The Gourmand facet
Before defining the gourmand facet, it is important to understand the complex architecture of a perfume. A fragrance is built around 5 to 10 different components that together becomes an accord.
The main accord of the fragrance can be dressed with several facets. The more facets a perfume has, the more complex it will be.
Fragrances are also divided into 6 olfactory families (citrus, floral, amber or oriental, chypre, woody and fern) and into many olfactory facets, including the gourmand facet.
The Gourmand facet
Before defining the gourmand facet, it is important to understand the complex architecture of a perfume. A fragrance is built around 5 to 10 different components that together becomes an accord. The main accord of the fragrance can be dressed with several facets. The more facets a perfume has, the more complex it will be. Fragrances are also divided into 6 olfactory families (citrus, floral, amber or oriental, chypre, woody and fern) and into many olfactory facets, including the gourmand facet.
What is the gourmand facet?
In perfumery, the gourmand facet is a new expression of femininity. Contrary to salty, acidic or bitter flavors, the sweet taste of the gourmand facet has a regressive effect and tends to evoke a certain nostalgia related to the sweets, cakes and toys of our childhood.
Adolescence is often marked by gourmand and sweet perfumes but they are also appreciated by adults because they are refined and leave a powerful wake.
History of gourmand perfumes
The first vanilla perfumes were not officially declared as "gourmand".
Guerlain made a significant contribution to the development of this facet with fragrances such as La Guerlinade with its vanilla, vanillin, tonka bean, resins and patchouli accord found in Shalimar 1925 and Habit Rouge 1965. There was also a gourmand facet in Heure Bleue 1912 with its marshmallow accord based on orange blossom and vanilla as well as in many other perfumes from the House of Guerlain.
Without Shalimar, there would not have been the perfume Angel (1992) which was the first to have officially been declared as gourmand with its patchouli, red fruits and caramel accord. Angel became the leader of this new wave of gourmand perfumes, followed by Lolita Lempicka and many others.
You will find the marshmallow accord in Florentina from Sylvaine Delacourte's Musk Collection (the marshmallow accord is the association of orange blossom and vanilla).
The natural notes of the gourmand facet
The palette of the gourmet facet is very wide. There are notes of vanilla, benzoin, tonka bean, as well as many synthetic products.
Vanilla
The sweet notes used in perfumery to reproduce the scent of vanilla are, in fact, synthetic molecules: vanillin and ethylvanillin.
There are different species of vanilla :
- Planifolia vanilla: it comes from an orchid in Mexico and it used to be pollinated by a bee. Today, the pollen is collected by hand by women who are known as "matchmakers". It takes a year and a half to obtain the fruit, the black vanilla bean, which is then boiled, covered for a whole day, then dried in the sun which eliminates all the bacteria.
- The vanilla of Madagascar: it is a rare and luxurious material, therefore very expensive because it has real olfactory wonders with milky, honeyed, amber, woody, spicy, animal, and rum notes.
- Another species of vanilla from the botanical variety Tahitensis is more floral.
Vanilla can be processed in two ways: by macerating the chopped beans in alcohol for one month (a technique that is no longer practiced today, it was used to obtain the vanilla tincture) or by extracting the beans with a volatile solvent, which makes it possible to create the vanilla absolute. The scent of vanilla can also be obtained from synthetic products (vanillin and ethylvanillin).
It is said that vanilla is a remedy against anxiety, and that it brings strength and health.
You will find the vanilla of Madagascar in Sylvaine Delacourte's Vanilla Collection.
Benzoin
Benzoin is a balm secreted by the trunk of the styrax benzoin, a tree of the styracaceae family, native to Siam and Sumatra. This substance (also called "gum" or "benzoin tear") is white in its liquid state and yellow when dry.
The benzoin exhales a very suave perfume, particularly appreciated in the form of incense. In perfumery, the gum is treated by extraction with volatile solvents to obtain the benzoin absolute. This raw material has a vanilla, sweet, almond, close to roasted coffee scent, but also a slightly honeyed, floral (with a note of carnation), liquorice, even somewhat medicinal scent.
The Benzoin of Siam is the variety most appreciated by perfumers (it is very rare and expensive, and has a strong vanilla facet).
