Encens d’Osmanthe Perfume

As a perfumer, I try to grow as many of the flowers used in perfumery as possible, in my climate. Not only do I extract their scents through various techniques, also I can study the living diffusions of fragrance. While I’m not trying to make an exact representation of the real flower, the renderings often come close. What interests me most is giving dimension that approximates the impression of living flowers, an atmosphere that envelops them, the “heart” that lives through them.

Osmanthus is one of the perfumery flowers I grow. Its miniscule flowers are potent enough so one bloom scents a whole room. You would smell juicy apricot, dried fruits, suede or kidskin glove leather, and far more subtle whiffs of sweet violet and rosewater. Osmanthus offers a changeling aroma, and so here I paired it with jasmine and incense, delicately smokiness from my own Lapsang Souchong extraction, various woods & resins, including piñon pine, which must be handled very carefully not to overwhelm.

This is a rich, mysterious but joyful fragrance.