The house of Penhaligon’s is a British niche fragrance house, known for its unique and high-quality fragrances. Over the years, they’ve released many different ones, but what are the best Penhaligon’s fragrances for women?
The House Of Penhaligon’s And Its Fragrances
The house of Penhaligon’s was founded in 1870 by William Penhaligon. The brand first started off as a barbershop, but only two years after the brand was founded, they already released their first fragrance. Over the years, a few more fragrances followed, until World War 2 happened and the shop was destroyed.
After this setback, it took quite a few years before Penhaligon’s made a comeback, but when they did in 1956, they immediately had the interest of the people again. The original scents, created by William Penhaligon were recreated and modernized but kept the same bottle design.
Nowadays, the house of Penhaligon’s has created many fragrances, sorted in a few different collections. One of those collections, the Portraits Collection, has become very recognizable, not only for their scents, but also for the cap on top of the bottle. These caps are shaped like animals and the juice inside is great as well.
Niche houses similar to Penhaligon’s are Nasomatto, Carner Barcelona, Tiziana Terenzi, Nishane, and Xerjoff!
Currently, the house of Penhaligon’s has over 80 different fragrances, many of them fantastic. Below are some of the best Penhaligon’s fragrances for women, in no particular order!
1. Penhaligon’s Iris Prima
Scent: Penhaligon’s Iris Prima is a fantastic iris-based fragrance with a woody, powdery scent. This fragrance opens with a bright scent of bergamot, supported by a background scent of florals. Over time, the florals become more pronounced and take over the scent. With these florals comes the note of iris, which gives the fragrance a powdery and classy scent. Nearing the dry down, a woody undertone makes itself known, supported by a faint hint of leather. This leaves you with an overall classy and elegant fragrance.
Notes: The top notes of Penhaligon’s Iris Prima are pink pepper and bergamot. The middle notes are jasmine and iris. The base notes are vanilla, amber, vetiver, benzoin, sandalwood, and leather.
Best for: Penhaligon’s Iris Prima is a fantastic fragrance to wear during the cooler seasons, such as the spring and fall. During those months, the temperatures aren’t too warm, nor too cold, making the scent of woods and iris work perfectly. During those seasons, this fragrance is perfect for the office, as the powdery scent of iris has a clean and classy vibe. Of course, it also works lovely in a casual setting as well. You can honestly wear this whenever you’d like, as this scent will never be inappropriate. If you’re interested in this fragrance, you can check it out over here on Amazon!
2. Penhaligon’s Clandestine Clara
Scent: Penhaligon’s Clandestine Clara is a beautiful fragrance with a warm and sweet scent. This fragrance opens with a dark and seductive scent of cinnamon and vanilla, supported by a lovely, boozy undertone of rum. This creates a rich and extremely pleasant scent that only becomes nicer. After the opening, a warm hint of amber is added, enhancing the sweetness even more without making it too overpowering. In the dry down, some woody notes are added, but these aren’t too noticeable. Overall, a stunning fragrance with a warm and sweet scent.
Notes: The notes of Penhaligon’s Clandestine Clara are amber, cinnamon, patchouli, rum, vanilla, and woody notes.
Best for: Penhaligon’s Clandestine Clara is a gorgeous cold-weather fragrance with a classy and elegant scent. Such a scent works best on a confident, successful woman who knows what she’s doing. The class and elegance in this fragrance make it excel during formal situations, but the seductiveness also allows it to be worn casually, during both the day and the night. Overall, a stunning fragrance with elegance and class. If you’re interested in this fragrance, you can check it out over here on Amazon!
3. Penhaligon’s Ellenisia
Scent: Penhaligon’s Ellenisia is a gorgeous white floral fragrance with a lovely scent. This fragrance opens with the most gorgeous, delicate scent of white florals, smelling like a warm spring day. These white florals have a fresh and slightly powdery scent, giving the fragrance a sense of class and luxury. After the opening, some fruity nuances can be detected every now and then, but this fragrance is all about the florals. In the base, a sweet undertone of vanilla is present, giving the fragrance a rich and slightly sweet undertone, making sure the florals appear strong and lively.
Notes: The top notes of Penhaligon’s Ellenisia are mandarin and violet leaves. The middle notes are tuberose, rose, gardenia, and jasmine. The base notes are vanilla and plum.
Best for: Penhaligon’s Ellenisia is an absolutely fantastic fragrance to wear during the spring and summer. This fragrance has such a lively, uplifting scent that works perfectly with the seasons where nature is coming back to life. During those seasons, this fragrance is perfect for casual everyday wear, due to the uplifting and happy vibe, but it’s also luxurious enough for formal wear as well. There really is no going wrong with this one. If you’re interested in this fragrance, you can check it out over here on Amazon!
4. Penhaligon’s Cairo
Scent: Penhaligon’s Cairo is a beautiful fragrance with a warm and spicy scent. This fragrance opens with a rich and slightly smoky scent of spices, supported by a lovely hint of rose. This creates a stunning, Middle Eastern-like scent. A little while after the opening, a warm scent of woods comes forth, enhancing the beautiful scent of spices and rose. This leaves you with a truly stunning, elegant, and classy fragrance consisting of rose, woods, and spices.
Notes: The top notes of Penhaligon’s Cairo are saffron and Damask rose. The middle notes are vanilla, cypriol oil, and labdanum. The base notes are cedar, patchouli, and sandalwood.
