Yummy, yummy rum: wonderful in cocktails to drink, glorious in perfumes – an appetising ‘gourmand’ ingredient that pairs well with woods, adding complexity, sweetness and intrigue. (Though rum’s more widely used to add swagger to men’s perfumery, quite a few opulent women’s scents also feature a slug of this multi-faceted ingredient, which can have hints of vanilla, clove, ginger or ripe fruits). Rum itself dates back to the 17th Century and Caribbean sugar plantations: it’s distilled from molasses, the dark and syrupy by-product of sugar cane, and when aged in oak barrels takes on deep golden tones, and rich flavours. The name? Short for rumbullion or rumbustion, slang words which meant ‘tumult’ or ‘uproar’ (which can be what happens after one rum cocktail too many, even now). For a while, it was actually an accepted currency in Europe – ah, those were the days…
Smell rum in:
By Kilian Straight to Heaven
Byredo Accord Oud
Carolina Herrera 212 VIP
Givenchy Ysatis
Guerlain Elixir Charnel Gourmand Coquin
Nez à Nez Atelier d’Artiste
Olfactive Studio Still Life
Thierry Mugler Alien Liqueur de Parfum
