What is Autumnal?

I've always associated "autumnal" with the smell of a damp forest loam in a deciduous forest. I grew up as a boy in an oak/maple forest and I've found that the scent of freshly oxygenated air (more oxygen in fall then in summer) and a forest with fallen leaves (whether dry or damp) carries with it the characteristics of so-called "Autumnal" single malt scotches that I've tasted and very much enjoyed over the years.

To me, Scapa is "Autumnal" but to someone else, Caol Ila might be autumnal due to the smoky characteristics associated with autumn fires in the hearth.

When we think of scotch terminology, it helps to remember that many of the terms originated in Scotland. So the vegetation, foods, spices, and other things that generate sensory experiences (used by way of comparison) often have to do with Scotland and even England or Ireland to some extent since, historically speaking, that used to be the primary market for sales of Scotch whisky. Many prominent whisky critics are still English, as we all know. I happen to live in a latitude and a place with many of the same vegetation, as well as many of the same foods, spices, and beverages as those which are found in the UK, so I feel fairly at home with the tasting terms used by connosrs.

Trips to the UK have helped to fill in the blanks. For instance "Christmas cake" is slightly different in Scotland and England than in the the part of the United States where I live, where it is called "fruit cake." This term also has a negative connotation when used to describe a person, "That guy's a real fruit cake."

Autumnal can be used in connection with autumn fruits, autumn smoke from fires, and many other things as well. I might be mistaken, but I'm not entirely sure if the term is an industry standard or not.

If a bottle references "autumn fruits"-- which fruits do you suppose that refers to?

@vanPelt I would think apples, maybe peaches