Melancholy Thistle

RAIN RAIN RAIN 100% agree with washudtoj’s comment. Absolutely magical, that (1) you don’t smell it at first (the start reminds me a little of oud & bergamot) but after a few minutes it turns into English hills and Scottish highlands on a grey, wet, melancholy day. There are definitely subtle hints of flowers. You can smell the humble specks of small flowers among wildly-grown, dewy grass. (2) !!!***smells more like RAIN / a flowery field during the RAIN, than any!! fragrance!! that I’ve smelled that claims to smell like rain or has the word “rain” in the name.*** (3) if I had to summarize it in one word: serene. It’s so quiet and calm, reminds me of a thought-provoking walk during the rain. Another point is that it’s very light and sits super close to the skin, that you can’t smell it when you’re a normal distance away from somebody or when other overpowering scents are present, but that’s the most suitable sillage level for this scent. It might feel different if it were strong and far-reaching. I was so sad I didn’t buy it right away when I smelled it in a mall for the first time in 2023. Smelled it again almost a year later and for some reason got so much more out of it. This is now my favourite in the Highlands collection followed by Wild Achillea.

I smelt this today out of curiosity, and I probably shouldn't have because now I have to find a reason to justify paying over $80 for a 30ml bottle of this. It smells like some random English or Scottish hill at daybreak, right after the rain. It's green, fresh, cool, invigorating, and ozonic. This is the scent I've been looking for and it doesn't even have the word 'rain' in it. Funny that fragrances that are named 'rain' don't usually smell like it whereas others that aren't can - on very few occasions - smell like that. I really feel bad for my wallet as this is not the price range I normally go for. *sigh* To make things worse, it just *has* to be a limited 2023 edition, too! If anyone can suggest a dupe of this at a cheaper price, I'd gladly appreciate it. PS. Reminds me strongly of Maison Martin Margiela Replica's When the Rain Stops. I think Melancholy Thistle is greener and smells more like rain, however.

I’ve been waiting for Fragrantica to add this for the last two weeks. I popped in Jo Malone when I saw they had released a new limited edition of Highland themed fragrances. I enjoyed them all in the shop but instantly gravitated to Melancholy Thistle as it sits in a range of smells I love, which are the herbal slightly bitter aromatics. Think Sisley Eau de Campagne or Gucci Memories. I wanted something fresh but subtle for the office, a summer scent for adults. Something that would be non linear but still simple and elegant. I found it here! The patchouli is right at the bottom, barely there, lingering close to the skin, instead the thistle and Ivy become the stars of the show, sharp at first then aromatic with a cologney freshness. Perfect. Love it.

At first it’s a generic barbershop/aftershave scent which is really meh. After a couple minutes the sourness, bitterness, sweetness and earthiness slowly develops and it starts to smell like plants, roots and mud but in a really delightful way. It doesn’t smell like rain but it smells like what I would assume wild plants smell like after being pulled out of the earth after a storm. I decided to pair it with Wild Bluebell and it’s one of the best fragrance decisions I made - the combination results in the most realistic addictive “meadow after rain” scent. I can’t get enough of it. The aquatic and floral tones of WB mixed with the earthy,bitter,green tones of MT is heaven on earth for someone who loves nature,rain and wildflowers.

This is the clear winner of the release for me. It's quite unique, and very "vintage"... but also fresh. It's distinctively masculine, but in a weird unisex way. It's a very clean, woody, green scent without being so literal and "dirty" which can happen fast. I've been wearing this daily since launch and it LASTS in a way that Jo Malone never does. (This entire collection lasts actually. I was pleasantly surprised.) It lasts even longer if you spray it over Wood Sage & Sea Salt... a combination that is PERFECT and that has about an arm's length sileage. I bought 3 bottles since it's limited edition, and that's like buying one full size. I really hope they turn this one into a core scent.

I get the "your skin but better" feel of Melancholy Thistle. I’m a woman and to me it’s unisex leaning slightly feminine. It somehow reminds me of a more herbal L'Air de Rien from Miller Harris, though they have little in common. It smells like skin, like sex, like sweat - but in a good way. I wouldn’t call it sexy. It’s personal. Private, even. Like being close to and comfortable with your special someone. I really hope they'll make this part of their permanent collection, but it will probably be Mallow on the Moor - if any. Apparently that’s the popular one out of the four.

My top favorite, along with with the Wild Achillea perfume! Wild Achillea is fresh, green and ozonic, this Thistle is slightly softer, not as zesty and not as wet, not as intense, and is rather woody, slightly bitter and vegetal. It's very similar to the bitterness of the tomato leaves, for those that tried. There is also a slightly spicy note in the background, which can be either the patchouli or the broom? Either way, it's such a masterpiece! It's so balanced, pretty and just perfect

This is an excellent soapy perfume and along with mallow on the moor, are my favorites from the highlands collection. This one is more masculine than mallow. I love soapy fragrances and own and have tried a ton of them, and I'm considering buying a bottle. Performance seems pretty good so far but I'm still testing. Scent 7.8/10 Performance TBD

I adore this. Melancholy Thistle is everything I want out of a fresh green fragrance. It's evocative of a foggy Scottish landscape, which is of course, to be expected out of this line. Lasts pretty long too; sprayed each wrist twice in the morning and it lasts through a lot of handwashing and an evening shower.

