I picked up the Miller Harris Discovery Set mainly because I wanted to try something new for the upcoming spring and summer seasons. Is anyone else as excited as I am for the longer days and warmer evenings? I find summer can be stifling in London sometimes, but spring is my favourite. I really like it when it’s warm enough to wear dresses and jumpers without coats, but there’s still a cool breeze and it’s comfortable enough to sleep at night.
Miller Harris is a British fragrance house, founded in 2000. They focus on framing natural botanicals in a complex way, using natural ingredients that are ethically and sustainably sourced. The Discovery Set features sample sizes of their best selling fragrances. I actually bought mine in January which was a bit ambitious for anticipating the spring time and some of the fragrances have been updated since. Having said that, you can still find my version of the Discovery Set online, so it’s still worth me giving my initial impressions on it. The set includes 8 x 2ml samples in Eau De Parfum concentration (the only concentration they offer).

Miller Harris Discovery Set Fragrances First Impressions:
Rose Silence
Head Notes: Mandarin, Blackcurrant
Heart Notes: Turkish Rose Absolute
Lasting Impressions: Patchouli, Cashmere Musk
This smells like a rose water to me. It’s quite light and sweet, but longevity is not the best. I don’t really get any woody or fruity notes here.
Tea Tonique
Head Notes: Bergamot EO, Lemon, Petitgrain
Heart Notes: Green Tea, Earl Grey Tea, Mate Tea, Nutmeg
Lasting Impressions: Birch Tar, Musk
Tea Tonique is a tea scent with a lot of lemon. It’s very bright and uplifting and would be good to wear during the day time in the summer.
Secret Gardenia
Head Notes: Bergamot EO, Yuzu EO, Aqual and Nashi Pear.
Heart Notes: Gardenia, Jasmin abs Egypt, Ylang-ylang EO and Violet Petal.
Lasting Impressions: Driftwood, Creamy Sandalwood, Cedarwood EO and Musk.
This is a fresh gardenia perfume which I think it office friendly. It’s quite watery and stays close to the skin with a 5-ish hour wear time and minimal projection. It was one of my favourites and I’d recommend it if you like white florals.
Reverie de Bergamote
Head Notes: Bergamot , Orange, Tangerine, Summer Basil, Artemisia
Heart Notes: Lavender, Rosemary, Geranium , Leather
Lasting Impressions: Sandalwood, Patchouli, Vetiver, Moss
This is a fresh citrus which leans quite masculine to my nose. It opens with which a sharp hit of bergamot and orange, and then I start to smell the lavender and rosemary. In the dry down it’s quite herbal with a hint of citrus.
Peau Santal
Head Notes: Bergamot, Pink Pepper, Saffron
Heart Notes: Sandalwood, Olibanum, Violet Leaf, Papyrus
Lasting Impressions: Sandalwood, Cashmere Woods, Crisp Amber, Vanilla CO2 Extract, Moss
A sandalwood forward fragrance with a hint of spice from the pink pepper. I sometimes struggle with sandalwood but I found this easy to wear and pleasant. It’s given a bit of depth with cashmere woods and a warm amber base. It’s not really a scent profile I gravitate towards but I found it wearable and would recommend to sandalwood lovers.
Oud Eclat
Head Notes: Agarwood, Tagete, Cashmere Wood
Heart Notes: Amber, Floral Transparent, Fir Balsam, Nutmeg
Lasting Impressions: Moss, Musk, Leather, Sugar
Oud Eclat is a sweet oud with nutmeg. Really lovely and lasts well. Some people have compared this to Baccarat Rouge 540.
Scherzo
Head Notes: Tangerine, Davana
Heart Notes: Olibanum, Narcissus, Pittosporum, Dark Rose, Peony
Lasting Impressions: Patchouli, Vanilla, Oudh, Sweet Note
I think this is one of the more well known fragrances from Miller Harris. Scherzo is a rose-oud accord with some resins in the base. It’s really nice and performs well. If you like rose-ouds you’ll like this, it reminds me a lot of Velvet Rose and Oud by Jo Malone.
Lumiere Doree
Head Notes: Bergamot, Petitgrain, Orange Bigarade
Heart Notes: Neroli, Jasmin Sambac, Orange Blossom
Lasting Impressions: Vetiver, Cashmere Wood, White Musks
This is a neroli and pettigrain fragrance that has sweet and bitter characteristics. It’s quite a summery citrus floral with below average longevity and projection. I think if you like a slightly bitter citrus floral it could be worth trying. But for me it’s not something I gravitate towards, especially because of the poor performance.

Miller Harris Discovery Set – final thoughts
Overall I’m pleased I’ve tried some of the best sellers from Miller Harris. Standouts to me were Secret Gardenia, Tea Tonique, Oud Eclat and Peau Santal (even though Oud Eclat and Peau Santal are not fragrances I normally wear). I’d definitely consider picking up a bottle of the other two if I find them for a good price and finish my current floral / citrus perfumes.
The Miller Harris Discovery Set retails for £35, and after purchase you are emailed a £35 voucher to put towards a 50ml or 100ml bottle of Miller Harris perfume. So if you like something, you’ve not really spent any money on the set.
Do you ever buy perfume discovery sets?