The biggest perfume trends of 2026 are comprised of fragrance notes I never in a million years would have thought to try. I’ve had rice water scents cluttering up my desk, tomato-flavored mists on my vanity, and too many pistachio, banana, and olive extracts in my inbox to process. But the most unexpected—and shockingly my personal favorite—has been matcha perfumes. Now don’t get me wrong: I like a Blank Street Daydream Matcha Latte as much as the next person, but I can’t say that I always dreamt of smelling like my afternoon pick-me-up. And yet, once I started smelling an assortment of matcha notes, I realized the note was surprisingly complex. It’s green, but not too grassy. There’s a bitterness that reads as vegetal, and, in many, an underlying creaminess that softens the scent into something intimate and skin-like.
Formulating it isn’t the easiest—there’s no real matcha plant to extract from. “Perfumers have to layer ingredients that together evoke the full sensory impression of matcha: green tea notes that capture that fresh, slightly bitter top, alongside softer, creamier elements that mimic a perfectly prepared bowl,” says Carol Han, the founder of Nette. The result is an accord that’s often reminiscent of peace and stillness. “We’re all looking for ways to slow down, and there’s something so inherently meditative about match, and it’s almost become this symbol of mindful living,” says Han. “Fragrance, at its best, does the same thing. It pulls you into a moment. People are drawn to matcha in perfumery for the same reason they’re drawn to it in life: it feels really grounding.”
