In 1971, Yves Saint Laurent walked into Jeanloup Sieff's Paris studio to be photographed for the launch of his first men's fragrance, Pour Homme. He wore a black polo neck and tortoiseshell glasses, and at some point in the hour he took off everything but the glasses. The line under the picture said, roughly, that for three years this eau de toilette had been his, and that today it could be yours. Several newspapers refused the ad. Vogue ran it that November, and the Centre Pompidou has held the print since 1983.

So men's fragrance at this house began with the founder putting himself on the line. That is still the right test for a scent: does it sound like a man, or like a caricature.

YSL Myself is the way most people search for it, but the bottle spells it MYSLF, no vowels, in a blocky logotype pressed into black lacquered glass. It launched in 2023, and the brand calls it its first masculine woody floral fragrance. Three perfumers built it, Christophe Raynaud, Antoine Maisondieu and Daniela Roche Andrier: two Calabrian bergamots, Tunisian orange blossom absolute, then Indonesian patchouli and a woody-amber ingredient called Ambrofix. Raynaud says the challenge was a scent that was diffusive but not aggressive, for a man who is not a caricature. Austin Butler is the face.

The trick is to read the first grid as a choice of strength. The Eau de Parfum with a fresh accord and warm woods is the base. Le Parfum brings spicy vanilla bourbon, and the Eau de Toilette Intense leans on warm woods and skin musk. Absolu adds ginger and woods. The travel sprays and the gift set make it easy to try.

Start with the season. Y and MYSLF are the two modern pillars of the house, and the easiest way to choose is by weather.

Y is lighter and greener. The core Eau de Parfum is fresh geranium against sensual woods. The Y Eau de Toilette leans on fresh lavender and geranium, and it is the one I would wear from spring through early autumn. Y Le Parfum brings in cedarwood and lavender for something drier. The Y Eau de Parfum Intense adds spicy juniper berries, and Y Elixir goes furthest, into sensual oud wood and rich incense.

The Y Iced Cologne Eau de Toilette Intense strips the idea down to mint and patchouli, and it is the one for a hot day or a post-gym shower. The Y Eau de Parfum Travel Spray goes in a bag, and the Y Eau de Parfum Refill is the same reload-not-replace idea MYSLF uses.

A pairing I like: Y in the daytime and MYSLF in the evening. Geranium and lavender against bergamot and patchouli read as two moods of the same man, and neither clashes with a shirt collar.

What I would skip: Y Elixir in a heatwave or a crowded lift. Oud and incense are thick, and they do best on a cold night when there is room around you.

A rule for older classics: smell them on your skin, not on paper. These are scents with a history, and they change more on a person than the newer, cleaner ones do.

L'Homme is the house's gentler men's signature, built on oakwood and orange in the Eau de Parfum. L'Homme Le Parfum swaps in cedarwood and cardamom. La Nuit de l'Homme takes that cedarwood and cardamom pairing into a darker, eveningwear register. The other L'Homme in this grid leans on bergamot and vetiver instead, closer to a classic cologne, and it is the one I would suggest for someone who wants a clean, no-fuss bottle.

Kouros is the oldest name in this group by far, still sold as a straightforward Eau de Toilette long after it defined a certain loud idea of masculinity. I like having it in the grid because it shows how far the house has moved. The Men's Mini Cologne Duo Set is the sensible way to compare two of these before committing.

Then the travel sizes: the Y Iced Cologne Travel Size and the MYSLF Eau de Toilette Intense Travel Spray, both built for a gym bag.

What I would skip: Kouros for a quiet office or a first date. It comes from an older, louder idea of what a man should smell like, and today it fills a room.

Here is how I would choose from this shelf: decide first whether you want more sweetness or more air, then smell two on either arm.

Prada's L'Homme is the softer cousin, built on iris and geranium. Valentino's Uomo Born in Roma keeps things light, with violet over its base. Prada's Paradigme is closer to an everyday bottle, with bergamot up front, and Montblanc's Explorer reads the same way, a good one to keep on a desk.

Armani's Stronger With You Intensely goes sweeter, with pink pepper and vanilla doing most of the work. It is the one I would wear on a cold night. Gucci's Guilty Pour Homme brings lavandin, lemon and patchouli into a sharper, more retro shape, and Azzaro's Wanted leans on sage and vetiver for something fresher.

Hermès' Terre d'Hermès is the reference point most of these are quietly responding to, so it makes a good yardstick. If you smell it first, everything else on the list will read more clearly.

What I would skip: choosing by the name of a designer. Half of these smell nothing like their labels suggest, and the notes tell you more than the logo does.

I think MYSLF is not trying to be loud, and that is why it works: two bergamots, orange blossom and patchouli, and nothing sweeter than it needs to be. If you already wear Y for daytime, this is the natural evening swap, since it trades geranium for warmer amber wood.

Use the refill as intended. The brand says one 150 ml refill saves 58 percent of the glass, 43 percent of the plastic and 26 percent of the paper compared with buying two 60 ml bottles, but that only holds if you actually refill. Saint Laurent wore his scent for three years before he offered it to you. Give MYSLF three weeks.

MYSLF sits inside a bigger family, and I like to check where it lands beside its relatives before settling. The MYSLF Le Parfum, the Eau de Toilette Intense and the refillable Eau de Parfum are the three concentrations to compare. For something darker, I would try Saint Laurent L'Homme Eau de Parfum and La Nuit de L'Homme, and for a daytime swap the Y Eau de Toilette. Le Vestiaire des Parfums Saharienne is the unusual one in the group. Outside the house, Gucci Guilty Pour Homme in the Parfum and the Eau de Toilette, and the HERMÈS Eau de Citron Noir and Un Jardin sur le Nil, give you a brighter contrast. The Prada Luna Rossa Black gift set is the one to hand to someone else. What I would skip: the Saharienne as your first Saint Laurent. If you want to keep browsing, I also put together Fragrance Sets and Feral Fragrance.