Secrets of the Trade

There is a well-kept secret in the fragrance industry: A secret Perfume Shrine has been privy to, but not sworn to secrecy and if she doesn't reveal sources, all is well. So, my sweeties, today I will reveal it to you!
Yes, yes, I know you will cast unbelieving and imploring puppy eyes to the Shrine and ultimately want to say "Nah...Helg is having a bitchy day, that's all!". But no, I swear to you that this comes from inside info and is very credible.

We have talked time and again how it is my personal opinion based on several little factoids from observation and discussions that people when judging a fragrance rely as much on their eyes as they do on their noses, if not more. What I mean: there is the undeniable brand recognition which even though is often pooh-poohed, it usually does feature right there in the factors that contribute in making a decision to even sample a fragrance in the first place. The latest discussion I initiated on Perfume of Life on this produced interesting results. It sounds like a trusted house, a brand which produces perfumes that are simpatico to one's sensibilities or which has a interesting reputation is more likely to get customers to sample their other products as well. Of course this is not exactly inventing the wheel: it applies in so many other markets as well. But it is especially applicable in perfumery, it seems. If one consolidates a brand well enough, then customer interest will be forever piqued. This is what happened with Serge Lutens and his olfactory seraglio of lovelies. Even the less lovelies are not wont for desire to sample. Every new Serge is a thirst to be quenched! The same applies to Chanel. And in so many more ways than one.

Coco Chanel herself had the wonderful knack of knowing how to provide what women wanted, yet did not know they wanted it just yet. This is a quality that marks the successful enterpreneur from the unsuccessful one and it is -completely coincidentally I am sure- the secret of the marketability of Tom Ford and everything he touches (ewww).
But to revert to Chanel. The brand has a solid, unshakable seal of approval. It's the Homeric καλος κιαγαθος (=beautiful and virtuous): no woman -or man, for that matter- who wears Chanel could be accused of commiting a serious faux pas in the eyes of good taste. It's the brand with the highest visibility of all luxury brands, the one which most people recognise at a glance, the one who has safe-guarded its pedigree best of all and the one who has been faked most; which only serves to prove that people desire it desperately.
Chanel No.5 is so iconic that it has stayed in the top 5 of perfume bestsellers in France for years (to be slightly nudged off its pedestral by Angel in recent years) and it features among the top 10 or at least top 15 in almost every market it is available. It is this which has earned No.5 the moniker le monstre (=the monster; against which everything is compared to in terms of sales), because of its immense marketability. The thing practically sells itself.
And yet (and here is the catch), when participating in blind tests, the fragrance does especially poor! This is something that has been discussed in the corridors of Firmenich, Givaudan, International Flavors and Fragrances and the rest of those hidden pillars of capitalism for some time now. But the average customer does not frequent those places, ergo he/she is unaware of those facts. What is left is hearsay and their own nose. And so often the former is commenting deafeningly louder than the subleties of the latter.

And yet there are people who object with their nose more than their eyes. You might call it whatever you like, but it's there, it's tangible and it's a share of the market that is breathing and kicking and yielding bucks in the pocket. So not to be patronised. I came across this fascinating recount:

"i'll eventually figure out the note in perfumes like that, but right now i'm calling it "french". there are fragrances that smell french to me, it's a sharp powdery/sweet note that makes me think of grannies. maybe when i'm a granny i'll decide to smell like that.

i've tried chanel 5 on me so many times, always hoping for a different result. even in the dry down, i hate it. and i hear these young celebrities bragging about wearing it, and i think, "there's no way you actually like how that smells. you're wearing it for the name". it's been one of the most popular fragrances since it's release and i can't figure out why".

~from If Only it Were Fiction blog

Don't get me wrong: I like Chanel No.5. In fact I own some and have been enjoying it for years. It was first given to me at the tender age of 14: "every girl should try out Chanel No.5" the fairy-godmother told me. I even keep some in extrait de parfum form. But is it the be all and end all of fragrances? Probably not.

