Acqua di Parma Redefined: 110 Years Of Sprezzatura

Gazetta in conversation with Giulio Bergamaschi, CEO of Acqua di Parma, about the Brand’s 110th Anniversary

Picture this: just for the span of this read, you lift the lid of a perfume. Think of the latest Acqua di Parma Colonia Il Profumo Millesimato, composed by master perfumer Alexis Didier and born from the 2024 harvest of Ylang-Ylang White on the island of Nosy Be, off Madagascar’s coast. The Italian Maison conceived it to mark 110 years of heritage.

What do you feel in that instant when the bottle is unveiled? What stirs within you as a fragrance reveals itself for the very first time? In this intimate exploration of Acqua di Parma, led by the voice of Giulio Bergamaschi, CEO of the Maison, we begin with the top notes to unravel a narrative contained in a flacon, yet vast in meaning, an emblematic Colonia that has shaped history and continues to redefine it.

This piece invites you to travel through top, heart, and base notes, with Colonia Il Profumo Millesimato as your guide into the world of Acqua di Parma.

image sources: Press office

TOP NOTES

The top notes are a fragrance’s opening gesture: immediate, airy, and fleeting. They shape the very first perception on the skin. In Colonia Il Profumo Millesimato, bergamot, blood orange, petit grain, and grapefruit burst forth in a radiant accord, bright, sunlit, and effervescent, yet always poised and sophisticated.

Within the broader story of Acqua di Parma, these sparkling notes echo the Maison’s beginnings. Established in Parma in 1916 by Baron Carlo Magnani, it was envisioned as a tribute to the Italian Arte di Vivere, a philosophy uniting understated elegance with effortless lightness. Magnani conceived Colonia as a personal signature, deliberately distancing it from the lavish intensity of contemporary French perfumes. Instead, he distilled the clarity, vibrancy, and natural charm of Italian life into scent.

Parma itself offered fertile ground for such refinement. A city shaped by the Farnese and Bourbon dynasties, and later by Maria Luigia, wife of Napoleon I, it cultivated a dialogue between culture and craftsmanship. Architecture, opera, gastronomy, and perfumery intertwine here, forming a distinctive aesthetic language. Maria Luigia actively encouraged the local art of fragrance, reinforcing Parma’s reputation as a place where beauty is woven into everyday rituals.

Through the decades, Acqua di Parma has evolved while remaining true to its essence. Each creation, down to the flacon and its packaging, reveals meticulous artisanal attention. In the 1990s, the brand was revived on the international stage by Luca Cordero di Montezemolo, Diego Della Valle, and Paolo Borgomanero, expressing a refined Italian sprezzatura. Today, as part of the LVMH group, the Maison continues to reinterpret Parma’s perfumery heritage, transforming the art of living into an enduring sensory signature.

image sources: Press office

HEART NOTES

The heart notes form the true core of a fragrance. They unfold once the sparkling freshness of the top notes softens, revealing the scent’s identity and emotional depth. In Colonia Il Profumo Millesimato, this soul is born from the 2024 harvest of Ylang-Ylang White on Nosy Be, Madagascar, where a gentle climate and abundant rainfall intensify the flower’s olfactory richness. This luminous essence is layered with rosemary and orange leaf absolute, creating aromatic resonance and a nuanced floral warmth that lingers with quiet intensity.

For the Maison, the heart is also symbolic. As Giulio Bergamaschi reflects, these notes embody its guiding principles: discreet elegance, discernment, and authentic sprezzatura, the mastery of technique expressed with apparent ease. He likens the philosophy to Italian cuisine: intricate compositions that feel instinctively simple. Certain creations rely on singular harvests, like the late mandarin of 2021, destined to disappear once their season ends. The spirit of Acqua di Parma endures, yet evolves through a contemporary lens.

In a time shaped by artificial intelligence and a sometimes self-conscious vision of luxury, the Maison reasserts its identity through every detail, including the design of its flacons. The bottle becomes an emblem of Italian character: a union of function and identity, heritage and modernity, expressed with natural grace. Today, the brand seeks to reinterpret its codes in dialogue with the present, through collaborations with figures such as India Mahdavi and the Art of Living collection, blending tradition, craftsmanship, and innovation into a language that feels both timeless and attuned to the now.

image sources: Press office

BASE NOTES

The olfactory voyage reaches its final chapter in the base notes intense, enduring, and intimate, those elements that cling to the skin and give the fragrance its lasting identity. In Colonia Il Profumo Millesimato, patchouli and vetiver form this foundation, adding depth, structure, and a refined woody elegance that anchors the entire composition with quiet confidence.

For Acqua di Parma, these base notes also symbolise the pillars on which the Maison builds its future. They reflect continuity, evolution, and the celebration of 110 years of history. Among these pillars stands the Middle East, a longstanding and strategic market. As Giulio Bergamaschi explains, it is a land of true perfume connoisseurs and one of the cradles of perfumery itself. Engaging with such a sophisticated audience has reinforced the Maison’s commitment to authenticity, remaining faithful to its identity rather than crafting fragrances merely to satisfy specific markets. In doing so, Acqua di Parma has recognised that these discerning clients value precisely the Italianità that defines the brand.

This dialogue has translated into a stronger presence in the region, beginning with the opening of a boutique at the Dubai Mall in 2017, followed by a new store in Riyadh in January 2025, both affirming the significance of these markets and their appreciation for genuine Italian craftsmanship.

The global anniversary campaign further embodies this sense of foundation. Directed by Talia Collis and photographed by Brett Lloyd, it acts as a symbolic base note, enduring and grounding, much like the relationships cultivated in the Middle East. Parma remains the narrative’s beating heart, featuring figures such as Michael Fassbender and Sabrina Impacciatore. A travelling exhibition, launching in October 2026 and extending through 2027, celebrates the city’s Arte di Vivere, where culture, heritage, and Italian identity meet in seamless harmony.

APPLICATION

Having traced the arc from top to heart to base, the final gesture is simple: to wear the fragrance. With every spray, the radiant opening notes spark the senses, the heart reveals its warmth and character, and the base settles gracefully, leaving a trail of enduring sophistication.

In this intimate ritual, the scent begins its narrative again,this time on your own skin. Asked how Acqua di Parma might appear if conceived today, Giulio Bergamaschi suggests it would remain essentially unchanged: luminous, deeply human, natural, and free of artifice.

Each application thus becomes more than a daily habit; it transforms into a small, deliberate act of the Arte di Vivere.