Wings by Giorgio Beverly Hills (1992)

Wings by Giorgio Beverly Hills debuted in November 1992, during a moment when the fragrance industry was beginning to shift away from the assertive, power-laden perfumes of the 1980s toward something lighter, more expressive, and emotionally resonant. The selection of a name for a perfume is rarely accidental; in fact, it is one of the most difficult decisions in fragrance marketing. Perfume houses register thousands of names every year, anticipating future launches and protecting ideas long before a fragrance exists. Out of this vast landscape of possibilities, the goal is to find a single word—memorable, evocative, and emotionally charged—that captures the spirit of the scent. For Giorgio Beverly Hills, that word became Wings.

According to Linda LoRe, then president and CEO of Giorgio Beverly Hills, the inspiration for the name came from encountering the famous Winged Victory of Samothrace in Paris, the monumental Hellenistic sculpture displayed at the Louvre. The statue depicts the goddess Nike poised dramatically as if just alighting on the prow of a ship, her powerful wings swept back by the wind. The image is both triumphant and fluid—an embodiment of motion, liberation, and confidence. In choosing the name Wings, the brand sought to evoke precisely these emotions. The word suggests the exhilaration of movement, the sensation of rising above ordinary boundaries, and the idea of limitless possibility. To imagine wings is to imagine soaring through open sky, lifted by invisible currents—free, spontaneous, and unrestrained.

The imagery attached to the word “wings” carries deep symbolic weight. Wings have long represented transcendence and transformation in art and mythology. They imply escape from gravity and routine, the freedom to explore, and the exhilaration of new perspectives. In the context of a fragrance, the name subtly promises an emotional effect: wearing the perfume becomes an act of uplift. It suggests a woman who is spirited and self-possessed, someone who moves confidently through life with a sense of joy and independence. The name also evokes softness and sensuality—feathers brushing air, lightness, and graceful movement—qualities that mirror the fragrance’s airy floral composition.

The early 1990s provided an ideal cultural moment for such symbolism. The perfume arrived at the beginning of what is often described as the post-power era or the early 1990s transition in fashion and beauty, when the dramatic excess of the late 1980s began giving way to a more relaxed and expressive aesthetic. During the previous decade, fragrances had often been bold and commanding—dense florals, strong aldehydes, and heavy orientals that matched the era of power suits, big hair, and corporate ambition. By the early 1990s, however, cultural attitudes were shifting. Minimalism was emerging in fashion, championed by designers such as Calvin Klein and Donna Karan, while popular culture embraced a new sense of individuality and emotional authenticity.

This was also the period when music, film, and fashion were beginning to reflect a more introspective mood. The rise of alternative music and the grunge aesthetic—associated with figures like Kurt Cobain—contrasted sharply with the glossy glamour of the previous decade. Women’s fashion shifted toward softer silhouettes, fluid fabrics, slip dresses, oversized sweaters, and relaxed tailoring. Makeup trends moved toward natural tones, and hairstyles became less rigidly sculpted. The overall mood suggested a kind of liberated informality—less about overt displays of power and more about personal freedom and emotional expression.

In perfumery, this transition manifested in fragrances that felt lighter, more transparent, and more optimistic. Consumers began seeking scents that conveyed freshness, femininity, and spontaneity rather than sheer intensity. The name Wings spoke directly to these emerging desires. For women navigating the cultural landscape of the early 1990s, the concept of “wings” resonated with a growing sense of autonomy and possibility. Many women were balancing careers, personal independence, and evolving social roles, and a fragrance named Wings subtly echoed those aspirations. It suggested movement forward—an uplifting sense that life was opening outward rather than closing in.

To a woman encountering the perfume in 1992, the name would have conjured a vivid emotional narrative. It might evoke the feeling of stepping into a bright morning with the confidence to pursue one’s ambitions, or the sensation of traveling freely through a changing world. The word carries both strength and grace—powerful enough to lift one into the sky, yet delicate enough to glide effortlessly through air. In this way, Wings became more than just a fragrance name; it functioned as a metaphor for the era’s evolving idea of femininity: liberated, joyful, and endlessly capable of flight.

