With temperatures holding a steady average of 90°F (32°C), I have been campaigning to go to the beach for the last few weekends. My other half is not a keen beachgoer as he much prefers mountains and the woods, while I’m happiest around water (not necessarily in it, just by it). I love walking in cities along the rivers that run through them.

We finally went to the beach this weekend. Having been badly sunburned before by misjudging how well spread the spray-on sunscreen was, I was more thorough with my application this time, but still managed to find a new place to get scorched: the hairline. Luckily, it’s only mild.

For the occasion, I brought along my sample vial of #cafedelmar from the Ramon Monegal discovery kit I had bought. It was the only blatantly “beachy” scent that I had. That wasn’t even the first association I made—rather, it reminded me of a stereotype of teenagers at the mall. Those with tanned skin, lots of hair products, glittery makeup, statement clothing… However, the more I wore it, the more years piled on to this imaginary demographic. It is quite lively and good for a hot day with a cool breeze.

This perfume is all about IBIZA, and I can’t tell whether that’s part of the name or not, even though it’s on the bottle. The vial describes it as a “long lasting uninhibited eau de toilette.” It certainly comes on strong, but still warranted a few reapplications throughout the day (not least because with the way the wind was wafting, I caught more whiffs of other people’s sunscreen instead). Listed notes are:

• Top: Seaweed, coffee, golden apple
• Heart: Freesia, lavender, orris
• Base: Ambergris, vanilla velvet, beach sand chord

To me, it all blends together, and I can’t really pick out anything to name individually. It has a caramelized saltiness that persists and I think defines this fragrance, and the other notes are there to give it more dimension. That’s not to say it smells like salted caramel, although I imagine the golden apple to be toffeed, and maybe this is what the coffee note is doing—adding a darker outline. #cafedelmar also plays heavily toward popular men’s cologne, with lavender and Ambroxan hanging around longer than the others. I get some fuzzy coumarin as well in the mix if I sniff closely.

A dip in the ocean, and it’s all gone…