In Pursuit for Natural Perfumes
A well known tandem of perfume experts Luca Turin & Tania Sanchez published last summer their new book Perfumes, The Guide. They evaluated more then 1200 perfumes that have been launched in the last ten years, marking them from 1 to 5 stars. It was interesting to find some natural perfumes included. Some of them got even as much as 4 stars!
So if you prefer natural perfumes, but have difficulties in tracing them on the market, following information might be useful. Here are the 4 star ones:
- La Via del Profumo / Dominique Dubrana
Milano Caffe
“The roasted coffee-cocoa top notes – usually disastrous in perfumery – are rich, familiar, and light hearted start to what turns out to be a serious fragrance, with a beautiful vetiver heart and drydown of impeccable dryness amd transparency. Recommended.”
Sensemilla
“an intense green-peppery top note halfway between geranium leaf and galbanum, which morphed sea,lessly and aerobatically into a beautiful, clean, smooth lavender without any of the caramal off-notes that usually spoil the fun”.
Venezia Giardini Segreti
“is a huge, delightful jasmine reminiscent of the sambac variety, green-fresh, almost lemony. It them settles to a pleasant, more straightforward celery-jasmine note. About halfway into the drydown, however, something strange happens, and the jasmine morphs into a very convincing gardenia. How did this happen? My guess is that because ambergris smells of mushrooms, and Dominique Dubrana nas put a hefty dollop in the formula, that’s what showing through. If so, he has hit a trick that is likely to be emulated, since durable gardenia have so far proved impossible to achieve. Excellent.”
- April Aromatics / Tanja Boching
Ray of Light
“I never thought I’d live to say this about natural, indeed all-organic perfume, but this is without a doubt the absolute best citrus top note I have ever smelled. If you can smell this without simultaneously salivating and shivering, see a doctor.”
Tempted Muse
“Sunshine in a bottle: a resplendent accord of jasmine, frangipani, and tuberose, achieving mysteriously salty-metallic effect up top followed a deliciously natural, complex floral heart. Easily the most durchkomponiert of Tanja Botching’s range, and remarkably solid, graceful, and interesting for all-natural fragrance. If you love florals and hate chemistry, this one’s for you.”
- Soivohle / Liz Zorn
Meerschaum
“I find this type of fragrance, basically the dark half of Mitsouko with more spice, so wonderfully reassuring and restorative that my powers of analysis desert me.”
Riverton Road
“I am a sucker for both a decent lavender and bay rum, so how could I possibly resist this clever Combination? This clever masculine travels the same road as Jean-Michel Duriez’s Yohji Homme(1999) and is unpretentious, polite, and charming.”
Anna Zworykina Perfumes / Anna Zworykina
Tobacco Tuberose
“As in the brilliant Twilly d’Hermes, tuberose here subs in for lavender in a traditionally masculinecoumarin context, to excellent effect. Though Zworykina’s stated guiding principle is a perfumery of entirely natural materials, it somehow smells pleasurably of photocopier machines.”
So, smell natural & feel well!