I thought you might want to be privy to this secret as well. Let's call it our secret handshake ;-)

Eddie: Sweetie, what are you drinking?
Patsy: Oh this? Chanel No. 5.

~from Absolutely Fabulous

Pic from Chanel 2001-2002 campaign courtesy of Elegant Lifestyle

The perfect drug?

Under the weather with the flu (which seems to strike at the Ides of March!). So, a little open poll for you in accompaniment to one of my most favourite clips.

Which scent would you choose as a background for this?




I simply love everything about it: So Beaudelairesque!

Clip of The Perfect Drugby Nine Inch Nails, from the soundtrack of Lost Highway

Scent your Home for Spring

How can one do without friends? Fragrant friends are especially wonderful, if only because they introduce you to delights of the senses that forever tie their memory with the feelings thus provoked. One of those friends sent me some Jacques Garcia Gold. And the elation of sniffing recalled the wonderful traits of this lovely lady who has been spoiling me rotten!

Jacques Garcia Gold is an orange blossom scent: it was therefore natural that it would attract the attention of Perfume Shrine which has so much elaborated on orange blossom in the past. {click the link for our series}
Jacques Garcia is, amongst many famous international places, the interior designer of Hôtel Costes in Paris, La Mamounia in Marrackech, La Reserve in Geneva, Casino de Montreux in Switzerland, L'Avenue Restaurant in Paris, Jean-Georges in NYC and Hotel Victor in South Beach...
Jacques Garcia had the lovely idea of launching a line of home fragrances in room spray and candle form to scent all those sumptuous interiors and to do that he collaborated with Rami Mekdachi. The latter is a true sorcerer of scent who actively sought to create "perfume for modern temples". His diverse portfolio of artistic direction encompases the opulent brocades of the Hôtel Costes scents, the leathery smoothness of the exclusive fragrance for the infamous dancing venue VIP Room, as well as in the eponymous fragrance for the famous Colette boutique and Pierre Frapin Cognac. Not to forget ’Scent Lab’, the fragrance forecast bible for the cognoscenti.

With a background of marketing at a major cosmetics company as well as being a musician, Rami Mekdachi found the perfect fusion of art and business in the world of perfumery: "Music has the ability to bring you to a certain period of your life, to remind you of special moments. The same can be said of perfume, and yet, the effect of scent is even more powerful, because it acts on the subconsious level and opens the mind to a whole new arena of emotions".
All this with a nod to the ancient tradition of scent being a means to transport one to a different mood upon entering a sacred place. Very simpatico with Perfume Shrine's philosophy!

The nose chosen by Mekdachi to recreate these feelings in the Jacques Garcia line of ambience scents was the great Pierre Bourdon: the nose behind such elegant compositions of light cyclamen as Iris Poudre,the ethereal chiffon of Ferré by Ferré, as well as enduring bestsellers like Cool Water for men.

Gold is the freshest whiff of orange blossoms swaying in the spring breeze, bringing promises of happiness and insouciance, the glimpse of sunny days ahead and destinations in the Mediterranean where groves full of bitter orange trees look like white fairies in the wind.
The smell is simple, yet heavenly, as it engulfs you in its initial hesperidic freshness making the nostrils smile with pleasure. In a minute the blossom is there, true, honeyed and realistic as if a citrus aurantia tree is growing its branches beneath your windows, with the scent of wood as an afterthought. I have been known to put this on skin, as a personal scent, to uplift the spirits.
The bottle is one of the most decadent ones I have ever seen for a room fragrance, yielding itself to the frou-frou look of a boudoir atomiser in midnight blue with a tassel in silk thread and gold filigree design on the front. The candle is a comparable affair of indulgent decoration that will bring a touch of glamour to any coffee table. They're perfectly transporting!

The candle comes in 6.7oz, while the room spray comes in a 3.4oz bottle. Available at Aedes.
The line also includes Silver, a tuberose scent and Bronze, a scent based on myrrh. I can't wait to try those out as well.


