Dunhill
A unique visual signature based on accords, character, and seasonality
The neroli hits with surprising bitterness, its petrol-like edge sharpened by black pepper that crackles across the citrus like lightning. Bergamot and petitgrain create an almost astringent greenness, bracing and alive, refusing to play the fresh-flanker game.
Lavender emerges wearing cardamom like expensive tailoring, the two spices dancing around juniper's resinous pine sharpness whilst sage adds an almost medicinal herbaceousness. The effect is aromatic but muscular, clean without being soapy, each note maintaining its distinct personality rather than blending into aromatic mush.
Vetiver and oakmoss form a classically mossy foundation, but the iris powder lifts it into something drier, more refined, whilst subtle leather and woody oud create a second skin effect. What remains is polished, close-wearing, a whisper of expensive restraint that lingers on shirt collars and coat sleeves.
Dunhill Icon announces itself as a study in contrasts—sharp citrus refinement colliding with smoke-cured masculinity. Carlos Benaïm has constructed something deceptively architectural here: the neroli and bergamot arrive bright but oily, their bitterness intact, whilst black pepper snaps through like static electricity. This isn't polite aromatic territory; there's an almost metallic quality to how the petitgrain cuts against the pepper, creating an opening that feels more boardroom ambush than gentleman's club.
The lavender-cardamom axis in the heart reveals Benaïm's real intentions—this is aromatic fougère DNA reimagined through a spice-forward lens, where juniper's piney gin-like character amplifies rather than softens the composition's angularity. The sage adds a savoury, almost culinary earthiness that grounds what could have been another sterile "masculine" release.
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3.8/5 (76)