Celebrating Yorkshire Day in Scent

Yorkshire Day is an annual celebration of the British county, held on August 1st, and of course we’re using it for an olfactory celebration – this time focussing on fragrant ingredients the region is famed for. Think white roses, rhubarb, tea and biscuits (hey, we can’t think of a brew, even fragrantly, without biscuits!)

If you’re wondering the signifigance of the date, The Yorkshire Society explains: ‘The date alludes to the regimental anniversary of the Battle of Minden on 1st August and the wearing of roses in the headdress on that day. In the case of the Light Infantry, successors to the King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry, a white rose. The date is also the anniversary of the emancipation of slaves in the British Empire in 1834, for which a Yorkshire MP, William Wilberforce, campaigned.’

 

 

 

The Yorkshire Post tell us that ‘the white rose came to prominence again during the Seven Years War, when the King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry fought at the Battle of Minden in Prussia. They picked white roses from bushes on the battlefields as a tribute to their fallen comrades, and wore them in their buttonholes.’ Floris’ fragrance was a favourite of Florence Nightingale, no less – velvety roses dusted with soft iris, swathed in warm amber and grounded with earthy musk. At once strikingly elegant and wonderfully confident.

Floris White Rose From £17 for 10ml eau de toilette

 

 

Molton Brown are right on the trend for good-enough-to-eat fragrances, firmly rooted in cherished childhood memories of baking with rhubarb’s unique tartness sprinkled by just enough sweetness. In the eau de parfum, those seeking scrumptiousness can indulge with joyfully juicy raspberry and a vivacious kick of pink pepper enhancing rhubarb’s sparkle, as luscious lychee and the tender peony showcase rose’s powdered charm, with a soothingly sensual base of cedarwood and musk swathing you in a gossamer soft trail.

Molton Brown Delicious Rhubarb & Rose £120 for 100ml eau de parfum

 

 

 

 

An article on the BBC’s website explains the fascinating history of Yorkshire’s association with licorice. Dating back to 1760, when George Dunhill, an apothecary chemist in Pontefract, added sugar to liquorice (then used as medicine) creating ‘a chewable non-medicinal lozenge, inventing the sweet as we know it today.’ In fragrance, licorice adds an aromatic yet resinous stickiness, adding the ‘noir’ when used in wonderful juxtaposition against billowing gardenia, luminous jasmine and creamy almond.

Bvlgari Splendida Jasmin Noir £79 for 50ml eau de parfum

 

 

 

When perfumer and founder of 4160 Tuesdays, Sarah McCartney, moved her studio to Hammersmith, ‘she made Tea & Biscuits as a symbol of the British way of making friends and getting through a crisis’ – The biscuit-y notes feature wholemeal bran, lemon and ginger with toasted hazelnuts, while the tea is taken ‘black, with oat milk.’ Eyebrows might be raised at that by Yorkshire traditionalists, but we think they’ll be swayed by the sheer comforting deliciousness of the scent. It’s utterly addictive all year ’round.

4160 Tuesdays Hammersmith Tea & Biscuits from £25 for 15ml eau de parfum

 

 

We know how seriously people from Yorkshire take their tea, and we couldn’t agree more, but what if you fancy a little tot of something more bracing in your brew? The resinous warmth of oak-casked whisky is laced through this most potent blend of their black tea, rose and juniper aromatic sensation, and harks back to the heritage of this cheekily eccentric, British brand. Named for their original address of their flagship store, it’s the kind of scent that imbues you with a uniquely winsome character.

Atkinsons 24 Old Bond Street £99 for 100ml eau de Cologne

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Trending Now… Rhubarb!

Rhubarb, rhubarb, rhubarb… No, we’re not practicing being an extra in a film (it’s what they traditionally mutter while appearing to chat in the background, FYI!) – rhubarb is proving a hugely popular trend in perfumery, so let’s get to the crunch of this vibrantly fruity fragrance note.
We first started seeing rhubarb making a fizz around 2015, but now the note is hugely popular and has set its own scent trend. How come? Well rhubarb is one of the happiest notes in fragrance, its bright, zippy character is distinctive, fun yet with a properly grown up poise to it – it definitely feels more sophisticated than many fruity notes in fragrance.

