A friend of mine was cleaning out her mom's closet. They are moving into a smaller home now that they are retired, and she's been decluttering. Lo and behold, she found a box of perfumes that had never been worn, and her mom told her to just throw them away. Knowing that I love fragrances, she offered me the opportunity to go through the box and take first dibs. There wasn't much of interest, and what was interesting I already had a bottle of. But there on the bottom, was 15mL bottle of Hermes Oud Alezan, one of my favorite rose and oud fragrances, and a holy grail on my wishlist. The 100mL bottle is nearly $450, and it does not show up on discounters very often. The mom said it was her least favorite from the discovery set she had bought, and that she had never sprayed it after opening it for the first time. Just like that, it was mine. I've had lightning strike twice in the last week. Maybe I need to buy a lottery ticket.

Here’s the fragrance news worth paying attention to as of August 18, 2026—with the fluff stripped out. - Roja London – Elysium Absolue Pour Femme launches tomorrow, August 19. It was created by Julie Lerendu of Robertet working with Roja Dove and centers on rose, lychee, fig, raspberry, sandalwood, patchouli, and amber. It’s a 75 mL EDP at $330. Early testing from Fragrantica describes very large opening sillage and roughly 12-hour longevity. - Regalien – Hidden Origins Collection is much more interesting from a perfumery standpoint. Three extraits were introduced: Aurora: Halfeti Dark by Dominique Ropion, Anemos: Cappadocia Wild by Hamid Merati-Kashani, and Agora: Golden Horn by Honorine Blanc. They’re 80 mL extraits at €270. Anemos is the one I’d put at the top of the sniff list: citrus, leather, oud, nagarmotha, labdanum and amberwoods. - Rasasi just released Hawas La Mer and Hawas Gold Digger. What makes this news interesting is that the inspirations aren't being hidden: La Mer is described as inspired by Louis Vuitton Pacific Chill, while Gold Digger is inspired by Ultra Male. La Mer uses peppermint, citrus, blackcurrant, jasmine, carrot seed, fig and amber woods. This is another good example of a Middle Eastern brand moving from loose similarity into clearly identifiable interpretation territory. - Gucci Guilty Eau de Toilette Intense Pour Homme is new. The structure is surprisingly simple: sea salt, lavender and palo santo. Rather than making “Intense” mean sweeter and thicker, Gucci seems to be going mineral/aromatic/dry woody. Of the new mainstream men's designers, this is one I'd actually test. - Fragrance continues to carry the U.S. beauty business. Prestige fragrance dollar sales grew 6% in the first half of 2026, while mass-market fragrance sales jumped 15%. More interestingly, prestige unit sales were essentially flat while average prices increased about 5%, and EDP/parfum concentrations posted double-digit growth. Translation: consumers are increasingly spending more per bottle and moving toward stronger concentrations rather than simply buying more bottles.

Guys — I need your help. I’m getting ready to share this House of Dastan Discovery Set offer publicly, but before I do, I want the Brotherhood of Scent to take a look at these designs and tell me what could be better. The offer is: 1. Get the $300 Discovery Set for $150 with code RMRS150 2. The $150 you spend becomes a $150 credit toward a full-size House of Dastan bottle I’ve attached 3 versions of the graphic. Please help me improve them: Which one explains the deal most clearly? Is anything confusing at first glance? What would you change to make the offer easier to understand? Does the link work for you? Does RMRS150 apply the discount correctly? 👉 http://www.HouseOfDastan.com/RMRS150 And since I’m sharing this with you guys before I share it publicly, feel free to take advantage of the deal now !

Continuing my exploration of Guerlain’s Les Extraits today with Rose Centifolia Extrait 1. Rose is one of those notes that I think can come with a lot of preconceived ideas — especially for a man wearing it. Sweet, feminine, powdery, perhaps a little old fashioned. This is none of those things to me. Guerlain has taken the Centifolia, or May Rose, grown in Grasse and essentially made the raw material itself the star. The roses are harvested at daybreak during a very short season and transformed into absolute within a day. In this fragrance, Guerlain uses that rose absolute in a 30% extrait concentration, surrounding it with touches of spice, honey, frankincense and patchouli. What I find so interesting is that it smells less like “rose perfume” and more like the actual flower — petals, stem, greenery and even a little earthiness underneath it. It is rich without feeling heavy. Floral without becoming overly sweet. There is a slightly spicy, woody character underneath the rose that gives it considerably more depth and, at least to me, makes it feel completely natural for a man to wear. And perhaps that is what I enjoy most about exploring fragrance. I’ve become much less interested in whether something is traditionally considered masculine or feminine and much more interested in whether it is beautifully made and whether I enjoy wearing it. Today…this one absolutely qualifies. 😎🌹 Sometimes the most interesting fragrances aren’t about adding more notes. They’re about taking one extraordinary material and letting you really experience it.

Brothers, here are a few standout posts from the BOS community this week. 👏 Big shoutout to @Keith Mason for "What do you brothers think?" — leaning into the clean Mediterranean look and asking the group to help him pick between French Riviera by Mancera and Torino 21 by Xerjoff. A perfect example of tapping the community's nose for a summer freshie. Post: https://www.skool.com/bos/what-do-you-brothers-think 👏 Shoutout to @Srinesh for "Falling Out of Love With Certain Fragrances" — an honest, thought-provoking thread about outgrowing scents you once loved, opening a real conversation about how taste evolves over time. Post: https://www.skool.com/bos/falling-out-of-love-with-certain-fragrances 👏 Shoutout to @Vasili Romanof for "Recommendation" — a crisp, specific ask (daytime yacht date) that drew 31 comments of solid suggestions. Specific questions get specific answers. Post: https://www.skool.com/bos/recommendation-3 👏 Shoutout to @Robert Sheard for "What's the Ideal Collection Size (For You)?" — a thoughtful discussion-starter about collection philosophy that had members reflecting on their own approach to buying and curating. Post: https://www.skool.com/bos/whats-the-ideal-collection-size-for-you Keep asking, sharing, and smelling great.