Best Men’s Designer Fragrance in the Last 10 Years?

Trying to be inclusive, I'd say these -


Bel Ami Vetiver
Equipage Geranium
Bleu de Chanel Parfum
Prada L'Homme
Sahara Noir
Acqua di Gio Profumo
Fahrenheit Parfum
Sauvage Elixir
Dior Homme Parfum
Terre d'Hermes Eau Tres Fraiche


Honourable Mentions -


Valentino Uomo Intense
Bleu de Chanel Eau de Parfum
Tom Ford Noir Eau de Toilette
Tom Ford Noir Anthracite
Terre d'Hermes Eau Intense Vetiver
Guerlain L'Homme Ideal L'Intense
Le Male Le Parfum
Acqua di Gio Profondo
Armani Code Absolu
Hermes H24 / H24 EdP
Bentley for Men Intense
Moschino Toy Boy
Bulgari Aqua Amara
Gucci Guilty Absolute
Givenchy Gentleman EdP Reserve Privee


Not including the higher priced lines from designers.

In terms of dry downs, these are the best I've found off the top of my head -

Bel Ami Vetiver - smoky, leathery
Equipage Geranium - soapy, clean, sandalwood-ish
Sahara Noir - incense, smoky, balsamic
Prada L'Homme - soapy, clean, iris, hint of powder

Some of require a bit of investment though in the form of repeated wearings - especially the Hermes ones.

I actually took a while to answer. Hope it helps.

NettyYeti said:

If I had to pick only one, it would be Equipage Geranium (2015). It’s easily in my top 10 all-time.

Click to expand...

I agree and feel similarly about Bel Ami Vetiver.

NettyYeti said:

Runner-up would be Hermes H24. It took me a long time to come around to it. For all the talk of boring or unoriginal designer fragrances the last 10 years, there are still a few brands doing great things.

Click to expand...

And for all the pro/con discussion, I’m still a fan. Though sometimes I prefer it on others to myself.

NettyYeti said:

• Speaking of cheapies, Bogart One Man Show Oud Edition packs a punch. Perhaps not elite, but in terms of value, it’s right up there.
• Though not an all-time great, I would call Viktor & Rolf’s Spicebomb Infrared a guilty pleasure.

Click to expand...

Totally concur with both sentiments!

Lots of people seem to not realize 10 years ago was 2013. I see lots of older releases here.

My designer pick from 2013-2023 is Prada L'Homme.

I thought Tom Ford Noir Eau De Toilette (a 2013 release) was seriously underrated, but it's been discontinued.

This is very subjective, so I'll subjectively say that to me personally the following fit the bill:

Guerlain Homme EdP (2016.), the "original" was known as Homme Intense and was launched in 2009.
Guerlain L'Homme Ideal Cool (2019.)
Bvlgari Aqva Amara (2014.)
Prada Luna Rossa Carbon (2017.)
Bottega Veneta Pour Homme (2013.)
Hugo Boss Boss Bottled Oud (2015.)
Hugo Boss Boss Bottled Intense EdP (2016.)
Mugler A*Men Pure Tonka (2016.)
Paco Rabanne 1 Million Prive (2016.)

Zgb said:

Bottega Veneta Pour Homme (2013.)

Click to expand...

One of my favorites too—and I think often unfairly overlooked…

freewheelingvagabond said:

Sahara Noir - incense, smoky, balsamic

Click to expand...

This has been mentioned many times, but while I agree the smell is wholly unisex, it was released as feminine scent.

Zgb said:

Bottega Veneta Pour Homme (2013.)

Click to expand...

I thought the dates didn't align for this one for some reason, but, yes, it's pure class.

Three stand out to me:

Dior Homme Cologne 2013
YSL - Tuxedo
Zegna - Haitian Vetiver

Looking through all these “best” fragrances listed in this thread… I can’t help but feel disappointed in what‘s been released over the last 10 years.

I mean… I listed 4 that I thought were the best/my favorites.
-Equipage Geranium
-Bel Ami Vetiver
-Dior Homme Parfum
-Sahara Noir
Of these 4, I only own 3.
And of those 3, I only wear 1 of them on any sort of regular basis (Equipage Geranium).

