Parfum

Parfum as a concentration, not only a word

In French, parfum is simply the word for perfume. On a box, though, it also names a concentration: the richest level a house makes, with the most perfume oil. Together with extrait de parfum it marks the top of the usual scale, above eau de parfum, and houses choose one name or the other for the same kind of richness.

That is why the label needs a careful reading. The word gives no percentage, and the term is a trade convention, not a legal definition. Orto Parisi, for example, releases its whole line as parfum, while Fragrance Du Bois, Roja Parfums and Xerjoff use the name next to other concentrations. What you can rely on is the general pattern: a denser perfume that wears closer to the skin and shows its base notes more fully.

How to choose and wear a parfum

Treat it as a dense, concentrated perfume: one or two sprays are usually enough, and a small amount on the chest or wrists lets the base unfold. Parfums can be bright as well as dark, so look at the notes. A citrus parfum behaves differently from an oud or a gourmand, even at the same strength. If you are comparing it with an extrait de parfum, the difference lies mostly in the house's own recipe, and our article on perfume concentrations explains why the names overlap.

From the collection

Perfumes named Parfum, from the houses on our brands page:

Fragrance Du Bois Minuit et Demi is a gourmand woody: cardamom, pimento and bergamot, then caramel and coffee, then vetiver, cedarwood, Cashmeran, vanilla and musk.

Jo Milano Paris Game of Spades Emerald is a fresh spicy citrus: bergamot, ginger and grapefruit on top, orange blossom, neroli and ginger essence in the heart, and musk and ambrette below.

Roja Parfums Isola Blu is a citrus parfum with lemon, bergamot, lime, lavender and thyme at the top, apple, blackcurrant, coconut and orange blossom in the heart, and a long base that includes cut grass, amber, leather and ambergris.

Xerjoff La Capitale starts with caramel, labdanum, peach and strawberry, goes on to ginger, Iranian saffron, leather, amber and rose and ends on benzoin, oud and Bourbon vanilla.

Orto Parisi Cuoium comes from a house that publishes no notes; it describes the perfume as love and respect for natural materials and the legacy of leather.