Penhaligon's The Favourite

Released in 2020, Penhaligon's The Favourite is an Eau de Parfum created by perfumer Alienor Massenet as a portrait of a royal muse: young, bright, charming, and a touch mischievous. The composition sits in the floral woody musk family and wears like an English garden in full bloom, all freesia and violet softened by warm, powdery amber. Aromatica carries the Penhaligon's The Favourite decant in Bangladesh in all available sizes.

Fragrance Notes

Top: Violet, Freesia, Mandarin Orange

Heart: Mimosa, Iris, Jasmine Sambac

Base: Musk, Ambroxan, Sandalwood

Full note breakdown on Fragrantica.

The Scent

Mandarin orange leads the opening with a clean citrus brightness, and freesia arrives at almost the same moment, adding a green, dewy sweetness that feels genuinely like cut flowers rather than a synthetic approximation. Violet shows up early too, threading through the citrus with a soft, slightly candied character. Together these three create an opening that is airy and light, closer to a garden in morning than a perfume counter at noon. The citrus and green notes move with a breezy quality, each one distinct but interlocking, so the first impression reads as lifted and natural rather than constructed.

As the top fades, mimosa moves into focus and this is where The Favourite earns its warmth. Mimosa brings a honeyed, golden floralcy that is distinct from rose or jasmine, almost almond-like in texture, and it shifts the scent from fresh into something richer and more boudoir-adjacent. Iris joins in at this stage and adds a classic powdery note, rooty and cool, that balances out the sweetness of the mimosa. The iris root quality gives the heart a slightly mineral edge that keeps the composition from tipping into purely sweet territory. Jasmine Sambac contributes quietly, adding depth to the floral heart without pushing into heady or tropical territory. The transition from top to heart is gradual, the mandarin warmth yielding slowly to the mimosa gold, with violet bridging both phases.

The dry-down is where opinions split. Ambroxan underpins the base alongside sandalwood and musk, and ambroxan is more prominent here than in most Penhaligon's releases. For those who enjoy that warm, skin-close, slightly ozonic quality it reads as a beautiful finish, pulling everything together with a clean sensuality. For those sensitive to ambroxan, it can feel overpowering, particularly if the fragrance is applied heavily. The sandalwood is creamy rather than dry, and the musks are soft and white rather than animalic, so the overall base stays elegant and wearable. Penhaligon's The Inimitable William Penhaligon leans on that same ambroxan-sandalwood pairing but adds vetiver and incense for a drier, more masculine finish.

On skin across the first hour, the progression is linear but pleasant: it softens continuously from bright and fresh into warm and powdery, never making an abrupt shift. The iris and violet work together in the mid-to-late stages to give a classic powdery femininity that leans modern rather than retro, kept contemporary by the ambroxan and the restraint of the jasmine. The mandarin is long gone by this point, but its brightness lingers as a memory in the overall tone, keeping the dry-down from ever feeling heavy. What you are left with is a scent that sits close to the skin, coherent and composed from first spray through to the final hours.

When to Wear

The Favourite works best in spring and early autumn, worn during the day to events with a polished, feminine dress code: think afternoon garden parties, gallery openings, or a dressed-up lunch. The powdery florals and bright opening make it too airy for heavy winter evenings but too composed for a casual weekend.

Who Is It For

The woman who reaches for classic feminine florals with modern restraint will find this a natural fit, particularly someone who appreciates powdery iris and violet but finds heavy oriental bases too much.

If you enjoy All Of Me by Narciso Rodriguez, you will recognise the same soft musk and powdery floral territory, and the two are worth comparing side by side. Browse the full Penhaligon's collection at Aromatica.

Available as an authentic decant in Bangladesh at Aromatica in 3ml, 5ml, and 9ml.