Introduction: Urbane Aromatics · Brotherhood Of Scent

Introduction: Urbane Aromatics

Over the past few weeks, I’ve had the opportunity to spend some time with the complete fragrance collection from Urbane Aromatics, created by founder Drew Goetz. There are currently four fragrances in the collection—UA1, UA2, UA Sailor, and the recently released UA ROSÉA—and this is actually the first time I’ve owned an entire collection from a single fragrance maker to talk about.

Rather than simply smelling each one and moving on, I wanted to live with them. I wore them to work, while painting at home, during warmer days and cooler evenings, around cigar smoke, with the windows down on an unexpected drive to Santa Cruz, beside the ocean, and eventually during a visit with my mother. Each environment taught me something different about how these fragrances behave and, more importantly, how they made me feel.

What began as an opportunity to experience four fragrances from a young independent house became a surprisingly personal journey through scent, environment, memory, and emotion.

So before I get with Drew Goetz and learn more about the man behind Urbane Aromatics, I wanted to share what happened when I spent some real time with his work.

And that last part became increasingly important.

UA1 gave me refinement and calm- it’s a male forward metropolitan wear for office, day, and cooler evenings. UA2 surprised me by challenging how I initially expected a fragrance marketed as feminine to wear on me. A floral, feminine wear that I challenge. UA Sailor seemed to find its natural habitat somewhere between the ocean breeze and the smoke of a fire pit. Then came UA ROSÉA, and suddenly I wasn’t simply reviewing a fragrance anymore.

The interview is coming soon, but this introduction… this fragrance and enjoying the wear… it’s hit me different. Owning an entire collection is nothing, but getting resonant, poignant, and emotional response from each one isn’t shared by a lot of people. Most of us don’t have an entire collection of a maker’s art in our world.

That’s why I started with this introduction and soon, the interview will share more.

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Introduction: Urbane Aromatics