The Story
Why it exists.
The beginning
Touch was released in 2017 as part of the introduction of a fragrance line by Ann Ringstrand. The scent was developed alongside a small collection that approached perfumery as a sensory practice, with each piece offered as a single-word concept rather than a marketing narrative. The brand's own copy describes it as warm skin touching soul skin, positioning Touch less as a story and more as a feeling to be inhabited. On the skin, it opens with a leathery, spicy, powdery character, anchored by a quartet of juniper berry, black pepper, coriander, and carrot seed that gives the composition its earthy, faintly bitter backbone. Juniper brings the cool, piney snap that cuts through the warmth, while black pepper adds a dry, almost dusty heat that prickles at the surface.
What makes Touch unusual is its leading role for carrot seed, a note most perfumers bury in aromatics or skip entirely. Here it sits in the top tier alongside black pepper and juniper, lending a dry, almost rootlike dustiness that reads as cool weather on skin. The heart keeps things smoky and grounded, frankincense lending its resinous weight without tipping churchy, guaiac wood doubling down on the burnt-papery character. Then the base goes full animalic and dry, papyrus and castoreum supplying a leathery, slightly bitter backbone that oud sharpens rather than sweetens. It is a structure that runs cool-to-warm-to-raw, deliberate, and willing to leave comfort behind.
The evolution
The opening lands with a dry snap. Carrot seed and black pepper arrive almost chalky, the juniper threading through like cold air over juniper brush on a hillside. There is a brief powdery lift from the coriander, and for the first 15 minutes the scent reads almost medicinal, green and bitter. Then frankincense takes over, softening the pepper without dulling it, and guaiac wood enters like a slow cigarette, smoky, papery, the scent of a fireplace hours after the flame has gone. The heart phase lasts roughly two hours, and it is the most generous part of Touch, warm but not sweet, leathery without smelling like a saddlery. By the third hour the castoreum begins to surface, that slightly animalic, fur-and-bark quality that oud sharpens further.
Cultural impact
Touch by Ann Ringstrand draws on a palette that has become quietly influential in contemporary independent perfumery, particularly through its use of carrot seed, black pepper, and juniper as central rather than supporting notes. Carrot seed, in particular, has earned a devoted following among collectors who appreciate its dry, rooty, almost loamy character, a note that reads more like a walk through turned earth than a traditional floral or gourmand accord. Pairing it with black pepper brings a sharper, spicier counterpoint, one that gives the composition a sense of friction and warmth without tipping into sweetness.
