La Via del Profumo & A Summer Perfume Course in Italy

Posted on February 2, 2015 by Kafkaesque

Italy in summertime! High above Rimini on the Adriatic coast, the hills are alive with the sound of perfume vials clinking, fragrance essences being blended in beakers, and the teachings of AbdesSalaam Attar (Dominique Dubrana) of La Via del Profumo. That is the essence of a press release that I thought I would share with you, as it’s a great opportunity to learn from one of the masters of natural perfumery. Plus, did I mention Italy in summertime?

Monte Columbo, Rimini, Italy. Source: bimbirimini.it

Monte Colombo, Rimini, Italy. Source: bimbirimini.it

For those of you unfamiliar with the name, AbdesSalaam Attar is an Italian and a Sufi convert whose all-natural creations are some of Luca Turin‘s favorites, several of which have received Five Star reviews. The New York Times calls him “a genius of sorts” and “a Saracen Willy Wonka” in an article that also talks briefly about his “wonderful olfactorium.”

That is what you can experience, if you take his mini perfume course over a six-day period this June. It will take place in Monte Colombo, which seems to be the hillside or more countryside part of the ancient Roman town of Rimini, located in the gorgeous Emilia-Romagna region of Italy on the Adriatic coast.

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Let’s Play “Questions”… Vol. 9: Notes, Love & Hate

Posted on January 31, 2015 by Kafkaesque

Green tea. Source: Supersehat.com

Let’s talk about note categories, with love, hate, and grey zones! Although I’m still occupied with some family medical things, I’ve been working on a project that actually involves the issue of notes to a small extent. I will be doing an interview series with various perfumers, many of whom are self-taught. One of the things that I’ll be focusing on is: their individual process of learning about both the science and methodology of perfume making, and the handling of notes. There are questions on the ingredients that they initially loved, those they may have once found challenging to work with, and any notes that they might still find tricky to use in perfume-creation, perhaps because of the material’s innate characteristics or how it interacts with other elements.

Source: eatingwell.com

Back in 2013, I started out my Questions discussion series on the precise issue of favorite and least favorite notes, as well as those that fall on a gradient in-between. My then-unnumbered Vol. 1 post sought to have you pinpoint not only the notes that you felt strongly about, but those in the grey zones: notes which straddle the line and where it’s all a question of their treatment in a perfume. Perhaps it’s an aromachemical, or perhaps it’s something like juniper, cucumber, strawberry, or fenugreek.

It’s easy to know the aromas you either love or despise — like tuberose, oud, amber, soiled underwear, or the way costas root can turn into dirty hair and urine if not handled carefully — but figuring out the less obvious ones that lie between the two extremes is a lot more useful or interesting, in my opinion. For example, do you enjoy the smell of carrots, gin and tonics, or mangos (separately, not together) in your fragrance? Do you like smelling of peppermints or Red Hot candies when you go to work? Is salty sea water nice but chlorine/calone an issue, or are both ingredients far from your personal cup of tea? Speaking of tea, do you like it in perfumery? I’ve concluded that I only like black or creamy Chai tea notes, and really dislike green or jasmine ones, though I will put up with whiffs of them if they are small and muted.

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Isabey Lys Noir & MPG Jardin Blanc

Posted on January 28, 2015 by Kafkaesque

I haven’t posted over the last few days, as some personal matters have occupied both my time and attention. A family member is in the hospital, and will remain there for a few days. It’s nothing dire, but the procedure wasn’t completely minor either, so I’m a bit distracted. In addition, I’m working on a big project for the blog that will see fruition in a few weeks, but is taking up a lot of my time now. So, I thought I would give two mini, very cursory reviews for Isabey‘s new Lys Noir and its polar opposite in colour, Maitre Parfumeur et Gantier‘s Jardin Blanc. I probably won’t have time to respond to comments, though, and for that I apologise in advance.

Photo: Henry Hargreaves Photography. “Smoke and Lily” Source: Trendland.com http://trendland.com/henry-hargreavess-smoke-and-lily-photography/

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Florientals, Definitions & Big, Bold Favorites

Posted on January 25, 2015 by Kafkaesque

What really is a Floriental or floral-oriental? It’s a fantastic sub-genre of perfumery, but I don’t think it’s as easy to define as it might initially seem. Simply classifying any oriental with floral notes as a “floral-oriental” is far too wide-reaching, in my opinion. Moreover, it ignores the balance of elements in most oriental compositions. It’s an issue I’ve been pondering after I realised how few were the number of fragrances that met the definition in my mind.

Source: wallpaperscastle.com

Now, I grant you, definitions in this context are fluid and are undoubtedly going to be rather subjective in nature. Sub-genres don’t really have an official set of structural rules the way there are for the overarching, main families like fougères or chypres. For the latter, it’s easy to classify because of the tripod format which requires the use of bergamot in the opening and oakmoss and patchouli in the base, with the floral element as the heart. And we all know a basic oriental when we see (or, rather sniff) one, too.

“Scheherazade” by Alberto Vargas, 1921. Source: cataxe.com

But sub-genres are where things get tricky. Fragrantica has several sub-sections for the fougère category, like oriental fougères, or aromatic ones. In fact, it has multiple sub-parts merely for the “aromatic” category as a whole. So what does Fragrantica say for Florientals or, as they put it, Oriental Floral?

Sweet, warm, powdery base typical of this group harmonizes with such flowers like gardenia, tuberose, tiare or with a spicy note of carnation. In our base the oriental floral group has 2060 for women, 13 for men and 463 shared fragrances.

That’s their entire definition. And I really disagree. First, I don’t think a “powdery” base is required. Second, their definition is so broad that any fragrance with labdanum amber or benzoin and even a small streak of carnation would qualify. 2060 scents? I’m surprised it’s not 9060, given the scope of their criteria. It simply can’t be as generic and basic as that, if you ask me — which brings us, full circle, back to the subjective nature of definitions. I certainly don’t claim to have the definitive one for Florientals and, again, I don’t think there actually is one. However, I do have some criteria of my own. They are delineations borne of testing and wearing a monumental number of orientals because, if this blog has any specialised area of focus, it’s orientals above all else.

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