Autumn Smells Like...

Has anyone ever really been able to define the scent of autumn air?  I see candles that boast "Vermont in Autumn" or "Autumn Leaves" or some other concoction of autumn-ness, but none of them ever really capture that intense, brisk, smoky yet crisp air that just makes you want to take deep breaths at every possible moment.


I was walking down Filbert St after I parked my car this evening, and there it was...that scent, that luscious scent that makes me want to run away to a forest and try to capture it in a bottle.  Mind you, this is San Francisco, and there are few pine trees in my 'hood, but somehow, someway, that scent is still there.  If I could bottle a cologne to smell like that, I swear I would never wear anything else. So this is my attempt to "bottle" the scent.  I'm open to additions and suggestions as I most definitely might be off, but this is what my nose is telling me:


Smoke from a fireplace burning real wood:

Borrow from http://www.didierbeck.com

Crisp pine needles covered in frost to give it that pine-y briskness:

Borrowed from http://www.thedailygreen.com/

Cigarette smoke:

Borrowed from http://flickr.com from Weeping-WIllow

Autumn leaves:

Borrowed from http://www.obit-mag.com/

Thyme:

Borrowed from http://i.ehow.com/

And finally, nutmeg:

Borrowed from http://static.howstuffworks.com/

That is my fall scent assessment.  I think the smokiness nails it the most...that and the briskness, but how anyone can define the scent of brisk is beyond my knowledge at the moment.

So if you haven't realized the crisp fall air yet by now, do yourself a huge favor and step outside in the early morning or in the evening at dusk or after dark and take a deep breath...really let your lungs fill with this sensational air, and tell me what you smell.