Back in 2020, my other half and I had planned a trip to Italy with a fairly ambitious itinerary—well, we all know what happened with plans that year. Fortunately, we still had the travel points, and finally made it over during the last week or so of May with a shortened list of cities to visit: Rome, Venice, and Florence.

As it was a long-overdue holiday and our first time in this beautiful country, we focused on the sightseeing—braving the most popular tourist attractions, including the Roman Forum, the Colosseum, and the Vatican—and perfume was secondary. The sheer scale of everything was extraordinary, as were the crowds by proportion. However, fragrance was everywhere to be found, especially from the ubiquitous vines of star jasmine emanating a heady, sweet aroma.

Other flowers blending into the ancient scenery included bright red poppies and roses of various colors.

People were generally more perfumed than they are in the United States, and Rome has its share of niche perfumeries. In the “bohemian” neighborhood of Trastevere, Roma Store Profumi is flanked by star jasmine and carries several Italian niche brands, such as Orto Parisi, Laboratorio Olfattivo, Meo Fusciuni, Lorenzo Villoresi, Carthusia, Gritti, and more. The intimacy of the space is deceptive for the amount of perfumes on offer.

The perfumeries Campomarzio70 and Profumum Roma have multiple locations in Rome. Campomarzio70 juxtaposes Fornasetti products with perfumes from better-known, more widely distributed niche brands, most of which are French. When I asked about Italian brands, I was shown Casamorati.

Unfortunately, I did not get to visit Profumum Roma during the hours it was open. They have a large range of perfumes under their brand, as well as home and body care products.

Perfume is indeed everywhere.

Also very close to Trevi Fountain is hb ROMA, a niche perfumery in what looks like a very long corridor and with only a subtle indication of its name. This is one I would recommend, as it has a wide selection of well-known as well as more obscure brands.

I went in twice—the first time, I asked if I could just browse, and they left me to it without any pressure or watchful eyes. The second time, I asked them to show me some Italian brands, and they asked me what type of fragrances I liked. This is where I trip up, because I don’t want to be limited to what I already know and love. “Floral,” I replied. “Not too woody-ambery.” This led me to be shown a few big white florals from a small brand (whose name I can’t remember now) and then directed away because the rest were “all amber.” Eventually I landed on Meo Fusciuni and tried Little Song without knowing anything about it.

Notes of pink pepper, ginger, bergamot, coffee, rose, liatris (I had to look up these purple flowers and have no idea how they smell), tobacco, vetiver, musk, civet, labdanum, and sage. What I mostly picked up was the coffee, rose, and tobacco. It felt very “me,” as though it could be part of my expression rather than wearing me. I thought I might go back a third time at the end of the trip and buy a bottle—however, this did not end up happening, so it will go on my wish list for future consideration.

Let’s not forget the option of large department stores! The posh Rinascente has a floor resplendent with the usual suspects as well as some that I don’t get to see as much in the States. Most brands seem to feature a large factice to advertise their bestseller, or their presence in general.

In particular, I was attracted to the colorful array of Dries van Noten perfume bottles. They were neatly arranged with a scented cap in front of each, so it was easy to sniff them all. I found the collection approachable yet interesting enough for me to buy a discovery set of the first 10, and the friendly SA gave me samples of the newer 2 and a fabric pouch as well. I haven’t tried them all yet, but Rock the Myrrh is one of my favorites from the set so far, with prominent notes of myrrh and leathery, smoked wood, and longer lasting than some of the others.

Well, for having had only 1 full day and 3 half days in total in Rome, and not focusing on perfume, this seems pretty decent. Happy June!