Making the Scent:

 

The name Wings invites interpretation not only through imagery but also through scent itself. If one were to translate the concept of “wings” into perfume, the result would be something that feels buoyant, expansive, and dynamic rather than heavy or grounded. In olfactory terms, wings suggest lift and movement—notes that rise quickly, shimmer in the air, and create the sensation of drifting upward. A fragrance built around such an idea would naturally open with bright, airy tones that seem to flutter and sparkle before settling gently onto the skin. The sensation is one of motion: a fragrance that seems to glide rather than sit still, evoking the lightness of feathers catching wind and the exhilaration of open sky.

Interestingly, when the name Giorgio Wings had been decided upon, the fragrance itself had not yet been finalized. Instead of relying solely on internal evaluations, the team at Giorgio Beverly Hills undertook a remarkably ambitious approach to selecting the final scent. Five different perfume compositions were created and distributed to a global panel of approximately 2,500 men and women. These participants were invited to evaluate the competing formulas and vote for their favorite. Each candidate fragrance explored a different interpretation of the idea behind Wings, incorporating exotic and unusual ingredients meant to evoke discovery, freedom, and sensuality. Among the materials were rare floral inspirations such as cactus orchid—an elusive blossom that blooms only at night—and a desert jasmine species known for its luminous fragrance in arid climates.

The process created a sense of anticipation around the perfume’s debut. No one knew which formula would ultimately be chosen until October 1, 1992, when Giorgio’s president and CEO, Linda LoRe, would make the final selection. The winning fragrance would then launch quietly in early November 1992 through Giorgio boutiques and mail-order distribution, an approach that maintained an aura of exclusivity. Only in January 1993 would the perfume reach department stores, allowing the brand to build intrigue and demand before its wider release.

The final composition—created by perfumer Jean-Claude Delville—was an extraordinarily complex structure said to contain 621 individual ingredients. While this number included both natural materials and aroma molecules that build the fragrance’s intricate accord system, it signaled the ambition behind the perfume’s design. The result was categorized as a green floral fragrance, opening with a bright, fruity-green lift before unfolding into a lush floral heart and settling into a soft, powdery base.

From the first moment on the skin, the fragrance seems to “take flight.” The opening introduces a vivid burst of ginger lily, green osmanthus, gardenia, and the imaginative notion of a “blue rose,” creating an airy yet radiant floral-green accord. These notes convey freshness and lift, echoing the upward motion implied by the name. As the perfume develops, it begins to glide gracefully into its heart, where cattleya orchid, jasmine, and lilac form a luminous bouquet that feels both expansive and elegant. Finally, the fragrance settles into a warm, comforting base of amber and musk—soft, sensual materials that provide grounding without weighing the composition down.

One of the most intriguing aspects of Wings was its use of what Giorgio described as “living flower technology.” This technique involves capturing the scent profile of a flower while it is still alive and blooming. Using a device connected to a gas chromatograph, a tiny filter is placed near or within the flower to collect the aromatic molecules released at peak bloom. Once removed, the captured scent is chemically analyzed to determine its molecular composition. Perfumers can then recreate the fragrance using a combination of natural oils and carefully selected synthetic aroma chemicals. This process allows perfumers to reproduce the aroma of flowers that cannot normally be distilled or extracted—such as certain orchids or fragile blossoms whose scent disappears once the flower is cut.

Within the context of the early 1990s fragrance market, Wings occupied an interesting position. On one hand, it followed the prevailing movement toward brighter, more transparent floral fragrances that characterized the transition from the bold perfumes of the 1980s into the softer aesthetic of the new decade. Many consumers were beginning to favor scents that felt uplifting and versatile rather than overwhelmingly dramatic. In this respect, Wings aligned with broader trends emphasizing freshness, florals, and airy compositions.

Yet the perfume was also distinctive in several ways. Its elaborate formula, extensive ingredient list, and emphasis on exotic floral notes gave it a sense of opulence that recalled the grand perfumes of the previous decade. The use of “living flower technology” also placed it at the forefront of a growing fascination with scientific techniques in perfumery—methods that allowed perfumers to capture scents previously impossible to reproduce. In this way, Wings bridged two eras: it retained the richness and complexity of late-1980s perfumery while embracing the lighter, more radiant style emerging in the early 1990s.

