Why We Love It:
Aesop has launched their latest fragrance, Aurner, and I had the chance to experience it in Paris at the official launch.
I spent time with it – sprayed on my wrist, noted my first impressions, wore it into the evening, and tested how it developed. Over dinner, I was sat next to the perfumer, Céline Barel, who also created Aesop Tacit – one of my favourites—so I had the opportunity to hear more about her inspiration.
On first spray, Aesop Aurner moves straight into a blend of cedarwood and sandalwood – smooth, warm, and with a creamy depth. Then, something shifts. There’s a lift, a vibrancy that comes through – not in a bright citrus way, but in something more diffused. It made me think of using a soft glow filter in design software. The structure is there – woody, slightly spicy with cardamom and pepper – but it’s subtly illuminated rather than heavy.
That glow comes from magnolia leaf, not the flower, which is important. If you’re expecting something typically floral, you’ll be looking in the wrong place. This is more aromatic, fresh, and slightly tea-like. No sweetness, no powder.
Aesop Aurner feels confident and effortless – well put together, but not trying too hard. It has that signature Aesop balance: refined yet a little offbeat.
The projection is moderate, which suits the composition, and while it doesn’t last forever, it settles into a soft, nuzzling drydown that lingers close to the skin.
It’s one to experience in person. Try it, wear it, and see how it sits on your skin. But forget any ideas of it being a floral fragrance – it’s something else entirely.
Aesop Aurner: What They Say
Aesop Aurner EDP: A defiant floral fragrance with unexpected contrasts: rousing green spice converges with herbaceous depths, while resonant Magnolia Leaf finds roots in sumptuous woody notes.
The name Aurner comes from an Old Norse verb meaning ‘to be adorned, to be embellished with flowers’, echoing how the fragrance enrobes the skin—and in so doing, emboldens the wearer. The fragrance was created with our long-term collaborator Céline Barel, who says of the scent: ‘Aurner is designed as an evolutionary step within Aesop’s aromatic world. It is a truly defiant bloom, offering a different perspective on floral fragrance.’
Aesop Aurner Notes
Alcohol Denat., Fragrance (Parfum), Water (Aqua), Tetramethyl Acetyloctahydronaphthalenes, Citrus Aurantium Bergamia Peel Oil, Linalyl Acetate, Limonene, Juniperus Virginiana Oil, Linalool, Pogostemon Cablin Oil, Citrus Limon (Lemon) Peel Oil, Pinene, Geraniol, Acetyl Cedrene, Trimethylcyclopentenyl Methylisopentenol, Citronellol, Cinnamyl Alcohol, Hydroxycitronellal, Pelargonium Graveolens Flower Oil, Cananga Odorata Flower Extract, Beta-Caryophyllene, Hexadecanolactone, Santalol, Citral*, Rose Ketones, Geranyl Acetate, Eugenol, Terpineol, Terpinolene, Alpha-Terpinene, Citrus Aurantium Flower Oil, Benzyl Benzoate, Isoeugenyl Acetate, Cinnamal.
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