If you are not sure Valentino is the right house, compare it with the other Italian names. Prada Luna Rossa Eau de Toilette is lavender and clary sage with orange essence, sporty and clean. Prada Luna Rossa Carbon is a modern fougere with lavender, green bergamot and ambroxan, in a black bottle with the Prada red stripe. Gucci Guilty Pour Homme Eau de Toilette blends lavender, Italian lemon and orange blossom over cedarwood and patchouli. Gucci Guilty Pour Homme Elixir de Parfum is deeper, a woody ambery leather with orris butter and benzoin. Dolce&Gabbana Light Blue Pour Homme is Sicilian lemon, rosemary and patchouli, a summer shirt in a bottle. Dolce&Gabbana Devotion For Men Parfum puts coffee in the heart, with lavender on top and ambery woods below. Versace Pour Homme is bergamot, neroli and blue hyacinth over cedarwood and musk, and Versace Dylan Blue is a Mediterranean mix of citrus, aquatic notes, and patchouli.

Pairing tip: use a fresh one for the day, like Light Blue or Luna Rossa, and a warmer one after dark. Two bottles cover a lot of ground.

What I would skip: the sweeter Elixir and Devotion Parfum on a hot afternoon. Warm coffee and benzoin are lovely in October and heavy in July.

For nights out, look toward vanilla, leather and smoke. Yves Saint Laurent Y Eau de Parfum is sage and geranium over sensual woods, the brand's take on a white T-shirt and black jacket. Maison Margiela REPLICA Jazz Club has pink pepper, rum and tobacco leaf, while REPLICA By the Fireplace smells like roasted chestnut, clove and vanilla. TOM FORD Tobacco Vanille is tobacco leaf with tonka bean, vanilla and ginger. TOM FORD Ombre Leather is black leather with patchouli and vetiver. KILIAN Paris Angels Share is cognac, cinnamon, oak and tonka bean, with praline in the finish. Rabanne Phantom Parfum mixes lavender, vanilla and vetiver in a matte black bottle, and Rabanne Invictus Victory Absolu Parfum Intense brings black pepper, amber and sandalwood.

How to wear them: these are heavy, so start with one spray on the chest. If you want more, add a second on the neck, not more on the same spot.

What I would skip: Tobacco Vanille and Angels Share for a crowded elevator or a long meeting. They are warm and sweet, and they travel further than you expect.

Pick by occasion, not by hype. A vetiver or lavender scent like Uomo Born in Roma Eau de Toilette works at a desk. A fresh citrus like Light Blue suits a warm day. Vanilla and leather belong to the evening. If you are buying for someone else, look at what they already wear and go one step warmer or one step fresher. Try it on skin and give it a few hours before you decide. A good cologne does not shout when you walk in. It shows up when someone leans in to say hello.