While providing a modern twist to classic floral or citrus bouquets, it simultaneously has more than a whiff of nostalgia about it, too – most of us have fond childhood memories of eating it baked in a crumble, or just freshly picked, raw and dipped in sugar. 

 

Despite rhubarb’s unmistakable tartness, it manages to play very nicely with other perfumery ingredients – melding wonderfully with violet, jazzing up a rose or other fruity cocktail-like notes, and adding an energising ZING of freshness that’s perhaps more intriguing than your average citrus.
Says CPL Aromas Marketing Executive Aitana López de Carrión: ‘It’s a great note for providing those green, fruity and refreshing accords. As a fruity note, it works particularly well, as its not as sweet and sticky like mango or strawberry.’
The perfect addition to a summer scent wardrobe, here’s some fragrances resplendent with rhubarb that we’re loving right now…
 

 

Celebrating ‘home is where the heart is’, Molton Brown showcase a duo of star ingredients often grown in our own gardens, much beloved by us Brits. Perfumer Vanessa Prudent conjures comforting childhood memories of baking, a sprinkle of sugar and pink pepper dusting rhubarb’s crispness, the leaves swagged by armfuls of soft pink roses. Marrying crisp fruitiness to the cedar muskiness of the base via silky cream ribbons, it’s an elegant reverie, bottled.
Molton Brown Delicious Rhubarb & Rose
£85 for 100ml eau de toilette moltonbrown.co.uk
Or try a sample in the Exquisite Essences Discovery Box

 

 

 

 

FLORAL_STREET_ELECTRIC_RHUBARB

 

Inspired by happy summer days in the garden, sipping Prosecco with your nearest and dearest, this immediately joyous scent was created in collaboration with the Royal Horticultural Society. The unique combination of English rhubarb and sea salt give the white floral blend a much-needed jolt into the 21st Century, and it’s the perfect instant mood-lifter, much like said Prosecco (but thankfully this one won’t leave you suffering on the sofa the next day).

Floral Street Electric Rhubarb
£64 for 50ml eau de parfum floralstreet.com

 

 

 

 

Forget where you are, close your eyes and inhale as Nathalie Feisthauer’s fragrance takes you ‘to a terrace overlooking the Mediterranean Sea at sunset, with a “chill out” cocktail in hand’. Mixing fizzing citrus and mint, capricious rhubarb and orange blossom sway to a groove that throbs over the amber wood, incense and Haitian vetiver base. Aromatic electronica, interpreted by NIID in the accompanying musical track = laidback vibes resonating into the early hours.

L’Orchestre Parfums Electro Limonade
£129 for 100ml eau de parfum ab-presents.co.uk

 

 

 

Oh we’re so enraptured by this contemporary and so-wearable take on rose – one to wear when you want to add the sense of twirling in a gauzy shocking pink gown (worn with trainers) we feel. The bright rose is entwined with sharp blackcurrant for some edge, and the sparkling, zingy rhubarb exudes throughout. Aqueous peonies add dewiness, while those blackcurrants expose its greenness. Petals, stalks and stems: this is a nose in a rosebush. Rich, jam-laced Moroccan rose absolute adds depth, for a scent that sparks a child-like joy within. Now: twirl!

Experimental Perfume Club Rose Rhubarb

£98 for 50ml eau de parfum experimentalperfumclub.com,
or try it in the Experimental Perfume Club Discovery Set

 

 

 

If you think rhubarb in scent doesn’t spell sex appeal, this now absolute modern classic will make you think again. Yes, that familiar tang is there in the top notes, backed by some red berry sweetness. But perfumer Christine Nagel gives it some irresistible French allure, pairing the tartness with animalic white musks that lend a beautiful other-worldliness. The result is a bouquet that’s just as distinct and memorable as the brand’s more famous Eaux des Merveilles. A must have!

Hermès Eau de Rhubarbe Ècarlate
£87 for 100ml eau de Cologne hermes.com

Written by Suzy Nightingale