So, what will you use to scent your home this spring?

Pics courtesy of Aedes

Launch of new products by Ayala Moriel

The first real day of Spring is bringing new aromas in the breeze... We received news of new launches that promise a touch of green:

Ayala Moriel Parfums is pleased to announce the release of Gaucho on March 21st a new perfume and tea based on the esteemed yerbamate of South America. Gaucho perfume was in the making for 6 years and has now finally reached its destination.

Gaucho perfume is named for the South American cowboys of the Pampas and an homage for a song by this name by Steely Dan. Coumarin is the soul of Gaucho from the bitter yerbamate to that sweetness of hay and rosemary and the alluring deertongue (liatrix). Bergamot and galbanum add sparkling greenery and Africa stone tincture adds a raw, animalistic-leathery undertones.

Top notes: Bergamot, Neroli, Galbanum, Absinthe

Heart notes: Seville Lavender, Broom, Rosemary Absolute, Guiacwood, Jasmine Auriculatum

Base notes: Matι, Africa Stone Tincture, Angelica, Deertongue

Fragrance Family: Ambery Herbaceous Fougere

But there's more! There is also a flavoured tea that is perfumed with a scent similar to that of Gaucho fragrance, a practice that was introduced by Ayala last winter with her Immortelle L'amour and the accompanying tea.

Gaucho Perfumed Tea by Dawna Ehman
Fresh herbaceous notes of lemongrass and rosemary highlight bitter green yerba mate and sencha tea leaf to capture the Fougere-like essence of 'sparkling greenery' that is Gaucho. Damiana leaf, spearmint and the true coumarin quality of red clover blossom soften the aromatic finish and taste profile of this beguiling tea.

Gaucho perfumed tea is the perfect balance of spring color and flavor- and in being so, gently and safely stimulates the very activities that support spring's expansive, rising qualities within us. When sweetened with a slight amount of raw sugar or green stevia, Gaucho tea balances the stimulating energetic actions of spring in a form that is unique in quality and pleasure.

Its ingredients, sourced throughout the world are 100% Certified Organic.

Perfume Shrine will return with reviews of Gaucho and the new gardenia soliflore by Ayala Moriel, Gigi. Stay tuned!

Check back later today for another, surprise post!

Pic provided by Ayala Moriel Parfums

Travel Memoirs: Istanbul part3

Desserts in Turkey take on many aromatic guises in their war-like mission to ruin one's waistline and walking through the marketplace one faces its own portable amunition.
One of the most famous, referenced even in The Chronicles of Narnia, is Turkish Delight: lokum or loukoum. Contrary to what one might be led to believe from homonymous perfumes circulating, such as Rahat Loukoum by Lutens and Loukhoum by Keiko Mecheri, the traditional jelly-like delicasy, lightly dusted so as not to stick, isn't made with almond nor cherry. Instead lokoum is made from starch and sugar and aromatized with rose water and lemon, giving it a refreshing flavour, justifying the Arab name rahat al-hulkum (=contentment of the throat). Varieties might include little cubes with other nuts such as pistachios or walnuts and some types even have a touch of cinnamon or mint aroma.

Another olfactory delight is Salep, a traditional winter drink sold by street vendors in big copper caldrons. Salep is produced by grinding the dried tubers of Orchis mascula, Orchis militaris and related species of orchids, which contain a starch-like polysaccharide, bassorin, with nutritional and heartening properties. It has a reputation of being an aphrodisiac (which might be accounted by the etymology of its plant source, relating it to the Greek word for testicle!). It is milky, flavoured with rosewater or mastic and dusted with cinnamon or nutmeg, to be optionally sprinkled with crushed walnuts on top. Salep enters along with mastic into the traditional Turkish ice-cream, Dondurma, which is much stickier and resistant to melting than regular ice-cream or gelato.

