The first time I smelt a really boozy fragrance was in the late 90s, I was a baby beauty editor and it was Kors by Michael Kors.
The juice provided a punch of cognac to open, followed by red wine in the mid notes. Warm, spicy, sexy and addictive, it was like nothing else. While discontinued in the early Aughts (although now going on eBay for just shy of £200, if it’s even real), notes like rum, gin and whisky have been adding depth, richness or sparkle to scents ever since with good reason.
“Perfumers have increasingly incorporated alcohol-inspired notes like cognac, tequila and juniper to create new original olfactory angles in fragrances that stand out in a crowded market,” enthuses Emmanuelle Moeglin, founder and nose at Experimental Perfume Club, who create coveted, in-the-know scents and host workshops at their store in Covent Garden. “For example, a fragrance featuring cognac can add rich, warm layers with hints of oak and spice, offering a luxurious alternative to traditional vanilla and amber. Tequila brings vibrant, citrusy zest and a hint of pepper, perfect for crafting fresh gourmand scents that feel both modern and indulgent. By utilising these less common ingredients, perfumers can explore new gourmand avenues, creating deep and warm fragrances that evoke feelings of celebration and elegance while maintaining a refined and memorable scent profile.”
Far from making you smell like you’ve been doused in alcohol, boozy notes tend to nod towards the sultry and enveloping, while having a character all of their own. “Their inclusion brings a luxurious and indulgent quality to perfumes,” adds Moeglin. “Fragrances using them achieve sophistication by incorporating spirit extracts or essential oils that capture nuanced and intricate aromas without the heavy scent of alcohol itself. Instead, these extracts highlight the subtle complexities of ingredients like cognac. This careful blending results in deep and innovative gourmand scents that offer originality and the nuances of high-end spirits.”
A bit naughty, a bit sexy, a bit heady – these are the ideal going out-out perfumes. “Boozy fragrances are highly versatile, fitting any occasion by adjusting their tones to different times and seasons,” advises Moelglin. “Warm, deep notes like cognac are perfect for evening events and cooler months. Meanwhile, fresher notes such as tequila and juniper suit daytime wear and warmer seasons, offering vibrant and elegant scents that enhance both intimate gatherings and lively activities year-round.”
Whatever your evening tipple, these liquor-laced fragrances are our favourite indulgences…
BORNTOSTANDOUT Smokin’ Gun eau de parfum
As you’d expect from a cult brand known for rebellious messaging and pushing gourmand to its limits via overdoses of boozy and animalic notes, this unisex scent makes an instant and intense impact.
Imagine warming up near a roaring bonfire whilst sipping from a flask filled with hot toddy and you’re there. There’s a triple whammy of alcoholic notes at the top, namely juniper for the sharp gin twist, sweet and syrupy rum, plus the liqueur Campari, which is slightly bitter but also adds spiciness from clove and cinnamon.
As it dries down, a heady whisky note in the heart mixes with smoke and peat in the base, creating a dry, woody and warm scent they aptly refer to as ‘Love around the campfire’.
Buy now £160.00, 50ml
Vyrao Mamajuju eau de parfum
If you’re new to Vyrao, they are an intriguing collection of genderless fragrances aimed at improving energy and well-being through scent, colour, crystals and neuroscience-based blends. Each created by a world-renowned perfumer, the latest, Mamajuju has been crafted to encourage a sense of being grounded and connected to the earth.
This is done using notes of relaxing nutmeg, uplifting saffron, grounding vetiver and soothing sandalwood oil across the top and base notes, but it’s the warming and comforting rum absolute that fuses them together through the heart. A cosy, comforting, sensual hug in a bottle.
Buy now £165.00, Vyrao
Experimental Perfume Club Cedarwood Absinth
Absinthe may have been the choice of drink (and downfall) for many early 20th century Parisian artists as it was said to induce euphoria and hallucinations, but the herby element it adds to this overwise soft, sophisticated, leathery blend lets the perfume open with a sparkly, refreshing and energising kick.
It’s also got a woody and sweet side too, ensuring the absinthe mingles beautifully with resinous cedarwood, earthy and grassy cypriol root, plus smoky patchouli.
As a brand hand-crafting perfumes with minimal, high-quality ingredients and an eco-conscious outlook, refills cost a whopping £30 less if you bring your bottle back to the store, while the hefty at-home refill bottle that can be ordered online offers a great saving too – ideal if this is your new signature scent.
Buy now £115.00, lookfantastic
Jo Loves Smoked Plum & Leather eau de toilette
Inspired by founder Jo Malone’s love of horse riding in Montana during summer visits, this vegan perfume captures the aromas of saddle leather under the hot sun, plus the combination of a log fire and glass of plum liquor that round off the day’s outdoor activities.
