Layton

Every Parfums de Marly release is named after a horse bred for the aristocracy — a nod to Louis XV's court and its obsession with the racetrack — and Layton takes its name from one of the more storied lines in thoroughbred history. Perfumer Hamid Merati-Kashani has described the idea behind it almost like a fountain at the château suddenly running with fragrance instead of water: bold, aromatic, a little theatrical. It's become the house's biggest crossover hit, the one that shows up in "best of niche" lists next to far more expensive names, mostly on the strength of a apple and lavender into vanilla, most people don't expect from something this polished.