Freshly Launched Men's Colognes: Featuring Brands like Diptyque and Tom Ford
Looking to refresh your cologne collection for the summer season? Here's a guide to the best men's summer colognes, as suggested by fragrance experts Leila Zagwolsky and Clayton Ilolahia.
Citrus and Floral Combination
Leila Zagwolsky, co-founder and CEO of LUXSB, prefers refreshing "happy scents" with aquatic or citrusy notes throughout the year. One example that embodies this citrus and floral combination is Infiniment Coty Paris's Entre Genres, with its blend of musks, white flowers, and tangerines.
Aquatic and Green Accents
Clayton Ilolahia, evaluation and communications manager at Fragrances of the World, chooses fragrances that put him in a "summery mood" with notes of citrus, sea salt, green leaves, and clean musks.
Top recommended fragrance note combinations for men’s summer colognes focus on fresh, light, and invigorating blends that emphasize citrus, aquatic, green, and subtle spicy or woody undertones.
Popular Note Combinations
- Citrus Notes like lemon, bergamot, mandarin orange, grapefruit, lime, and orange provide a bright, zesty, and refreshing opening.
- Aquatic/Marine Notes inspired by the sea, such as marine accord, sea salt, or watery freshness, add a clean, cooling, and revitalizing element.
- Herbal and Floral Accents like neroli, jasmine, sage, cardamom, and mint enhance freshness with subtle complexity without making the scent heavy or overpowering.
- Spicy and Woody Undertones including cedar, amber, tonka bean, patchouli, and nutmeg give depth and masculinity while maintaining balance for summer wear.
Representative Examples
- Versace Man Eau Fraiche is praised for its invigorating top notes of lemon, bergamot, carambola (star fruit), and cardamom; a heart of cedar, tarragon, sage, and pepper; and a warm base of musk, amber, and tonka bean.
- Giorgio Armani Acqua Gio Elixir (2025) features sea salt and bergamot as top notes, combined with jasmine and marine accents at heart, and ambergris and vetiver at the base.
Building a Fragrance Wardrobe
Building a "fragrance wardrobe" can allow for switching between scents based on mood, occasion, or season. Purchasing products or services through links on a website may result in an affiliate commission for the website.
Summer scents can boost mood and provide an uplift of energy, even in winter. Zagwolsky states that the combination of aromatic, fresh, and citrus accords usually smells clean and provides an instantly uplifting rejuvenation, like a vacation.
To find summer scents, look for notes classified as green, aquatic, aromatic, or citrus. Earthy and woody accords create a masculine freshness appropriate for warmer summer weather. The combination of citrus and floral provides a sophisticated freshness with a luxe olfactive style, suitable for hot or humid summer days.
Zagwolsky and Ilolahia have their own favourite summer colognes, which we'll discuss in the following section.
