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source adage fragrances
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source adage fragrances
New York-born indie house creating destination-inspired, gender-neutral perfumes and home scents now based in Tuscany.
About source adage fragrances
source adage fragrances was founded in 2015 in Hudson, New York, by creative directors Christopher Draghi and Robert Dobay. The brand began in a re-envisioned 1830s Greek Revival house on Warren Street, where the founders combined their backgrounds in design and branding with an interest in place-driven scent composition. Both founders previously worked for many years as creative directors and brand designers before turning their attention to fragrance.
From the start, source adage positioned itself around landscapes, architecture, and cultural environments, translating specific locations into gender-neutral eau de parfums and home fragrances. Collections are typically framed around destinations, with fragrances structured to suggest atmosphere, climate, and local materials rather than conventional perfume pyramids. The brand’s compositions are described by retailers as long-lasting eau de parfum with a focus on depth and mood rather than overt sweetness.
In 2024, source adage relocated its headquarters and creative base from Hudson to Riparbella in coastal Tuscany, Italy, opening the "adage studio olfattivo" in a historic palazzetto overlooking vineyards and olive groves. Production and creative work now center on this Tuscan studio while maintaining the New York-born identity highlighted repeatedly in the brand’s own materials.
The brand operates independently, without a listed parent company, and is often categorized by stockists and industry observers as an indie or niche house. It has developed a following among fragrance enthusiasts who seek destination-inspired, gender-neutral scents and coordinated home products, with distribution through its own website and select retailers in Europe and the United States.
At a Glance
The Brand
Founded
2015
Founder
Christopher Draghi and Robert Dobay
Country
United States
Category
Indie
Scent Personality
Worth It?
Scent DNA
Aromatic
Woody
Resinous
Smoky
- Scents are typically destination-led, built to evoke specific landscapes and built environments rather than abstract note lists, which gives them a cinematic, place-specific character
- Compositions tend to lean woody, resinous, and slightly smoky with moderate sweetness, often paired with herbal, mineral, or maritime nuances and a preference for gender-neutral structures
- Packaging and naming strongly reinforce the sense-of-place angle, so you can often guess the intended landscape from the bott
Typical Performance
Longevity
Long
Projection
Moderate
Positioning
A indie, premium house known for aromatic compositions.
How It Compares
- → Conceptually similar to Imaginary Authors
- → Atmospheric and landscape-focused like D.S. & Durga
- → More resinous and woody than Jo Malone London
- → Less sweet and crowd-pleasing than Maison Francis Kurkdjian
Who It's For
Best For
- Fragrance enthusiasts who like narrative, place-driven perfumes
- Wearers who prefer gender-neutral woody and aromatic scents
- Autumn and winter wear, or cool evenings year round
- Home scenting with coordinated candles and room sprays
- Collectors interested in smaller indie houses with a clear concept
Strengths & Weaknesses
Strengths
- Clear, coherent concept built around landscapes and destinations, which makes the brand easy to understand and explore.[2][3][6]
- Generally long-lasting eau de parfum with solid performance for the category.[3][6]
- Gender-neutral positioning with a focus on woods, resins and atmosphere appeals to those who dislike overtly sweet or stereotypically masculine/feminine formulas.[3][6][11]
- Strong visual and design language reflecting the founders’ design background, giving the line a cohesive aesthetic presence.[2][5][7]
Weaknesses
- Distribution is still limited, so sampling can be difficult outside selected retailers and the brand’s own channels.[3][5][6]
- The destination/storytelling angle may feel repetitive or overly conceptual if you prefer straightforward note-driven marketing.[2][6][11]
- Signature style leans woody, resinous and atmospheric, so those who want bright, sweet or mass-appeal florals may not find many options here.[3][6][11]
Brand Evolution
The brand began in 2015 in Hudson, New York, with a strong focus on destination-inspired fine fragrances and home scents tied to the founders’ design-driven retail space. Over time, the range expanded in both personal and home fragrance while sharpening the gender-neutral positioning and narrative emphasis. In 2024, source adage shifted its creative center to Riparbella, Tuscany, reinforcing a European coastal and rural landscape influence and creating the adage studio olfattivo as its new base. The move suggests a gradual evolution from local Hudson Valley storytelling toward a broader, Mediterranean-informed sense of place while maintaining the original New York-born identity.
Quick Verdict
A focused indie house for people who care about atmosphere and landscape more than mass-appeal sweetness or trend-chasing. If you like woody, resinous, destination-driven scents and do not mind hunting samples, source adage is worth seeking out.
source adage fragrances Perfumes