Photo / Babiche Martens

Photo / Babiche Martens

It's easy to feel awash in fragrance if you try to keep up with the seemingly endless new releases out there. If I had a dollar for every fragrance that has crossed my desk described as a fruity floral with woody undertones and a hint of vanilla, I'd be able to buy more than one or two bottles of something more distinctive - if I could find it.

Up for a challenge, I've sampled a lot of the latest offerings and found a few surprises, but also plenty of so-so scents.

Many of the big marketing campaigns (in full swing at this time of the year) are based around keeping strong sellers fresh with new formulas, such as lighter, summer editions. Other attempts to inject excitement into the tried and true are based around packaging, bonus offers and limited edition bottles.

But sometimes little more than the name is recycled, as typified by two new releases, Rose The One and Hypnose Senses, which have satisfyingly veered far from their original namesakes.

This means it's hard to keep tabs on what's going on out there.

Here's a helping hand, but with perfume being such an intensely personal preference, the only way to find your signature scent is to spray away.

1 Giorgio Armani Idole d'Armani 50ml eau de parfum $145

This opulent yet sophisticated new floral comes in an elegant bottle. It's intriguing, with spicy underpinnings amid the orange, pear, rose, jasmine and saffron and a base of patchouli and vetiver. Settles softly and has lasting appeal.

2 Chloe Eau de Parfum Intense, 30ml $175

This version of Chloe is still rose-rich, but rounded with sandalwood and tonka bean, giving an oriental hint to a floral which I find a little light in the eau de toilette. A deep grey hand-tied ribbon on the handsome bottle, marks the steps in intensity compared with the the petal and ivory shades used on the edt and edp.

3 Yves St Laurent Parisienne 50ml eau de parfum $135

Kate Moss, the ultimate London girl, is the delicately made-up face of Parisienne: "She knows how to love, how to live. This is why Paris adopts her." There's a youthful sweetness in this scent, which introduces a little violet to the predominant rose notes. Starts off sparkling, but has a musky end, like a night on the tiles in gay Paris.

4 Dolce & Gabbana Rose The One 50ml eau de parfum $141

The third scent in The One family, and to my nose the best. This is softer than the unabashed original and the fresh L'Eau. Rose, both peony and Bulgarian, is naturally at the heart of the fragrance, with citrus and cassis top notes and a hint of vanilla amid the lingering amber and musk. Scarlett Johansson fronts the campaign.