Phantom Eau de Toilette Gift Set

Rabanne Phantom Eau de Toilette 100ml arrived in 2021 and became one of the most widely worn men's fragrances of the years that followed, which is interesting given it is built on three materials.

The row is lavender, lemon and vanilla. The lavender is the identity of it, used cool and clean with a slight camphorous snap, so the first impression is aromatic rather than sweet. Lemon brightens the opening with sharp rind and then recedes. Vanilla lies underneath, warm and smooth, and it is what turns an austere combination into something comfortable and faintly sweet. The short row shows in wear: there is no second act, no unexpected turn in hour three, just one clear idea held steadily from start to finish.

At eau de toilette strength it is light, bright and undemanding. Expect it to last a working day on most skin while staying reasonably close after the first hour, and expect two or three sprays to be the right amount. Warm weather suits it particularly well.

It is a daytime fragrance for work, for travel and for the ordinary run of things, and it is among the easiest men's scents to wear in close company, because there is nothing in it that anybody could object to. For somebody buying their first proper bottle it is a sensible starting point.

Anne Flipo, Dominique Ropion, Juliette Karagueuzoglou and Loc Dong are credited with the composition, which is four perfumers on a notably economical formula. Rabanne is French and came out of the fashion trade, the founding designer's first collection having been shown in 1966. Puig of Spain set up the perfume business in 1968 and has owned the brand in full since 1987.