The gourmand category ruled fragrance in 2024. Derived from ‘gourmet’, gourmand indicates a perfume that smells edible, usually because of dessert-y notes like vanilla, caramel, coffee, nuts or fruit. Gourmands have always been popular — Mugler’s Angel was the blueprint — but thanks to FragranceTok and the virality of brands like Sol De Janeiro, gourmands are back and everyone from Tom Ford to Le Labo is getting involved.
The mass appeal might have something to do with nostalgia; so many of the gateway celebrity scents that got us hooked on perfume were syrupy gourmands — think Jessica Simpson Fancy, Brittney Spears Fantasy or Mor Marshmallow. Some people think there’s something sexy about smelling ‘good enough to eat’. Whatever it is, our 2025 prediction is that food-inspired perfume will win.
From pistachio to matcha to cherries, find the best gourmand perfumes of all time, below.
Le Labo Thé Matcha 26
This is creamy, sweet and nutty, just like a frothy matcha latte.
Matiere Perfumerie Vanilla Powder
This is my personal favourite vanilla. It’s rich and warm with vanilla, coconut and musk, but also palo santo to give it an edge.
DKNY Be Delicious
Remember this? It’s juicy, crisp and sweet with apple, cucumber, grapefruit and a synthetic ‘tender skin’ accord for warmth.
Marissa Zappas Perfume Annabel’s Birthday Cake
I learned about Marissa Zappas Perfume on a podcast (Nick Axelrod-Welk of Eyewitness Beauty) and this has to be the peak of food-inspired gourmands. Annabel’s Birthday Cake is the interpretation of a tiered, pastel, generously frosted birthday cake with notes of lemon sugar, balloons, candied rose petals, honeycomb and tuberose with a freshly baked, ‘just out of the oven’ base.
Maison Mataha Brownie Pop
A perfume that exactly resembles a fudgey chocolate brownie with salted caramel popcorn. there’s synthetic notes of cookie, hazelnut, brown sugar and chocolate — one for those with a super sweet tooth.
Vilhelm Parfumerie Mango Skin
This is the perfume to buy if you want to smell like tropical fruit salad. Ripe mango blackberries, pink sugar and vanilla give it a summery, forever on vacation kind of feeling.
Giordini Di Toscana Bianco Latte
Giordini Di Toscana is a family run niche perfume house from Tuscany, inspired by visceral scented memories like school pencils, baked biscuits or flowers from their garden. Bianco Latte is a best-seller at Scent Bar in Los Angeles (their TikTok is incredible and the ecca for scent enthusiasts). Sticky caramel, creamy vanilla, fluffy musk and honey — it’s like the sweetest dessert on the menu, in perfume form.
Kyse Perfume Delizia di Marshmallow
This is a synthetic-sweet fragrance designed to smell like a rice krispie treat. Sounds odd, but it’s an hot topic in niche perfume communities and literally always sold out.
Tom Ford Bitter Peach
Only Tom Ford could take a fleshy peach and turn it into something spicy, sweet and sensual in equal measure. There’s peach, rum, tonka, cognac, cardamom… this juice is rich and decadent.
BYREDO Vanille Antique Extrait de Parfum
This is a nighttime vanilla, all smoky and sexy thanks to amber and cashmere. But it’s still very moreish, with juicy plum and Madagascan vanilla bean. It’s foodie and gourmand, but in a mature way.
Nutty, milky, sweet but soft, this was once a limited fragrance but it was so quick to sell out that it’s become a permanent fixture. It’s a little strange, but in an addictive way. Also worth looking at from the brand: Gateau Blackout (a riff on Black Forest Cake) and Coriander.
Images: Vilhelm Parfumiere, Tom Ford
