< Home

Lavender and aromatic notes

Do you think you know lavender? It is often confused with lavandin.
The evocations are of course the cupboards of our grandmothers, the road of the holidays, the beard soaps or the old-fashioned soaps.

 

Carla Lavender

Mon Guerlain perfume features this new lavender Carla using a process that produces an essence with the scent that is very close to the one of the flower.

This lavender is exceptional, organic and edible. It tastes like it smells, and was discovered following a meeting with Guerlain and the Maison Le Nôtre.

It is much more expensive than classic lavender (about 10 times the price). It is more floral, light, fine and especially fruitier.
It doesn't have the hay-like side that classic lavender might have.
To my knowledge, only Guerlain and Chanel use this beautiful lavender.

A few years ago, I wrote an article on lavender and lavandin. But as it is very present in perfumery lately, I thought it would be interesting to talk about it again as well as about rosemary and thyme.

 

Classic Lavender

Botanical name: Lavandula Angustifola
Botanical family: Lamiaceae

Originally from the Mediterranean basin, lavender is now cultivated in Bulgaria, Russia, and southern European countries such as Spain and Italy. But the south of France remains the main producer.
French production really took off with the cultivation of lavender in the South of France in Grasse, due to the beginnings of perfumery.
Lavender is still cultivated above 1000m altitude.

Since the second half of the 20th century, lavender production has become less prolific.
To replace it in industrial perfumery, lavandin (a variety of hybrid lavender, but of lower quality) was increasingly used.

There are many different varieties of lavender (Lavandula Stoechas, Lavandula Officinalis, Lavandula Spica, etc), and this plant has always been used, both by the Romans to perfume their baths, and in the Middle Ages for medicinal purposes.
It symbolizes purity and tranquility.

  • Lavender in perfumery

In perfumery, lavender can be used in the form of essence obtained by steam distillation, or in the form of absolute obtained by extraction with volatile solvents. These 2 scents are very different.

  • Olfactory description of lavender

This very aromatic and powerful note evokes southern gardens, summer, and sometimes a bit of a vintage feel (reminiscent of classic eau de Colognes).
It is also herbaceous, camphorated and medicinal. Its fresh scent includes a note of bergamot, a little floral note, and woody tones.
The percentage of linalyl will give lavender its olfactory quality.

  • Use of lavender

Generally associated with the fern family, lavender is also characteristic of eau de Cologne and men's perfumes.
However, it is also present in the composition of chypre or oriental perfumes, and today in certain feminine fragrances.

  • Main constituents of lavander

Linalool, linalyl acetate, geraniol, pinene, coumarin, camphor, thymol.

  • Perfumes containing lavender
    • Mon Guerlain by Guerlain
    • Jicky by Guerlain
    • Mouchoir de Monsieur by Guerlain
    • Shalimar by Guerlain
    • Héritage de Guerlain by Guerlain
    • Jersey by Chanel
    • Pour un homme by Caron
    • Kouros by Yves Saint Laurent
    • Eternity for men by CK
    • Belle en Rykiel by Sonia Rykiel
    • Brin de Réglisse by Hermès
    • Bleu by Chanel
    • Lavender Palm by Tom Ford
    • Encens et Lavande by Serge Lutens
    • Le Mâle by Gaultier
    • Luna Rossa by Prada 

 

 

Lavandin

Botanical name: Lavandula Burnati
Botanical family: Lamiaceae

A cousin of lavender, lavandin is a variety of hybrid lavender obtained by crossing Lavandula Vera and Lavandula Spica.
Mainly harvested in the south of France and cultivated since the 1930s, lavandin is widely used today to replace lavender.
Indeed, the cultivation of lavender encountered some difficulties.
Lavandin is more productive in terms of quantity of essential oil, even if it gives an essential oil of less good olfactory quality than lavender.
There are 3 varieties of lavandin: Lavandin Grosso, Lavandin Abrial, and Lavandin Super. Lavandin Grosso is the one that is most commonly cultivated.

  • Olfactory description of lavandin

Like lavender, lavandin essence is obtained by steam distillation. This aromatic note is more camphorated than lavender, fresh, a little woody, spicy, and offers a less chic and less refined side than real lavender. This slightly soapy note is mainly used in cleansers and soaps, and in general in functional perfumery.

 

Rosemary

Botanical name: Rosemarinus Officinalis - Lamiaceae
Olfactory family: Aromatic

Rosemary is now cultivated in Spain, Morocco and Italy. It needs arid and rocky soils to grow.
It has many phytotherapeutic virtues and is also widely used in cooking.
In the Middle Ages, rosemary was said to ward off evil spirits. It was also the wedding flower in the time of Charlemagne.

  • Rosemary in perfumery

Rosemary has been used in perfumery for a very long time (proof of this is the Eau de la Reine de Hongrie in the 17th century, which contained a lot of it). Rosemary essence is obtained by distilling its leaves and flowers.

  • Olfactory description of rosemary

An aromatic note, rosemary is fresh, herbaceous and camphorated. It is also woody in its evolution, powerful, lavender and bitter, and has accents of incense and animal notes. Eau de Cologne, men's fragrances, citrus fragrances, and fragrances with fresh notes tend to contain rosemary (this can also be the case for oriental fragrances as top notes).

  • Use of rosemary

Rosemary is obviously used in eau de Cologne, there is certainly some in Jicky and Heure Bleue. The fragrance that contains the most rosemary to my knowledge is Tonka Impériale (Guerlain exclusives), a contrast between an overdose of rosemary and tonka bean.

  • Main constituents of rosemary

Camphor, cineol, borneol, eucalyptol, terpenes.

 

Thyme

Botanical name: Thymus Vulgaris
Botanical family: Lamiaceae

Used by the Egyptians and Greeks as incense, thyme comes today from France, Spain, Algeria.
Lemon thyme, wild thyme and German thyme are among the many varieties of this herb.

  • Thyme in perfumery

In spring and summer, the thyme branches are dried and then distilled with steam. This process makes it possible to obtain thyme essence. This aromatic plant offers a very intense camphorated, herbaceous, spicy and medicinal note. It is very present in eau de Cologne, aromatic perfumes and certain spicy oriental perfumes.

  • Main components of thyme

Borneol, linalool, geraniol, terpineol, thymol, pinene, camphene, cymene.

  • Use of thyme

Thyme is also used in eau de Cologne, and can be found in spicy oriental or chypre accords.

  • Perfume containing thyme 
    • L'eau Noire by Dior
    • Heure Bleue by Guerlain

 

Sylvaine Delacourte perfumes

Found lavender notes in Dovana and rosemary notes in Virgile and Helicriss.

Discover Sylvaine Delacourte's brand with her Orange Blossom, Musk and Vanilla Collections. You can try them thanks to the Discovery Boxes (5 Eaux de Parfum x 2 ml) and rediscover these raw materials as you have never smelled them before.