There is much to love about the English summer– exploring the sprawling overgrown countryside, strolling along the pier and feeding chips to greedy, waddling seagulls. Sadly, swimming in grey murky seas isn’t too high up on the list, so as the summer months approach it’s no surprise that most of us long to escape like migrating sparrows to warmer climates and crisp clear waters. The feeling of diving into such waters on a scorching hot day is unlike any other, and it’s precisely this sensation that three new summer scents aim to capture. A key note in all three is bergamot, an aromatic plant whose essential oil is said to help relieve stress and lift melancholy - and with these new and exciting olfactory offerings, any residual winter blues are sure to become a distant memory. 

First up is Emilio Pucci’s Vivara Variazioni Verde 072, inspired by the island of Vivara near Capri. With its charming, pebble-shaped bottle, featuring a signature Pucci print on its lid, the fragrance pays tribute to the island’s lush green vegetation, with a sharp bouquet of mint leaf and essence of bergamot, which is sweetened by floral heart notes of neroli bigarade and Turkish rose. A single inhalation and you instantly imagine yourself drifting on the Mediterranean sea in blissful solitude, gazing up at a cloudless sky.  From the Italian shores to the stunning landscape of Japan, Jo Malone’s new scent Sakura Cherry Blossom is a love letter to the cherry blossom tree - a prominent symbol in Japanese culture, which for centuries has had many artworks and poetry dedicated to it. The delicate notes of this regal tree in bloom are brought out with feminine accords of rose and mimosa and given an aromatic warmth with bergamot and mandarin. 

A slightly richer bouquet, thought just as sweet and summery belongs to Maison Francis Kurkdjian’s latest offering Aqua Universalis Forte - a bergamot-infused eau de parfum variation of the original Aqua Universalis eau de toilette. ‘I was in the middle of trialling a new bergamot presented to me by my grower in Calabria in Italy, when my business partner asked me to create something as a gift for a friend,” Kurkdjian explains. “She really liked Aqua Universalis but wanted more density, more volume. I was in a rush so I gave the trial I was working on with the new bergamot away. She was full of compliments about it and my business partner said we should develop it, so that was the beginning of Forte. We called it Forte as a comparison to music - different notes that tell the same story. It's about changing nuances of Aqua Universalis, but not the whole fragrance.” While its crisp top note of Sicilian citron remains in place, another bright Bergamot shines through - sweetened with lily of the valley, Egyptian jasmine and Moroccan rose, resulting in something cooling, enveloping and decadent – perfect for hazy summer evenings.

Vivara Variazioni Verde 072 is £40 for 50ml available now at Harrods; Sakura Cherry Blossom is £68 for 100ml cologne available now at Selfridges; Aqua Universalis Forte is £140 for 70ml eau de parfum available in June from Liberty.