Ultimately, the fragrance embodied the emotional symbolism of its name. Like wings themselves, the perfume begins with lift and brightness, expands outward into a graceful floral flight, and finally comes to rest in a soft, comforting warmth. The composition moves through the air with fluidity and elegance, capturing the very sensation the name promises—the feeling of rising, gliding, and settling gently back to earth.

Fragrance Composition:

So what does it smell like? Wings  is classified as a green floral fragrance for women. It begins with a fruity green top, followed by a floral heart, layered over a powdery base. Press materials describe it as "Composed of 621 ingredients, Wings takes off with a burst of ginger lily, green osmanthus, gardenia and blue rose; glides with cattleya orchid, jasmine and lilac; and comes to rest in a base of amber and musk."

• Top notes: bergamot, peach, pineapple, passion flower, gardenia, ginger lily, blue rose, green osmanthus, violet, and marigold
• Middle notes: Damascone Rose, lily of the valley, cyclamen, cattleya orchid, lilac, Shaffali jasmine, orris, heliotrope
• Base notes: sandalwood, ambergris, musk, and cedar

Scent Profile:

Wings by Giorgio Beverly Hills unfolds like a graceful ascent into open air, beginning with a radiant burst of fruity-green brightness before drifting into a lush floral atmosphere and finally settling into a warm, powdery glow. Created by perfumer Jean-Claude Delville, the fragrance is famously composed of 621 ingredients, a complexity that allows each note to shimmer and overlap like currents of air supporting flight. The structure mirrors the idea of wings themselves—lift, glide, and rest—each stage revealing a different facet of floral luminosity and sensual warmth.

The fragrance begins with an exhilarating rush of citrus and succulent fruit. Bergamot, most prized when grown along the sun-drenched coasts of Calabria in southern Italy, introduces the composition with a sparkling citrus brightness—fresh, lightly bitter, and subtly floral. Calabrian bergamot is especially valued because its unique climate produces an oil with exceptional aromatic complexity compared to bergamot cultivated elsewhere. This crisp citrus quickly blends with the velvety sweetness of peach, whose fragrance in perfumery is largely recreated through aroma molecules such as gamma-undecalactone and gamma-decalactone. These molecules produce the creamy, sun-warmed scent of ripe peach skin—soft, juicy, and faintly lactonic—adding a plush fruitiness that feels both natural and luminous.

A tropical brightness follows through pineapple, whose juicy sweetness is typically reproduced through carefully balanced fruity esters and lactones that capture the tangy sparkle of freshly cut fruit. The pineapple’s radiant sweetness is tempered by passion flower, a botanical whose delicate fragrance is so subtle that perfumers must recreate its scent impression using floral and green aroma chemicals. The result is airy and exotic, suggesting the humid freshness of tropical blossoms drifting on warm breezes.

Interwoven into this fruity opening are the first hints of the fragrance’s floral character. Gardenia, with its creamy white petals and velvety sweetness, adds a lush floral richness. Because gardenia flowers yield almost no extractable oil, perfumers reconstruct its scent using materials such as methyl benzoate, lactones, and creamy floral aldehydes that recreate the buttery, coconut-like softness of the blossom. Beside it blooms ginger lily, a luminous flower native to tropical Asia whose scent combines the brightness of ginger with the creamy elegance of white petals. The flower’s scent is difficult to extract naturally, so its fragrance is recreated through spicy-floral molecules that evoke its radiant, slightly peppery sweetness.

The illusion of blue rose floats delicately through the opening as well. In nature, roses do not produce a true blue variety, making the note a poetic interpretation rather than a literal botanical. Perfumers recreate the concept using rose absolutes enhanced with violet-like molecules and airy aldehydes, producing a cool-toned floral nuance that feels fresh and slightly ethereal—suggesting the color blue translated into scent. This floral freshness is deepened by green osmanthus, derived from the tiny blossoms of Osmanthus fragrans, traditionally cultivated in China. Osmanthus absolute is prized for its remarkable complexity: apricot-like fruitiness blended with leathery, tea-like undertones. The “green” aspect in Wings emphasizes the leafy freshness of the flower, giving the opening a bright botanical character.