Of ALL of the designers released in the past decade, I can’t believe there’s only one that I enjoy wearing on a regular basis. 1 fragrance.

I cant help but feel bummed out at how lackluster the past 10 years have been for designer releases.

Opiate said:

Of ALL of the designers released in the past decade, I can’t believe there’s only one that I enjoy wearing on a regular basis.

Click to expand...

If I look at all-time "Most Worn" stats here, then for me:

Tom Ford Noir EDP (2012) is in 3rd place (which just misses the date cutoff, so it doesn't count).

But a few other designer houses show up in my top 20 most-worn:

Lalique Noir Premier Or Intemporel 1888 (2015) is in 5th place

Ermenegildo Zegna Passion (2017) is in 8th place

Celine Black Tie (2019) is in 12th place

Dolce & Gabbana Velvet Incenso (2018) is in 20th place

I didn't list any of these because these are all designer "exclusives," with higher-end pricepoints. But they're all great, and they're all technically designer fragrances.

+1 on a few others that have been mentioned, as well as a few more I can think of:

- Guerlain L'Homme Ideal Cologne (best modern post-Aventus European citrus cologne)
- Dior Homme Eau for Men (best purple floral)
- Bvlgari Tygar (best ambroxan)
- Armani Stronger With You Intensely (best gourmand, although the Ideal line pushes it close)
- Louis Vuitton Ombre Nomade (best post-1 Million Eurabic oriental/oud)
- Dior Homme Cologne (best laundry musk)
- Gucci Guilty Absolute (best leather/"animalic")

When it gets to the point where your best of list is 10+ fragrances and counting, we've gone past the point of "best" and are just listing "good" or "note-worthy". To be a best fragrance, I'd think it would have to be widely considered in the top 3 fragrances of its particular category. E.g. the dark blue trend, there are so many to choose from. Where does Sauvage Elixir come in that? I'd put Dylan Blue up there as the best dark blue as it really gets to the heart of what the trend seems to be about (generic bodywash-style masculine sporty-strong aroma), moreso than any of the BdC flankers. But then it's more of an ambroxan fragrance than a woody-amber dark blue, and Tygar is a very good ambroxan scent...so you have another toss up to consider there. When so many fragrances feel near-enough similar, it becomes hard to make a case for there being a "best".

What the sheer number of suggestions also shows is the lack of consensus that exists now. Perhaps it would be easier to answer this question for the previous decade, e.g. 2010-2020, and see if distance helps. You're always wrestling with the novelty of new releases when doing a thread like this. Time and distance grants perspective.

I would have to give it to Beau De Jour. My runner up would be Ombre Leather (latest version).

DHP

slpfrsly said:

I'd put Dylan Blue up there as the best dark blue as it really gets to the heart of what the trend seems to be about

Click to expand...

I agree. I think Dylan Blue is often scoffed at or underrated (not considered a “serious” scent). The same is sometimes said about other recent Versace offerings, but I think many are very good to excellent.

Opiate said:

Looking through all these “best” fragrances listed in this thread… I can’t help but feel disappointed in what‘s been released over the last 10 years.

I mean… I listed 4 that I thought were the best/my favorites.
-Equipage Geranium
-Bel Ami Vetiver
-Dior Homme Parfum
-Sahara Noir
Of these 4, I only own 3.
And of those 3, I only wear 1 of them on any sort of regular basis (Equipage Geranium).

Of ALL of the designers released in the past decade, I can’t believe there’s only one that I enjoy wearing on a regular basis. 1 fragrance.

I cant help but feel bummed out at how lackluster the past 10 years have been for designer releases.

Click to expand...

slpfrsly said:

What the sheer number of suggestions also shows is the lack of consensus that exists now. Perhaps it would be easier to answer this question for the previous decade, e.g. 2010-2020, and see if distance helps. You're always wrestling with the novelty of new releases when doing a thread like this. Time and distance grants perspective.

Click to expand...

I think both of these are very insightful.

