It’s time for the term lactonic to enter your perfume lexicon. Scents with names like Milk and Heavy Cream have been on the rise for months—but the emerging fragrance trend is less about dairy, and more about innovative synthetic notes that create a smooth finish.

We’ll save the chemistry lesson for another time and summarize it as this: Lactonic doesn’t refer to milk itself (though words like lactose and lactic may persuade you otherwise); it refers to a class of chemical compounds called lactones, which help make up milk’s complex aroma. In perfumery, these scent molecules are used to create a creamy, musky, and slightly fruity scent profile, especially when paired with amber, vanilla , or coconut .

The growing scent category is skyrocketing in popularity this fall, s

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