A powdery softness begins to appear through violet, whose scent is typically recreated using ionones—aroma molecules that smell delicately floral, powdery, and slightly woody. Ionones are fascinating compounds; they were among the first synthetic molecules used widely in perfumery, and they also have the curious ability to temporarily dull the sense of smell after prolonged exposure. Violet’s cool sweetness contrasts beautifully with the vivid brightness of marigold, also known as tagetes. Often cultivated in Egypt for perfumery, tagetes oil possesses a striking aroma—green, fruity, slightly leathery, with hints of apple and herbs. In small amounts it provides a sparkling, almost mischievous sharpness that prevents the opening from becoming overly sweet.

As the fragrance glides into its heart, the composition becomes more floral and velvety. Damascone rose plays an important role here. Damascenones and damascones are powerful aroma molecules derived from the breakdown of natural rose components. These materials smell intensely rosy yet also carry nuances of plum, honey, and dried fruit. They dramatically amplify the richness of rose accords, allowing perfumers to create the sensation of an entire rose garden from only tiny quantities.

The delicate sweetness of lily of the valley soon emerges, fresh and dewy like morning air after rain. This flower cannot be distilled for its scent, so its fragrance is reconstructed using molecules such as hydroxycitronellal and lyral, which reproduce the crystalline floral purity of the blossom. Alongside it appears cyclamen, another floral note created entirely through perfumery chemistry. Cyclamen aldehyde gives the fragrance a watery, airy quality reminiscent of cool petals floating on a breeze.

Exotic depth arrives through cattleya orchid, one of the most luxurious orchids known for its lush, tropical fragrance. True orchid oil cannot be extracted, so perfumers craft the illusion using creamy floral materials and subtle fruity notes that evoke the orchid’s velvety sweetness. The orchid accord blends beautifully with lilac, whose delicate springtime aroma is recreated through a blend of aldehydes and floral molecules that capture its soft, airy freshness.

One of the most intriguing flowers in the heart is Shaffali jasmine, inspired by desert-growing jasmine species known for their luminous scent under extreme heat. Jasmine itself is one of perfumery’s most treasured materials, especially when grown in regions like Grasse in France or the Nile delta of Egypt. Its aroma is intoxicating—rich, honeyed, slightly indolic, with facets of ripe fruit and warm skin. In modern perfumery, natural jasmine absolute is often enhanced with molecules such as hedione, which adds a radiant, airy jasmine glow that seems to float outward from the skin.

Supporting the florals is orris, derived from the aged rhizomes of iris plants cultivated primarily in Italy and Morocco. Orris butter is one of the most expensive materials in perfumery because the roots must be dried and aged for several years before their violet-like scent develops. Its aroma is cool, powdery, and softly woody, lending the fragrance an elegant cosmetic softness. Complementing it is heliotrope, whose almond-like sweetness—reminiscent of marzipan and vanilla pastries—is recreated through molecules such as heliotropin. This note adds a nostalgic, velvety warmth to the heart.

As the fragrance finally settles, it drifts gently into its base, where warmth and sensuality take hold. Sandalwood, traditionally sourced from Mysore in India, contributes a creamy, milky woodiness with subtle sweetness. Mysore sandalwood was historically prized for its exceptional richness and smoothness compared to sandalwood grown elsewhere, though modern perfumery often supplements it with synthetic sandalwood molecules that recreate its velvety warmth while protecting the endangered trees.

The base also features the mysterious elegance of ambergris, historically produced in the digestive system of sperm whales and aged by the sea until it develops its distinctive scent. True ambergris has a complex aroma—marine, slightly sweet, animalic, and radiant. Today, perfumers often recreate its effect using molecules such as ambroxan, which produces a warm, glowing, almost skin-like sensuality that enhances longevity and projection.