Tonka bean
The tonka bean comes from a South American tree, the dipteryx odorata. Also called "coumarouna" or "sarrapia" the tonka bean is a black seed that wrinkles as it dries out (this is when it begins to exhale its true scent). The tonka bean can be used in many ways: placed in cupboards between stacks of laundry, treated by volatile solvent extraction in perfumes to obtain tonka bean absolute, grated in pastries, or to flavor snuff and pipe tobacco, such as "Amsterdamer" (this use is now prohibited in France and the United States).
This raw material is a true fragrance in itself, thanks to its many facets of wood, balm, vanilla, almond, pistachio, tobacco, hay, etc.
The main molecule of this raw material is called coumarin, which was synthesized in 1868 (it was first used in Guerlain's Jicky with linalool and ethyl vanillin).
You will find the tonka bean note in Vahina from Sylvaine Delacourte's Vanilla Collection.
The other notes of the gourmet facet
There are many other notes used in the gourmet facet, such as :
- Bitter cocoa absolute: a slightly sweet chocolate note.
- Bitter almond: there is a natural note coming from an apricot kernel that gives this almond note, as well as benzoic aldehyde, a molecule. This natural almond is present in Florentina from the Musk Collection by Sylvaine Delacourte.
- Natural honey notes. You will find them in Vanori from the Vanilla Collection and Osiris from the Orange Blossom Collection by Sylvaine Delacourte.
Synthetic gourmand notes
The gourmand facet also includes synthetic notes such as the caramel note and the warm milk note.
- The caramel note in the gourmand facet
The caramel note consists of synthetic molecules such as ethyl-maltol, maltol, sacrasol, coumarin or furaneol. These last ones allow to obtain many notes, from caramel to cotton candy.
- The warm milk note in the gourmand facet
Lactone notes, offering a pleasant scent of warm milk, were used for the first time in Feu d'Issey Miyake.
Other synthetic gourmand notes
The chocolate note is also a synthetic note of the gourmand facet and is the base note of Givaudan's Chocovan fragrance. Fruity notes such as raspberry, strawberry, cherry and mango notes get along very well with vanilla notes. Most of these fruit notes exist thanks to the synthesis. Some of these fruity notes are now available naturally.
Fragrances with a gourmand facet
Here are a few gourmet facetted perfumes, for women and for men:
Gourmand perfumes for women
- Angel Mugler
- Lolita Lempicka
- La vie est belle Lancôme
- La Petite Robe Noire Guerlain
- L’Eau de Parfum Intense Guerlain
- Mademoiselle Rochas
- Black Opium Yves Saint-Laurent
- La Nuit Trésor Lancôme
- Hypnôse Lancôme
- Gucci Guilty Black Gucci
- Décadence Marc Jacobs
- Hugo Woman Hugo Boss
- Luna Nina Ricci
- Nina Nina Ricci
- Ricci Ricci Nina Ricci
- Bonbon Viktor and Rolf
- Flowerbomb Viktor and Rolf
- Wish Chopard
Gourmand perfumes for men:
- Habit Rouge Guerlain
- A men Mugler
- Fuel for life men Diesel
Sylvaine Delacourte fragrances
Discover Sylvaine Delacourte's brand with her Orange Blossom, Musks 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.
More articles
The Spicy facet
In perfumery fragrances are classified into categories, called “families” (according to the classification of the French Perfume Committee - CFP). They are six of them: The citrus family The floral family The amber family The chypre family The woody family The fougère family Olfactive family is determined by its accord, or main theme, made up of 5 to 10 different components, and giving all its soul to the fragrance. In addition, each main theme, or family, can be dressed with one or more olfactive facets. The more perfume is faceted, the more complex it will be.The spicy facet can dress all the families listed above.
The Powdery facet
In order to understand what a facet is, it is important to know that a perfume has an architecture, it is built around several components (between 5 and 10). These different scents interact with each other to form an accord, as in music. The main accord, also known as the main theme of a perfume, will give the fragrance its full dimension and define its olfactory family. Perfumes are classified (according to the CFP - Comité Français du Parfum) into six distinct olfactory families: The chypre family The hesperidae (citrus) family The floral family The oriental or amber family The woody family The ferns family In addition, the main accord may be dressed in olfactory facets. The more facets there are, the more complex the perfume will be. The powdery facet is one of the olfactory facets used to dress a perfume.