Best for: Penhaligon’s Cairo is a fantastic fragrance to wear during the colder months. The warm scent of spices in this fragrance could be a little too strong for the warmer months, but during the colder months, it works perfectly. When it’s cold outside, this fragrance works great as a casual daytime fragrance, but it works just as good at night, as the warmth has a seductive and alluring vibe to it. This fragrance also has a sense of class as well, making it work nicely in a formal setting as well. If you’re interested in this fragrance, you can check it out over here on Amazon!
5. Penhaligon’s Juniper Sling
Scent: Penhaligon’s Juniper Sling is a beautiful fragrance with a fresh and aromatic scent. This fragrance opens with a fresh scent that shares some similarities to a cold gin. This gin scent is courtesy of the main star of this fragrance, the juniper berries. A little while after the opening, a bunch of spices make themselves known, giving the fragrance a nice edge, but also a bit of sweetness. This fresh and spicy scent of juniper berries stays there for the remainder of the fragrance, leaving you with a fresh and aromatic scent.
Notes: The top notes of Penhaligon’s Juniper Sling are orange, juniper berries, cinnamon, and angelica. The middle notes are pepper, leather, orris root, and cardamom. The base notes are amber, sugar, cherry, and vetiver.
Best for: Penhaligon’s Juniper Sling is a fantastic daytime fragrance for the warmer months. The refreshing scent of juniper berries, along with the spices, creates a scent that’s perfect for casual daily wear. This could even be your signature scent for the spring and summer if you’d like. Besides casual daytime wear, this fragrance also works nicely in the office as well, as this fragrance is inoffensive and goes perfectly with a sharp outfit. If you’re interested in this fragrance, you can check it out over here on Amazon!
6. Penhaligon’s Ostara
Scent: Penhaligon’s Ostara is a gorgeous floral-based fragrance that smells like spring in a bottle. This fragrance opens with a beautiful, lively scent of florals, supported by fresh fruits and herbs. This creates a gorgeous, happy scent with a bit of weight behind it. After the opening, a green scent makes itself known, blending in perfectly with the florals. This combination of florals and the green scent makes for such a lovely scent that will stay there for the remainder of the fragrance.
Notes: The top notes of Penhaligon’s Ostara are pink pepper, mint, blackcurrant blossom, aldehydes, juniper, clementine, bergamot, violet leaves, and green leaves. The middle notes are hawthorn, cyclamen, beeswax, ylang ylang, wisteria, hyacinth, and narcissus. The base notes are amber, musk, benzoin, white woods, vanilla, and styrax.
Best for: Penhaligon’s Ostara is a gorgeous fragrance that’s just made to be worn in the spring. The florals fit in perfectly with this season and since the fragrance has such a likable scent, it can be worn at pretty much every occasion. It’s happy and lively enough for casual wear, whatever you might be doing that day, but it’s also classy enough to wear to the office or to a formal occasion. The versatility of this fragrance is endless, and the scent is truly amazing. If you’re interested in this fragrance, you can check it out over here on Amazon!
7. Penhaligon’s Elixir
Scent: Penhaligon’s Elixir is a beautiful fragrance with a warm and spicy scent. This fragrance opens with a dark scent of spices, supported by fresh florals. This creates a nice balance between the two, leaving you with a warm and spicy scent that’s not overpowering. A little while after the opening, the note of vanilla comes forth, giving the fragrance a sweet undertone, blending in perfectly with the spices. The base of this fragrance also has some woody nuances in there, leaving you with an overall warm and impressive fragrance.
Notes: The top notes of Penhaligon’s Elixir are cardamom, cinnamon, and eucalyptus. The middle notes are jasmine, mace, rose, and orange blossom. The base notes are sandalwood, vanilla, cedar, benzoin, incense, guaiac wood, rosewood, and tonka bean.
Best for: Penhaligon’s Elixir is a fantastic fragrance to wear during the colder months. The warm scent of this fragrance fits in nicely with those cold days and is actually quite versatile as well. This fragrance works great in a casual setting, but it works just as nice at night. Due to the inoffensive nature, it also works wonderful in a formal setting as well. This is also a fantastic fragrance to wear on Christmas eve. The sweetness, along with the spices, creates a happy, Christmasy scent. If you’re interested in this fragrance, you can check it out over here on Amazon!
Are Penhaligon’s Fragrances Worth It
The house of Penhaligon’s is responsible for quite a few fantastic fragrances that are well worth the money. When you base this purely on the scents, a Penhaligon’s fragrance is definitely worth it. You get a luxurious, high-quality scent with great versatility.
However, a Penhaligon’s fragrance can be quite expensive. Luckily, there’s a way to try out Penhaligon’s fragrances for a little cheaper. The way to do this is to purchase a fragrance decant. A decant is basically a smaller bottle, usually 5ml or 10ml, filled up with the original fragrance. This way, you can get your hands on a smaller amount while still getting the original juice. If you’d like to learn more about fragrance decants, where to purchase them, and how they’ll save you money, you can read this article I wrote over here!
In the end, a Penhaligon’s fragrance is more than worth it. You’ll get a luxurious, classy fragrance that will last you a long while. You might pay a bit more, but you also get a bit more. I’d recommend you take a look at the fragrances listed above and see which if these Penhaligon’s fragrances would fit you perfectly!