Musk deepens the base with its soft, enveloping warmth. Natural animal musk is no longer used, so modern fragrances rely on a family of synthetic musks—clean, powdery, or slightly sweet molecules that mimic the sensual warmth of skin. These musks act as fixatives, allowing the fragrance to linger while adding a subtle aura of intimacy. Finally, cedarwood introduces a dry, slightly smoky woodiness. Cedar oil from Virginia or Texas has a crisp pencil-shaving aroma, while Atlas cedar from Morocco offers a deeper, resinous warmth. In Wings, cedar provides structure and quiet strength, grounding the softness of the powdery base.

Together, these ingredients create a fragrance that truly lives up to its name. The composition begins with brightness and lift, expands into an airy floral glide, and settles into a soft, comforting warmth. Each note contributes its own texture—fruity sparkle, creamy petals, powdery elegance, and woody depth—until the whole fragrance feels like a graceful arc through the air, rising effortlessly before coming to rest on the skin.

 

Bottles:

The presentation of Wings by Giorgio Beverly Hills was conceived as an integral extension of the fragrance itself, reflecting the perfume’s themes of imagination, uplift, and emotional escape. The bottle for the parfum was designed by Mary Scott of Maddocks & Company in Los Angeles, a designer who believed deeply that a perfume vessel should evoke the same sense of fantasy and pleasure as the fragrance within it. Scott once remarked in an interview with the Los Angeles Times in 1995 that perfume is fundamentally about feeling good and entering a world of imagination, and that the bottle is essential in creating that experience. In fact, she often began her design process without a fragrance name at all; sometimes the bottle itself would inspire the identity of the perfume.

For Wings, Scott drew inspiration from an unexpected and deeply personal source: a small keepsake seedpod her mother had once stored in a drawer. That memory translated into the bottle’s distinctive form—a small, rounded vessel with a softly swollen, almost organic silhouette. The design resembles a natural pod or sphere, as though it were something discovered rather than manufactured, a treasure shaped by nature. Topping the bottle is a smooth, ball-shaped stopper in luminous blue, suggesting the sky or perhaps a droplet of color suspended in air. The combination of the spherical body and rounded stopper gives the bottle a playful, almost whimsical presence. It feels tactile and intimate in the hand, echoing the fragrance’s themes of freedom and buoyancy.

The parfum itself was offered in several sizes, each maintaining the same charming proportions. The primary presentation was the 1-ounce Extraordinary Perfume (Parfum) bottle, which stands approximately four inches tall, making it small yet substantial enough to feel like a treasured object on a vanity table. A 0.25-ounce version offered a more compact option, while collectors often delight in the miniature 0.13-ounce bottle, which stands only about 1.75 inches tall yet perfectly replicates the form of the larger vessel. These miniature bottles capture the design’s essence in jewel-like scale, reinforcing the idea that the parfum was meant to feel precious and personal.

In contrast to the rounded parfum bottle, the Eau de Toilette spray appeared in a completely different presentation—a tall, slender bottle whose elongated lines suggested lift and upward movement. Where the parfum bottle felt intimate and organic, the Eau de Toilette bottle conveyed elegance and verticality, visually echoing the concept of wings rising into the air. This dual design approach allowed the fragrance to express both softness and dynamism: the squat sphere representing the concentrated essence of the scent, and the taller bottle embodying its airy diffusion.

Beyond the perfume itself, Wings was supported by an extensive collection of perfumed body products, reflecting the early-1990s trend toward layered fragrance rituals. The line included 1.7-ounce and 3-ounce Extraordinary Eau de Toilette sprays, along with a luxurious 5.3-ounce perfumed dusting powder, which would have left a soft veil of fragrance on the skin. Complementing this were indulgent body care products such as the 5.3-ounce perfumed body treatment cream, the 6.7-ounce perfumed shower gel, and several sizes of perfumed body moisturizer ranging from 3.4 ounces to an impressive 8.3 ounces. The ritual extended even further with 12-ounce “Exhilarating Bath Crystals,” designed to dissolve in bathwater and release a fragrant cloud of scent, transforming the act of bathing into a sensory escape.

