Season 8, Episode 15: Pitti Roundup Part Two – The Fragrances That Stopped Suzy in Her Tracks

Suzy & Nicola are back for part two of their Pitti Fragranze roundup, continuing their deep-dive into the perfume launches, houses and ideas that made this year’s Florence fair feel so full of possibility.Having attended Pitti Fragranze for thirteen years, Suzy felt this was one of the most exciting editions yet. Alongside the return of classical perfume structures reinterpreted for contemporary tastes, she noticed a growing confidence in brands drawing upon personal heritage, local materials, food culture, landscape, ritual and memory. In this episode, the pair explore some of the fragrances that most vividly expressed those stories.From a Chinese-French house capturing the transient scent of sun-dried osmanthus, to Korean brands evoking fire-charred ingredients, graceful calligraphy and fine-dining balances of flavour, this episode travels widely through fragrance’s newest creative terrain. There is also a decadent, night-time gourmand journey through Bandra in Mumbai; a woody incense scent from Reserve en Afrique; and two beautifully emotional creations from Italian poet-perfumer Meo Fusciuni.Listen for a perfume that smells of roasted chestnuts, fermented tea and Korean seaweed crisp; a vivid, herbal peach; a “new century” Parma violet growing in a cold spring garden; and a cocoa-rich love story that charts the bitterness and sweetness of heartbreak…https://fragranze.pittimmagine.com/en/events-calendarReserve en Afrique – WoodooReserve en Afrique’s Woodoo is a woody, resinous composition built around the warm, meditative pull of incense, balsams and dry woods.It opens with ginger and olibanum, giving the fragrance both brightness and a slightly peppery, ceremonial character. Labdanum, iris and white flowers arrive at the heart, adding a soft, ambery texture: floral, but shadowed by resin and a certain velvety darkness. The base of musk, benzoin, cedar, tonka bean and cypriol brings a long-lasting warmth, with dry woods, sweet balsams and a gently smoky earthiness.The name suggests ritual, mystery and a connection to wood, smoke and spirituality, and the composition seems to play with all those ideas. This is not necessarily a loud fragrance, but one that gradually develops its presence on skin: incense-lit, softly floral, smooth with tonka, and grounded by a woody, mineral base.Reserve en Afrique draws inspiration from African landscapes, stories and olfactory traditions, translating them into contemporary fine fragrance. Woodoo feels like a particularly atmospheric example of that approach: a scent that uses familiar perfume materials, but lets them tell a more transportive story.Cent.PM – eau de penséeEau de pensée, the debut fragrance from Chinese-French house Cent.PM, begins with an intensely personal memory: founder Haoyuan recalling the childhood ritual of sun-drying osmanthus blossoms in a field.Rather than trying to make a literal flower portrait, Cent.PM treats the memory as something unstable and shifting. The perfume is intended to capture that instant when an old recollection suddenly brightens into focus, only to blur again as past and present overlap. The opening is vibrant and light-filled, with notes including neroli, pink pepper and mandarin lending a sparkling, green-citrus lift. From there, the fragrance becomes more veiled and contemplative, eventually settling into a warm, close-to-the-skin afterglow.Osmanthus can be a fascinating material in perfume: floral, but also capable of suggesting apricot, tea, suede and a certain honeyed, almost leathery softness. Here, its role appears to be as much emotional as olfactory, carrying the atmosphere of childhood, sunshine, landscape and passing time.Cent.PM approaches fragrance as a meeting point between cultures, materials and memory. Its name and first release suggest an interest in the fleeting, in-between time of late afternoon: a moment for reflection, imagination and sensory recollection.Sisology – Être toiKorean house Sisology’s Être toi is a tender, uplifting fragrance built around the idea that being fully oneself is its own kind of beauty.The scent opens with freesia and peach, combining clean floral freshness with soft, gently juicy fruit. Rose sits at the heart, bringing a familiar, romantic bloom, but the fragrance’s real appeal lies in the ease of its overall structure. Patchouli, woods and amber provide a warm, lightly earthy base that gives the composition depth without overwhelming its airiness.Sisology describes Être toi as a perfume for the easy laugh, the hopeful heart and the comfort of sincerity.