Dessert people, rejoice—there’s a fragrance family specifically made for you. Gourmand scents are made for people who would rather eat desserts first (or skip savory food entirely). Simply put, gourmand scents smell good enough to eat. Gourmand perfumes are filled with mouthwatering edible notes like candy, caramel, vanilla, almond, peach, cherry, coffee, and honey.
Though not for everyone, these perfumes are much more versatile than you probably think. When people think of gourmand scents, they tend to think that they’ll smell sickeningly sweet. In reality, however, many gourmand scents are incredibly complex and wearable. At this point, fragrance houses have nailed making dessert-flavored scents that are sweet and rich without veering cloying. Keep reading for our favorite gourmand scents in every category.
Best Candy Gourmand Scents
Key notes: musk, benzoin resin, caramel accord
Nothing encapsulates spun sugar more than Prada's Candy fragrance line. Candy embraces the more refined side of candy with sugary notes and vanilla for a scent good enough to eat.
Customer review: "Sweet and likable. It feels more sophisticated than some of the other more simple gourmands - more like a perfume and less like a pure sugar bomb. The powder note makes it feel surprisingly mature and adds a nice balance to the caramel and sweets."
Key notes: heliotrope, tonka bean, whipped cream, sugar
Striking the perfect balance between cream and sugar, this scent will make you smell like fresh whipped cream—subtle but still alluringly sweet.
Customer review: "I absolutely love this fragrance. It smells like whipped cream and vanilla. It is delicious and has amazing projection and staying power. I absolutely love it."
Best Caramel Gourmand Scents
Key notes: salted caramel, pistachio, vanilla
This is the scent to reach for if you want to smell like dessert, full stop. Caramel, pistachio, and vanilla meld together for a fragrance that smells like an incredibly indulgent ice cream sundae.
Customer review: "This is the most intoxicating scent I have ever smelled in my life, I could bathe in this stuff. For a body spray the smell last for a long time. Very sweet smelling, almost like a baked vanilla caramel scent."
Key notes: blackcurrant, peach, caramel
If you want a caramel perfume that isn't overpoweringly sweet, this is the right scent for you. It smells like caramelized fruit with just a hint of musk.
Customer review: "I love this perfume so much. This smell is so delicious. I feel like I've rolled around in candy."
Best Vanilla Gourmand Scents
Key notes: freesia, plum, amber, cashmere woods, vanilla beans, cistus oil
Byredo's Vanille Antique is not your usual vanilla scent. This fragrance takes vanilla and turns it on its head—the note morphs into something smoky, earthy, and deep, while still being unmistakably vanilla.
Customer review: "I really really love this perfume. I adore the smell its a mixture of vanilla and has a musky undertone so its not too overwhelming or feminine. The perfume is a light and long lasting scent with absolutely gorgeous packaging and bottle that make it a beautiful piece in and of itself."
Key notes: pear, rose, vanilla
The vanilla used in this perfume is sustainably sourced, and it also has aromatherapy benefits. Bursting with pear, rose, and vanilla, this scent is the perfect blend of fruity, floral, and sweet.
Customer review: "This scent has a different vibe to it and to describe it in one word, the vanilla smelled expensive. The hunt for a vanilla scented perfume that doesn’t smell like fake vanilla is over."
Best Almond Gourmand Scents
Key notes: almond, jasmine, vanilla
Dior's Hypnotic Poison is the quintessential almond-forward scent. It's sweet with a slightly bitter edge, making it a truly intriguing scent.
Customer review: "Though it's squarely in the 'gourmand' family, nothing else smells even similar! It's rich and warm, sexy, and feminine without being at all girly. The spice and wood notes are much stronger than the tuberose, making it a great choice for those who find florals cloying but citrusy scents too sporty and casual."
Key notes: almond milk, iris, musk
Incredibly luxe, this fragrance takes almond milk, iris, and musk, and whips them into a scent that's nothing short of hypnotic. It's basically a lesson in smelling like a rich person.
Customer review: "This is such a beautiful, feminine fragrance. It is creamy but light at the same time. Reminds me of soft vanilla ice cream and toasted almonds."
Best Peach Gourmand Scents
Key notes: Pêche de Vigne, blood orange, patchouli
In France, the "pêche de vigne" (or peach of the grapevine) a type of heirloom peach that's only available for a few weeks in late August. This fragrance is bursting with pêche de vigne and blood orange oil for a peachy fragrance that's juicy but not cloying.
Customer review: "Smells like peach with a creamy sandalwood. Has a very classy rich scent of a juicy peach. Not cheap smelling."
Key notes: amber, jasmine, peach, vanilla
Peach is complemented by vanilla, jasmine, and amber notes. The overall effect of this fragrance is smelling like a late-summer dessert.
Customer review: "Dolce and Gabbana's The One has to be one of the most scrumptious perfumes ever created, It's for the ultimate diva, one in a million, a woman who exudes confidence, class and a face one cannot question, alter or implore."
Best Cherry Gourmand Scents
Key notes: black cherry, tonka bean, almond
At their worst, cherry-centric scents smell like cough syrup. At their best, they open up beautifully in a way that's both deep and juicy. Tom Ford's Black Cherry is a cherry scent at its best—potent, seductive, and dripping in sticky sweetness without being too sweet.
Customer review: "Sweet but with so many layers. The longer you wear, the more amazing and complex it becomes. Almost cloying top notes settle to something really special."
Key notes: cherry, plum, almond, balsam, heliotrope, hawthorn berries, black vanilla, tonka bean
If you've ever wanted to smell like cherry pie, 7 Virtues' Cherry Ambition is your ticket there. This perfume perfectly marries cherry with notes like vanilla and saffron that balance it out.
Customer review: "This is such a good date night perfume. It's sexy, smoky, and sweet. I'm obsessed!"
Best Coffee Gourmand Scents
Key notes: rum, coffee, vetiver
If your go-to drink is an espresso martini, you need this fragrance in your collection. Coffee and rum make the perfect match, with coffee adding deep dimension while rum adds a caramel-y spike.
Customer review: "Delicious. Warm. Spicy. Smooth. A bit woody. Creamy. All of the good things. Some people swear it leans more masculine, others are convinced it is more feminine. My opinion? It’s just a incredibly good fragrance that molds itself around whoever is wearing it, regardless of gender. "
Key notes: black coffee, white flowers, vanilla
Coffee and vanilla are the perfect pair—there's a reason Starbucks Vanilla Sweet Cream Cold Brew is so popular. Add in white flowers, and you have a truly unique combination that smells good on everyone.
Customer review: "My holy grail perfume. This has been my signature sent since it came out and now years later I still haven’t found a scent I like better. "
Best Honey Gourmand Scents
Key notes: dark rum, honey, vanilla bean
If you swear up and down that you don't like sweet scents, Ellis Brooklyn Bee will turn you into a convert. This blend of rum, honey, and vanilla smells like ice cream melting off of a cone in mid-summer heat, and one whiff is never enough.
Customer review: "When you take the first sniff of this your senses are confused whether it smells good or not. Once you sniff the second time you smell the warm sweet honey as if something was being baked. By the third sniff you smell all the other ingredients that fall into place with the honey helping it create an enticing dark sweet scent. I don’t even know what to compare it to because it’s so different. This scent will leave you speechless."
Key notes: cassis, acacia honey, peach
This is a sparkling take on honey. It will transport you to a blooming garden—it's sweet, light, and airy.
Customer review: "It is sweet and delicious smelling but not cloying and obnoxious. It transports me to summer in a garden filled with fruit trees and greens and flowers. It truly evokes a happy place to me."
This article was originally published at an earlier date and has been updated.
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