A few weeks ago, following my recent Jasmine Award win (I promise to stop banging on about it eventually, honestly), I was afforded the luxury of being able to judge in not one, but two categories for this year’s Fragrance Awards, which are set to be hosted by The Fragrance Foundation on May 15th 2014. All-in-all this was an incredibly fun process that I found interesting and challenging in equal measure, but it also afforded me the luxury of thinking about how a perfume can be approached in so many different ways.

The first category that my fellow Jasmine Award winners and I were asked to judge was ‘Perfume Extraordinaire’. The perfumes in this selection are submitted blind by the big fragrance houses and the judges are required to test these without knowing the name, brand, perfumer or any details in fact, making for a completely impartial landscape where all that matters is the smell. Personally, I found approaching these perfumes without the knowledge of any bells, whistles or marketing guff, rather refreshing and it made the whole task of selecting the more creative and well-executed perfumes in the pack really quite easy. It’s so easy to get distracted by all of the ‘noise’ surrounding a perfume, but when relying simply on one’s nose the task becomes almost effortless.

Following the Perfume Extraordinaire blind-sniff, the judges were invited to test and score the fragrances selected for the category of ‘Best New Independent Fragrance’, which sees perfumes launched by the smaller, more bespoke houses. Unlike the other category, this one wasn’t a blind sniff and the judges had the opportunity to appreciate the perfumes, some of which were familiar and others that were first-time sniffs, in their entirety with a lively discussion from all sides. Whether blind-sniffing or just simple straightforward-sniffing, this blogger has to admit that the whole process was eyeopening, great fun and an absolute honour to be involved with.

I wont reveal my individual thoughts about the scents nominated but I can provide the shortlists for both categories, as revealed by The Fragrance Foundation late last week. They are as follows:

‘Perfume Extraordinaire’

Blue Sapphire by Boadicea the Victorious (CPL Aromas)
La Fin du Monde by Etat Libre d’Orange (Givaudan)
Calligraphy Rose by Aramis (IFF)
24 Old Bond Street by Atkinsons (Mane)
Terryific Oud by Terry de Gunzberg (Robertet)
Buberry Summer for Women (Symrise)

‘Best New Independent Fragrance’

Dries van Noten by Editions de Parfums Frederic Malle
Inez and Vinoodh 1996 by Byredo
Iris Prima by Penhaligon’s
Lune de Givre by Cloon Keen Atelier
Soulle Ámbar by Floris
Vaara by Penhaligon’s

Join the Discussion!

So, there you have it – two very interesting shortlists containing some equally intriguing fragrances. Are any of your favourites on the list? What would you have liked to have seen shortlisted? Have you ever partaken in a blind-sniff? If so, how did you find it?

Let me know in the comments box below!

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As a side-note, things are hotting up wedding-wise here at Candy Perfume Towers and with the big day set to be upon us in less than two weeks (eek!) I envisage that things on the blog may go a little quiet, just for a short while. I’ll aim to put up my ‘Perfume Pic of the Week’ at the very least and will of course continue with my weekly Escentual column, but reviews and articles may be a bit sparse until the festivities are over.

Regular service will resume after May 10th and I’m sure I will have some lovely things to share with you from the world of perfume and my wedding, which by the looks of things is set to be a very fragrant affair indeed (would you expect anything else?) Oh and do make sure to drop by on the big day, I may just be revealing which perfume I have chosen to wear for my nuptials.

Much love
Thomas