Point taken on distance providing clarity. As I mentioned above, part of the reason I just did the last decade (from 2013), is I felt if I went back as far as 2010 that there would be numerous heavy hitters from about 2010-11 that would obviously rise immediately to the tops of many lists. But for whatever reason, I think the last 10 years have seen a drought in the designer fragrance world (signature lines aside) in creativity and a devotion to making a fragrance that will sell and be in production for more than 5 minutes. Additionally, some of the best of the past decade are also modern takes or reformulations of classics (e.g. Hermes). I’m still holding out hope that the future holds promise for something new, original, and better-a springboard for new “classics”. And bottom line for something that could even hold a candle to my $20 bottle of Tabac…

Zenwannabee said:

I’m still holding out hope that the future holds promise for something new, original, and better-a springboard for new “classics”.

Click to expand...

I wouldn't.

The "mass market" that could sustain a Bleu de Chanel-style instahit doesn't exist anymore.

Brooks Otterlake said:

I wouldn't.

The "mass market" that could sustain a Bleu de Chanel-style instahit doesn't exist anymore.

Click to expand...

Good point there. The world demographic picture has changed a lot since BdC was launched. BdC and Sauvage may hang around a lot longer.

Brooks Otterlake said:

I wouldn't.

The "mass market" that could sustain a Bleu de Chanel-style instahit doesn't exist anymore.

Click to expand...

Yeah, releases have spun up to an inhuman frequency, and get discontinued in shorter and shorter spans, then become the next scalper fodder for the folks who missed the window but just GOTTA have the new shiny thing for their TikToks and Instagram.

It's turned into a rat race for a narrowing field of trend-obsessed sycophants, that a lot of folks who don't have the cash to play the game just ignore, by not wearing fragrance at all (beyond bath products).

It's funny how few I own that fit into this category, and half either aren't strictly "masculine" or otherwise not new so much as re-imagined versions of older scents.

Bentley for Men Absolute - 2014 (reinvention of the discontinued 2003 Gucci Pour Homme)
Chanel Paris-Edimbourg - 2021 (unisex, even if it's the most overly masculine of the Les Eaux collection)
Chanel Sycomore EDP - 2016 (unisex, and just a reimagined take of the 2006 EDT, both supposedly updates to a forgotten 1930 perfume)
Comme des Garcons Black - 2013 (CdG is a designer but "feels" niche; Black is technically unisex, but comes off awfully masculine)
Hermes Equipage Geranium - 2015 (flanker to a masculine classic from 1970)
Lalique Encre Noire a l'Extreme - 2015
Mugler Cologne "Come Together" - 2018 (renamed & repackaged re-release of the 2001 original Mugler Cologne)
Rochas Moustache Original 1949 - 2018 (obviously a remake of an ancient scent, though completely redone)
Zara Vibrant Leather Summer - 2020 (basically an improved clone of Dior Homme Cologne)

Of those, Sycomore and CdG Black are neck and neck for my favorite; depends on the day.

Brooks Otterlake said:

If I look at all-time "Most Worn" stats here, then for me:

Tom Ford Noir EDP (2012) is in 3rd place (which just misses the date cutoff, so it doesn't count).

But a few other designer houses show up in my top 20 most-worn:

Lalique Noir Premier Or Intemporel 1888 (2015) is in 5th place

Ermenegildo Zegna Passion (2017) is in 8th place

Celine Black Tie (2019) is in 12th place

Dolce & Gabbana Velvet Incenso (2018) is in 20th place

I didn't list any of these because these are all designer "exclusives," with higher-end pricepoints. But they're all great, and they're all technically designer fragrances.

Click to expand...

I never thought to check my most worn first, but coming at it from the opposite direction is an interesting way to put context to intuition. For me, my all-time most worn fragrance narrowly missed this thread’s cutoff (2011’s Mont Blanc Legend), but the rest of my top 5 is pretty spot-on:

2. Alien Man
3. Hommage a L’Homme (Voyageur made the top 10)
4. Tobacco Reserve
5. Pour un Homme Sport

Polo Cologne Intense made my top 15 despite being released in 2021.