At department store counters, customers would often encounter a dramatic oversized version of the perfume bottle known as a factice. These display bottles, created purely for visual impact, were not filled with actual perfume but with colored water carefully tinted to mimic the appearance of the fragrance. Standing approximately ten inches tall and seven inches in diameter, the factice was far larger than the retail bottles and served as an eye-catching centerpiece at the fragrance counter. These display pieces were typically loaned by the brand to retailers and were meant to be returned after the promotional period ended. However, over the years many were never sent back, and some have surfaced on the collectors’ market, becoming sought-after relics of the perfume’s original launch.

Together, the bottle design, product line, and dramatic counter displays formed a cohesive visual identity for Wings. The rounded parfum bottle suggested something personal and dreamlike, the tall Eau de Toilette bottle implied lift and elegance, and the luminous blue stopper added a touch of sky to the entire composition. In this way, the packaging itself became an extension of the fragrance’s message—an object meant to inspire imagination, capture a sense of flight, and transform the simple act of wearing perfume into a small moment of fantasy.

Fate of the Fragrance:

The history of Wings is closely tied to the shifting ownership of the Giorgio Beverly Hills fragrance line, reflecting the broader consolidation that occurred within the perfume industry during the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. Originally, the Giorgio Beverly Hills fragrance business came under the ownership of Avon Products in 1987. Avon recognized the strength of the Giorgio name—already associated with glamorous, sun-soaked Beverly Hills luxury—and continued to develop and market the brand’s perfumes throughout the late 1980s and early 1990s, including the launch of Wings in 1992.

In 1994, however, Avon sold the Giorgio Beverly Hills fragrance division to Procter & Gamble for approximately $150 million. Under P&G’s stewardship, Giorgio Beverly Hills was integrated into the company’s growing prestige fragrance portfolio and merged with its fine fragrance division known as Eurocos, which later evolved into P&G Prestige Beauté. This move placed the brand alongside other luxury perfume houses within P&G’s expanding global beauty business, ensuring broader distribution and continued production of its established scents.

Another significant change occurred in 2007 when Elizabeth Arden, Inc. acquired the worldwide licensing rights to Giorgio Beverly Hills fragrances. From that point forward, the perfumes—including Wings—have been produced and marketed through the company’s fragrance arm, EA Fragrances. Under this licensing arrangement, Elizabeth Arden oversees manufacturing, packaging, and distribution while maintaining the legacy of the original fragrance line.

Despite the many corporate transitions, Wings has remained in continuous production for decades, a testament to its enduring popularity. However, like many classic perfumes, the formula has inevitably evolved over time due to changing regulations governing fragrance ingredients. These regulations are largely established by the International Fragrance Association (IFRA), which sets safety guidelines for materials used in perfumery. IFRA periodically restricts or limits certain natural ingredients—particularly those that may cause allergic reactions or environmental concerns. As a result, perfumers must adjust existing formulas to comply with new standards.

For Wings, one of the most noticeable reformulations occurred around 2010, when updated IFRA guidelines required modifications to several traditional perfume materials. Ingredients such as certain natural musks, oakmoss components, and other naturally occurring aromatic compounds have faced increasing restrictions over the years. To maintain the fragrance’s recognizable character while meeting safety regulations, perfumers often substitute restricted materials with modern aroma molecules or carefully reconstructed accords. While these reformulations aim to preserve the spirit of the original composition, longtime enthusiasts frequently notice subtle differences in depth, richness, or projection compared with earlier versions.

For collectors and perfume historians seeking the original vintage formulation of Wings, packaging details can offer important clues. Bottles and boxes produced during the early years of the fragrance prominently display the Giorgio Beverly Hills name. In contrast, later versions manufactured under Elizabeth Arden’s licensing arrangement typically bear the EA Fragrances designation. These newer packages often omit the Giorgio Beverly Hills branding altogether, making it relatively easy to distinguish between vintage and modern production. For those searching for the earliest expressions of the perfume as it was originally conceived in the early 1990s, bottles clearly marked with the Giorgio Beverly Hills name remain the most reliable indicators of the classic formulation.