, to searching for that precious green space on a lunch break, and the same applies to the fragrances we choose, only this summer we’re heading straight to the herb garden.

Megan Bang, beauty strategist at WGSN reveals, “as consumers increasingly engage with wellness rituals and nature-led lifestyles, these herbaceous profiles offer a sense of clarity and reset, especially when layered with earthy roots, mineral notes or soft woods.” Reaching for notes such as mint, basil or eucalyptus also offer that hit of freshness we crave in the summer while providing a modern, unisex alternative to citrus.

Penhaligon’s Bold Blend Eau de Parfum captures the perfect balance between vibrancy and long-lasting complexity. The hero herb in the scent that invites you to embrace your most adventurous self is peppermint. Crisp, cooling and invigorating, it awakens the senses. Grounded by Palo Santo, cypress and cypriol, the fragrance settles into a warm, woody trail that feels energising, boundary-pushing and unapologetically bold, encouraging you to lean into spontaneity and say yes before overthinking it.