The dry woodiness of cedar and ambery, resinous ciste labdanum are teamed with aromatic spices cardamom and cinnamon to make a bold, enveloping scent. But it’s the addition of sharp, sweet plum and caramelly aged cognac (being more refined and rounded than a non-aged vintage) that cuts through the smokiness to make sure the perfume is still earthy but also beautifully elegant.
Buy now £82.00, Jo Loves
Penhaligon’s The Dandy eau de parfum
‘Whisky blended with mischief’ is how British heritage perfumery Penhaligon’s characterise this addictively unctuous scent that will whisk you to dark, decadent jazz clubs populated by the fashionable Bright Young Things of the 1920s. See the sumptuous vintage packaging if you need further inspiration.
Daring and sensual, it’s packed with woody, warm and sweet notes driven by a barrel-blended whiskey accord that runs dominantly through the heart and is rounded out by juicy raspberry and bergamot plus musky cedar. The perfect all-night dancing partner with lasting allure.
Buy now £175.00, Penhaligon’s
Bon Parfumeur 004 eau de parfum
Combining the luxury of French perfumery with the simplicity of centring each fragrance around three keynotes, Bon Parfumeur’s extensive library of offerings includes a ‘santé!’ to gin & tonic, inspired by Van Gogh’s Café Terrace at Night and spending summer evenings drinking and smoking on Parisian terraces.
The trio here is gin, mandarin and musk. A refreshing gin hit from juniper berries gives sparkle and crispness; bergamot and lemon also give a citrus twist alongside mandarin; and vanilla and musk notes swirl together to create a tobacco note. If you want to evoke clean, elegant and effervescent, make this your boozy scent.
Buy now £45.00, lookfantastic
BDK Rouge Smoking extrait de parfum
Classed as a fruity amber fragrance, there’s a wealth of mouthwatering notes packed into this luscious scent that’s as evocative and provocative as its inspiration, the Pigalle district of Paris, renowned for cabaret and burlesque nightclubs.
Although it’s the sweet and sour cherry note that comes through first along with juicy mandarin and zingy pink peppercorn, there’s nutty tonka bean and a creamy milk accord to follow, before woods and oud make the fragrance even bigger and bolder. But Martinican rum extract, taken from a unique fresh-pressed sugarcane rum found in Martinique, really infuses the base with a deep earthy and grassy finish that will linger well into the night.
Buy now £240.00, Selfridges
27 87 Sónar eau de parfum
Ok, beer isn’t a spirit but humour me as lager is the unusual and refreshing alcohol note in this clean, vegan fragrance. Drawing on Barcelona’s vibrant electronic music festival, Sónar, it fizzes with energy and has been cleverly blended to take you from a bright and beachy daytime party through to a darker and more intense experience as night falls.
Uplifting Italian bergamot and pink pepper are the opening act, before accords of burnt rubber and beer evoke electrical cables and the zesty, malty aroma of a beach bar, giving the note of tuberose they fuse with a drier and lighter twist. Add creamy vanilla and warming woods through the bass to close, and this unisex scent is as intriguing as it is addictive.
Buy now £165.00, Harvey Nichols
Olfactive O Gourmand eau de parfum
Gourmand by name and gourmand by nature, almost every note in this delicious fragrance will have you yearning for a trip to the patisserie followed by late-night cocktails in a stylish speakeasy.
Rum is one of three sweet and succulent top notes - the others being fig and honey - that set the fragrant scene as warm, juicy and syrupy. But it’s the boozy element that cuts through any sugary overkill. Dark chocolate, malted milk and tonka bean in the heart add a rich, toasted and subtly bitter layer, before patchouli, amber and vanilla mix together to round off the perfume with a cosy and sensuous ending that leaves you on a calorie-free high.
Buy now £65.00, Harvey Nichols
Escentric Molecules 02 eau de toilette
There’s a crisp, mineral-like element to this perfume that comes from the intense amount of musky ambroxan blended with green jasmine. It’s also mirrored in the gin and tonic accord that makes the most of sharp juniper berries, plus the addition of an Austrian lemonade, each of which brings a fizzy quality to this light, easy-to-wear spritz.
Clary sage and lime ensure there’s a clean green twist too, as if you’re squeezing the citrus fruit into your five o’clock tipple. Escentric Molecules is a trailblazer in its modern approach to perfumery and this innovative take on that very classic spirit-and-mixer combination makes something that could lack depth in lesser hands smell complex and sophisticated.
Buy now £75.00, Escentric Molecules
Verdict
For its on-brand, throw-in-all-in approach to using boozy notes, BORNTOSTANDOUT Smokin’ Gun eau de parfum could be considered the fragrance equivalent of binge drinking. The gin, rum and Campari notes may all live in the top of this punchy scent, but they’ll stay with you as it dries down into a smoky and woody base.
It’s sultry and statement-making without being overpowering – a delicate balance to master when using such potent notes. And at its core, Smokin’ Gun is as warming as a shot of liquor, a sensual embrace or a roaring fire, whichever appeals most.
