All about Mind Games perfumes: Chess-inspired luxury scents 

Luxury perfumes. What do they actually smell like? At first, I was just thinking expensive fragrances that smell like private jets, “summering” as a verb, and old ladies in fur coats with huge hair and teeny tiny dogs. 

But on second thought (which is kind of the point here), I think real luxury fragrance also smells like strategy. It smells like having a plan, thinking ahead, not going in blind or “trusting the universe” or any of that wishy-washy business. It smells like Mind Games, the chess-inspired perfume house where every bottle is a well-thought-out move.

This is luxury that owes more to Sun Tzu’s The Art of War or Marcus Aurelius’s Meditations than to the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. Because chess isn’t about showing off. It’s about masterfully executing a plan. 

The long game: Mind Games extraits de parfum

Almost every Mind Games scent is an extrait de parfum, the most concentrated type of fragrance you can buy. A quick recap on fragrance concentrations for those who need it: eau de toilette is mostly alcohol, with about 5–15% perfume oil. Eau de parfum is the next step up with around 15–20% oil. And the strongest of them all, extrait de parfum, is 20–40% perfume oil. With that much pure fragrance, extrait sticks around for hours—these scents last way, way past lunchtime.

Like the best chess opponents, an extrait won’t show you where it’s going straightaway. It opens up, settles in, and brings out its best moves later. These extraits develop into rich, complex heart and base notes that a lighter formula just couldn’t hold on to. Because yes, here it’s all about the long game. 

Mind Games fragrances: the bottles, the names, and the people behind them

The bottles are topped with chrome chess pieces, and the scents are named after chess openings, moves, and etiquette: French Defense, Gambit, Queenside, and J’Adoube (what players say when they adjust a piece without committing to moving it). The luxury perfume house was launched in New York in 2022 by Alex and Mariana Shalbaf. They started with ten fragrances, then added ten more, and have since moved on to a Perfumer Extraordinaire collection for the really rare stuff.

Are Mind Games perfumes for men or women? 

Mind Games extraits de parfum are unisex, designed to be worn by anyone. But each one still has its own personality, and some lean more masc or femme than others. Blockade’s woody, leathery, fruity composition is distinctly masculine, while Queening’s powdery vanilla gourmand is far more feminine.

How much are Mind Games fragrances? 

Make no mistake, these are artisanal, luxury, small-batch scents with price tags to match. Any fragrance from the Artisan and Soulmate collections costs $395 for 100 ml, while the Perfumer Extraordinaire collection goes up to $475. 

This is where a Scentbird subscription becomes the smartest move on the board. Rather than committing to a $395 bottle blind, you can try the Mind Games fragrances one at a time with your monthly subscription (scents in our Neiman’s Select and Scentbird Select collections come with a small supplement). Read the board, work out your strategy, then make your move.

Opening moves: 5 Mind Games perfumes on Scentbird to try first

MIND GAMES French Defense

Named after one of chess’s oldest openings, French Defense is fruity and floral. It opens on juicy cherry, softened with violet leaves and chamomile, then moves into rose, geranium, and mimosa before landing on amber and blonde woods. It’s one of the brand’s most popular scents, and probably the easiest place to start.

Key notes: Cherry, violet leaves, rose, mimosa, amber, cedarwood

Add MIND GAMES French Defense to your Scentbird queue here

MIND GAMES Grand Master   

Think of Grand Master as a rose that’s had a very strong espresso. It opens soft and fruity with black currant, rose water, and peony, then gets serious fast: Kona coffee and violet in the heart, and a smoky, resinous base of incense and myrrh. The wildcard is panettone, which adds a buttery, bready warmth underneath it all. Big, bold, and not for anyone who likes to slip into a room unnoticed.

Key notes: Black currant, rose, coffee, incense, myrrh, panettone

Add MIND GAMES Grand Master to your Scentbird queue here

MIND GAMES Checkmate

Checkmate opens with a pop of champagne, which feels about right for a scent named after winning. Then it turns into a full-on rose garden (four different roses, plus magnolia) before settling into tobacco, bourbon, patchouli, and moss. It’s a chypre at heart: floral up top, earthy and moody underneath.

Key notes: Champagne, red currant, rose, magnolia, tobacco, patchouli, moss

Add MIND GAMES Checkmate to your Scentbird queue here

MIND GAMES Double Attack

In chess, a double attack hits two targets at once. Here, the two targets are chocolate and spice. Bitter orange, pimento, and pink pepper kick off before cinnamon and agave warm things up, and then the dark chocolate, vanilla, and sandalwood show up for the finish. It’s basically a chocolate orange for grown-ups, made for cold nights out.

Key notes: Bitter orange, pink pepper, cinnamon, dark chocolate, vanilla, sandalwood

Add MIND GAMES Double Attack to your Scentbird queue here

MIND GAMES Gardez

“Gardez” was once the polite warning players gave when they were about to attack the queen, and this scent is just as well mannered in its approach. It starts with pepper and spice, then moves on to jasmine, orris, and juicy fruit (apricot included) before settling into leather and woods. It’s soft and sharp, all at the same time.

Key notes: Pepper, jasmine, orris, apricot, leather, woods

Add MIND GAMES Gardez to your Scentbird queue here

The endgame

Mind Games is luxury perfume for people who’d rather outthink the room than outspend it. Haute perfumery with exquisite taste and a game plan, made for long games and slow reveals. So pick your opening, take your time, and play to win. Checkmate.

Frequently asked questions

Are Mind Games perfumes for men or women?

Mind Games perfumes are unisex, designed to be worn by anyone. Each scent still has its own personality, though. Blockade’s woody, leathery, fruity composition leans masculine, while Queening’s powdery vanilla gourmand is far more feminine. Pick by notes, not by label.

How much are Mind Games perfumes?

Full bottles from the Artisan and Soulmate collections cost $395 for 100 ml, and the Perfumer Extraordinaire collection goes up to $475. With Scentbird, you can try Mind Games fragrances one at a time with your monthly subscription instead of committing to a full bottle blind. Scents in the Neiman’s Select and Scentbird Select collections come with a small supplement.

What is an extrait de parfum?

Extrait de parfum is the most concentrated type of fragrance, with 20 to 40 percent perfume oil. Eau de parfum has around 15 to 20 percent, and eau de toilette about 5 to 15. Almost every Mind Games scent is an extrait, so they last well past lunchtime and develop rich heart and base notes.

Which Mind Games perfume should I try first?

French Defense is probably the easiest place to start. It is fruity and floral, with cherry, violet leaves, rose, and mimosa over amber and woods, and it is one of the brand’s most popular scents. Prefer something bolder? Try Grand Master, a rose with espresso, incense, and myrrh.