A perfume that has being inspired by this drink is Ayala Moriel's Sahleb. A wonderful comforting fragrance with a starchy pudding quality about it, it gives you the cosy feeling of sipping a dessert rich in buttery creaminess with the aromatic tinge of mastic that recalls the Mediterranean. There is no floral clearly discernible, yet if one leans one's head and inhales deeply, there comes the subtle nuance of the traditional rosy loukoums of the Bazaar, down to the dusty, powdery feel of coconutty copra enrobing them. Vanillic goodness in restrained doses compliments the fluffy and nutty flavour of this softest of gourmands. It makes me nostalgize of the true salep on the streets of Istanbul. Sadly the true thing is forbidden to be exported. But how lucky are we that there is a fix in the form of a fragrance!

After all this indulgence, one needs to come to terms with one's body. When in Rome do as the Romans do. In this Nova Roma, who could deny a Turkish bath? Cagaloglu Hamami is one of the most famous hammams in the city, constructed in 1741 to bring revenue to the library of Sultan Mahmut I, situated inside the Haghia Sophia mosque. It receives both men (from the main street entrace, on Hilal-I Ahmer) and women (from the side street entrance).
Stepping into the various cubicles and rooms with terlik (a kind of slippers) on the feet and a pestemal (clothing wrap), one can see a raised platform of stone (goebektas) in the center, with bathing alcoves all around, in coloured quartz tiles which remove static and help unwind, by sweating and sustaining an internal dialogue. A sight to behold is the pool in the middle of the camegah with its waterjet.
The light is softly filtered through glass from the ceiling in the hot room (Hararet), with small star-like windows on the domes. The air is fragrant with the essences of various unguents and the mind is dizzied into a reverie. The exfoliation with kese is blissful, using lavender, tea, chamomile and olive oil soap. One can bring their own products and Harvey Nichols at 185 Kanyon Alýþveriþ Merkezi provides a rich selection, among which the organic Jo Wood line (by the wife of Ronnie of the Rolling Stones). Amka Bath Oil contains Persian rose Otto, feminine Egyptian jasmine, along with neroli and bergamot for their uplifting effect. Mmmmm...
Next one can require a relaxing massage to recuperate and energise the muscles, which is followed with hair washing and a cold shower, before drinking dark tea, aromatic and dense, at the old marble café-bar. One could get really spoiled in this place!

And yet in the strange, lucid melancholy of such an abode, I cannot help but wonder how many women or men with tragic love tales, unfulfilled desires and bittersweet memories have passed from here through the years, sighing and opening their souls to one another as mussels do when steamed.

Like this most touching tale: A Touch of Spice(Politiki Kouzina). A young Greek boy (Fanis) grows up in Istanbul, whose grandfather, a culinary philosopher and mentor,teaches him that both food and life require a little salt to give them flavor; they both require... a Touch of Spice. Fanis and his parents leave Istnabul during the 1963 deportation of Greeks. He grows up to become an astronomer and an excellent cook using his cooking skills to spice up the lives of those around him. 35 years later he leaves Athens and travels back to his birthplace of Istanbul to reunite with his grandfather and his childhood love, the Turkish girl Saïme, now married with a daughter; he travels back only to realize that he forgot to put a little bit of spice in his own life...



The song (Baharat, tarçın ve buse) translates as:

"That night you left me
you went with a pinch of spice
a shadow inside the marketplace
I laid salt on the streets of Beyoglu
to find you in the hideouts

A kiss of cinnamon and spice,
recipe hidden in the attic
Moonlight and the Bosphorus lonely
That lighthouse is our childhood love"

On that bittersweet note, we will leave the enchanting Istanbul behind...
But Travel Memoirs will take you to another fascinating destination soon.

Loukoums through Fotosearch. Painting In the Trepidarium by Sir Lawrence Alma Tadema (c.1903), originally uploaded on Mary's blog. Clip from the film Politiki Kouzina/A touch of Spice from Youtube, uploaded by JasonSeaman1