The Marine facet
To understand what a facet is, it is important to know that a perfume has a precise architecture, it is structured from several components, usually between 5 and 10, that create an accord. The main theme of the fragrance will be given by the main accord, which could be compared to the soul of the fragrance. The more facets are in a perfume, the more complex it will be.
The Green facet
We often talk about the soul of a perfume when we talk about its main accord. Many components, from 5 to 10, build up the architecture of a perfume. The assembly of these different components defines the main theme of a perfume. This accord is enriched by other notes, which are the facets of the perfume. Thanks to them, the more complex perfume arouses a wider range of emotions. 6 olfactory families defined by the Comité Français du Parfum (CFP) allow to classify perfumes according to categories: The chypre family The hesperidae (citrus) family The floral family The oriental or amber family The woody family The ferns family Each main theme or accord can be dressed in one or more facets. The green facet can be used to dress each of these 6 families.
The Aromatic facet
In music, you can create a chord with a combination of several notes to make a unique sound. In perfumery, you can do this too by blending together several notes and ingredients together to create a distinct fragrance. This is called an accord. You can dress the accord with several facets. The more facets there are, the more complex the architecture of the perfume is. In order to find its way around, the Comité Français du Parfum classifies perfumes according to their olfactory family.
The Fruity facet
The fruity facet is one of the many facets that can dress a perfume. Fragrances with a fruity facet are numerous and appreciated, in particular because they appeal to the olfactory heritage linked to childhood.
The Woody facet
A perfume has an architecture and is built around a main accord. It is an assembly of components that constitutes its main theme and will be its message. According to the CFP (Comité Français du Parfum), there are 6 main themes, also called olfactory families: Citrus or hesperide family Floral family Amber or oriental family Chypre family Woody family Ferns family
The Amber facet
The oriental facet is undoubtedly a major accord of perfumery. It can be dressed with several other facets and its complexity is equal to its richness.
The Aldehyde facet
In music, you can create a chord with a combination of several notes to make a unique sound. In perfumery, you can do this too by blending together several notes and ingredients together to create a distinct fragrance. This is called an accord. You can dress the accord with several facets. The more facets there are, the more complex the architecture of the perfume is. In order to find its way around, the Comité Français du Parfum classifies perfumes according to their olfactory family.
The Leather facet
The leather facet is particularly appreciated by perfume connoisseurs. This article will familiarize you with this emblematic facet. Discover its history, definition, notes, molecules and iconic fragrances.
The Musky facet
In perfumery, the main accord is the scent created from various components (generally between 5 to 10). This accord will be the soul of a perfume and can be dressed in different facets. If there are numerous facets, the fragrance composition will be more complex.In addition, according to the regulations of the CFP (Comité Français du Parfum) fragrances are classified into 6 distinct olfactory families (hesperide family, floral family, amber or oriental family, chypre family, woody family and fern family). The musky facet, also called musky notes or white musk, can be associated with every olfactive family.
The Hesperidia or Citrus facet
Each fragrance is made up of various components that form an accord. The main accord will define the essence of the perfume, its soul, and will classify the fragrances by olfactory families (according to the Comité Français du Parfum - CFP): The chypre family The hesperidae (citrus) family The floral family The oriental or amber family The woody family The ferns family The accord, or main theme, can be dressed in several facets (the more facets there are, the greater the complexity of the perfume is), including the citrus facet.
The New Freshness facet
In perfumery, facets come to dress the main theme of the fragrance (which is defined thanks to the different accords created from the raw materials). The more facets there are, the more complex the fragrance will be. In perfumery, the new freshness facet is obtained by synthetic notes, notably dihydromyrcenol.
The Solar facet
The solar accord, also known as the sunny note, is an accord that dresses an olfactory family, it particularly dresses the floral, vanilla and oriental family (cf. Lilylang from the Musk Collection and Vanori Collection of Sylvaine Delacourte's Vanilla Collection).