I just loooove this scent! Very natural, thick green-woody-aromatic scent. A little bit similar to English oak, but with a green tangent from the thristle. Was fortunate to get the last bottle in the JM shop.

Plants, cutting down weeds, sharp and so distinct. Definitely not a safe blind buy, not for everyone, but if you want to smell like a mysterious old gardener at an estate by the sea, this is your man.

Wow. I really love this fragrance. It’s green, it’s fresh, it smells amazing! It was a blind buy and I definitely don’t regret it!

This is a really interesting one because I love Scotland. I lived in Edinburgh for 6 years and kind of thought this would smell like that. Of course, it doesn't as it's more of a highlands scent (hills, grass, hiking) rather than Edinburgh (more mineral accord, old city, etc.) It starts with a loooovely sweetness in the beginning which unfortunately dies away quickly. I don't remember thistles having much of a smell, so maybe its the broom? (which isn't the same as gorse which is all over Arthur's Seat and to me smells less floral than I'm getting in this cologne). This starts to give way to the ivy, which I'm surprised has a smell. It is more faint than the florals, and will then get overpowered by the wood, but it gives a freshness. Definitely getting some faint fresh earth smell, but I'd agree with others that it's more of a rainy smell. I would say this scent is more of a memory/idea rather than a person (and like who they're trying to be). It's definitely giving the smell of someone (or their clothes) that have just come back from a relaxing walk in the highlands while it was drizzling. Faint, nothing too strong, open and fresh. I'm not getting soapy nor aftershave - I think that might just be people smelling their own skin through the scent. I kind of wonder if this was called "Abandoned Castle" if it might be more appealing, but I know that Jo Malone usually sticks to naming based on notes rather than ideas. If I were to make some changes I would make the ivy a little stronger, add a bit of a mossy (maybe a bit of peaty) smell to recreate the scent of the ground (and maybe reduce or remove the patchouli), there is some sort of mineral/rock that is around that area and was used in the castles and I'd like a twinge of that, and (hear me out) a bit of something that smells like wild rabbit/hares or sheep and/or their poo (as it's everywhere) as it would make it feel more alive/grounded (rather than just a scent on the air). I will definitely be keeping my decant to be able to experience it again (and if someone gave me a bottle, I would be very happy as they are so pretty!!) and will likely go to it if I need that feeling. I want to try this on my clothes and neck, to compare against Oak & Hazelnut, compare against "When the Rain Stops", and try layering with Wild Bluebell. P.S. I tried spraying it on my clothes as I was doing my final things before an evening shower, and I smell the flowers much more strongly. As someone who likes woodsy and earthy scents, I hope that it dries down to earthy smells eventually, but I don't have time to test that tonight. (see notes from 31 July 2025 on the Ultriycht Fischersund review)

Opened with a floral note that’s a bit sweet and sourish at the same time. Then the leafy scent entered the picture. The combo was great and it wasn’t a stinky kind of green. The woody scent closed the scent to a nice finishing touch. Quite good performance as it lasted more than eight hours on my skin and well over ten on clothing.

It's funny I get more broom from this than thistle. But this is a lovely green and woody yellow floral fragrance unisex in my opinion by today's standards. Just a little bit sweet but not too sweet. Very well balanced. If you like Woody yellow florals with a soft patchouli base I think you'll like this one.

I really like this. I heard someone compare it to Irish spring soap, I do kind of smell that. But in a good way. It's on the masculine side of unisex. I surprisingly smell the broom the most.

Soapy and a little sour. My least favorite of the 2023 collection.

Initial spritz... GREEN. If scent had a color, this one opens in full saturated green — sharp, leafy, almost wet. It instantly took me back to the perfumery in Grasse where we blended our own fragrances. I remember choosing ivy because I loved its freshness, only for the workshop lead to quietly remove it from my final formula because it was too overpowering. I’m getting that same feeling here. The ivy presence is unmistakable. It’s lush, heavy, almost draping — like stepping into a rainy courtyard where the walls are covered in thick, climbing vines. There’s a punch to it, a boldness I don’t normally gravitate toward, so I’m not instantly excited. It could be the mood of the day, but the opening hits with more force than I expected. As it settles, the woodsy notes start to peek through. Not cozy woods — more like freshly cut wood, that moment when a knife slices into a tree trunk and you get that raw, living, sap‐bright smell. It’s green, alive, almost breathing. I find myself yearning for something to round it out, something to soften the edges or warm the base. Right now, it feels like the fragrance is still growing, still climbing, still reaching — very much alive, but not yet balanced for my personal taste.

This one gives a great first impression, but it turned out to be very dry and musky in the dry down. I don't think this is photorealistic of a foggy castle environment as some people have said below. A tiny bit headache inducing for me. Probably my least favorite of the new collection sadly!

Not a fan - very herbal, veg almost. I have the full Highlands collection- for me, mallow on the moor is by far the best.