Spicy

Pimento smells like the inside of a spice jar—warm, slightly sweet, and unmistakably peppery. Imagine biting into an allspice berry (which is what pimento actually is): you get clove-like warmth, a whisper of cinnamon, and black pepper heat, but softer and more rounded than raw black pepper. It's less sharp than it is creamy and almost chocolatey underneath, with a faint fruity sweetness that lingers. It smells like autumn spice cake before it's baked.

Spicy

Red pepper smells nothing like you'd expect if you've only tasted it. Rather than burning heat, it's a warm, slightly dry spice with a fruity undertone—imagine the sharp, peppery bite of freshly cracked black pepper married with the bright, almost citric snap of paprika. There's an aromatic, almost herbaceous quality beneath; it's peppery without aggression, more like the warming tingle you feel in your chest after inhaling the aroma of a spiced curry, or crushing fresh red peppercorns between your fingers and breathing in that pungent, almost sweet vapour.