After the festive season’s indulgences, our palates and noses often crave a refreshing change. Just as we might yearn for a crisp salad after weeks of rich fare, our olfactory senses seek lighter, more invigorating scents. Enter the world of vegetable-based fragrances (featuring ingredients that wouldn’t look out of place in a a salad), and get ready to discover this burgeoning trend in modern perfumery that’s as surprising as it is delightful…
The past few years have seen a veritable harvest of vegetable notes sprouting up in perfumes. From the earthy sweetness of beetroot to the green crunch of cucumber, perfumers are exploring a whole new ‘gourmand’ category that leans away from sugary sweetness and into savoury notes. These scents don’t merely mimic their botanical inspirations; thanks to cutting-edge extraction techniques and innovative aroma molecules, they capture the true essence of these garden delights in ways that are both familiar and fantastically novel.
Victoire in her gorgeous vegetable garden
The launch of L’Officine Universelle Buly’s ‘The French Garden’ collection exemplified this trend beautifully. Co-founder Victoire de Taillac describes a garden as ‘a perfect universe, a paradise, a haven,’ where ‘smells come together and surprise you.’ The six fragrances in this line intertwine vegetable notes with flowers and musks, creating olfactory experiences that evoke the dewy freshness of a morning garden stroll.
Les Jardin Français is available online at www.buly1803.com and at their Selfridges counter: £145 for 75ml. La Sizaine collection of six x 9ml travel perfumes is also available for £108, selfridges.com. The perfect way to sample the whole collection (because you will need to smell them all!)
Another notable entry in this verdant realm is L’Artisan Parfumeur’s Le Potager collection. This range celebrates the humble vegetable patch, transforming common garden produce into sophisticated scents. As perfumer Quentin Bisch, who worked on the collection, notes, ‘The challenge is to dress the vegetable with a classic material to keep a part of the mystery.’ This approach results in fragrances that are both reassuringly familiar and intriguingly complex.
So now, with the spirit of freshness and seeking something new for our noses, let’s explore these garden salad-inspired scents – which would you pick as a refreshing change from the heavier scents you’ve been wearing, we wonder…?
4160 Tuesdays Le Jardin de Monsieur McGregor
This whimsical creation traces a mischievous rabbit through a Lake District garden. The scent opens with crisp cucumber and celery notes, complemented by leafy greens and creamy mushrooms. A hint of nibbled strawberries adds sweetness, while a trail of pipe smoke lends a touch of human presence to this botanical adventure.
From £40 for 15ml eau de parfum 4160tuesdays.com
Shay & Blue Clementine
Don’t let the name fool you – this fragrance is more than just citrus. Succulent clementine is entwined with swags of laurel leaves and the surprisingly bright, peppery green of watercress. The addition of petitgrain brings a piquant sunshine that revives flagging spirits, making this an ideal scent for banishing winter blues.
From £25 for 10ml eau de parfum shayandblue.com
Officine Universelle Buly Indian Cucumber and Syrian Mint
Offering us a refreshing olfactory journey through a sun-drenched garden (yes please!) the crisp cucumber provides an invigorating opening, while Syrian mint adds lively aromatics that feel cool and clean, yet definitely pep-up flagging sprits. A whisper of iodine evokes sea breezes, and white musk lends a soothingly soft base. It’s, elegantly wearable and will have you craving more!
150 for 100ml eau triple buly1803.com
Jack Perfume Covent Garden
Inspired by London’s famous market, this scent captures the essence of a morning stroll among the stalls. Carrot takes centre stage, its aromatic sweetness tinged with ginger. The overall effect is reminiscent of munching on fresh vegetables while an exciting breeze carries hints of exotic spices.
£95 for 100ml eau de parfum jovoyparis.com
Diptyque Eau Rose Eau de Parfum
In this reimagining of their classic rose scent, Diptyque add an unexpected twist: artichoke. This fleshy, green note enhances the original rose oil, adding a slightly bitter edge that speaks of melancholy moments in walled gardens. The result is a more complex, arboreal take on floral romance.
£153 for 75ml eau de parfum diptyqueparis.com
To the Fairest Élan Vital
Oh this takes us to a forest floor in all its lush complexity. A medley of green notes, including a hint of stinging nettle (which make a nourishing soup, apparently – have you ever tried it?), and settles onto a base of grounding vetiver. Soft moss and patchouli create a cosy bolthole, while a cover of golden leaves adds warmth to this woodland-inspired scent.
£85 for 50ml eau de parfum tothefairest.com
Comme des Garçons Rouge
True to the brand’s avant-garde spirit, Rouge subverts familiar notes in daring ways. Blood-red berries mingle with earthy beetroot, creating a vegetal sweetness that’s grounded by swirls of iced incense and charred leather. It’s a bold, unconventional take on the vegetable trend we can get behind.
£135 for 100ml eau de parfum libertylondon.com
L’Artisan Parfumeur Iris de Gris
‘How many times, while shelling fresh peas, have I dreamt of this green fragrance?’, exclaims perfumer Quentin Bisch. Ethereally airy thanks to bright green galbanum, (‘an herbaceous plant with a scent akin to the pea’ L”Artisan tells us), ‘this fragrance is a hymn to green in all its forms, punctuated with iris, which makes a refined imprint on skin.’ We concur – and it has us dreaming of dew-dappled plants and brighter days, for sure.
£170 for 100ml eau de parfum artisanparfumeur.com
As we embrace a new year, why not resolve to explore these garden-veg inspired scents? They offer a fresh perspective on perfumery, proving that vegetables can be just as alluring as flowers when it comes to fragrance. So go ahead, spray your five a day – your nose will thank you for the olfactory boost!
Written by Suzy Nightingale
