I have always loved the phrase, sun soaked. The idea that something was so saturated with sunshine that it would overflow. On a sun-soaked day, the air always is thick with scent, the solar energy causing a vibrant, radiant feeling.
So now, in a season of both springtime renewal and also renewed hope, I composed two perfumes inspired by sunshine, brightness and optimism. One of which, Sunrise on LaSalle for Chatillon Lux, I will discuss soon. However, Sun Soaked Eau de Parfum for Maher Olfactive is unlike any that I have made so far. Bright and fresh, yet deep and complex. It is focused on neroli, but it is supported underneath by elements woven together to form one unified tale to tell with many facets to explore.
As I mentioned, neroli is the focus of this perfume. The blossom of the bitter orange tree, neroli features both bitter orange facets and narcotic white flower aspects all at once, providing it an opportunity for exploration throughout.
I began everything with a neroli absolute from Egypt, fortifying it with a bitter orange (orange bigarade) petitgrain essential oil, which refers to the branches and leaves of the orange bigarade tree. Additionally, in order to make the note pop, I fortified it with small doses of neryl acetate and rhubofix, a sparking, effervescent rhubarb note used in a very small dose to give the shimmering sunshine vibe to the top note. Finally, a small dash of cypriol grounds the accord and acts as a way to connect it to a narcissus absolute, an absolutely beautiful one that is the same that I used in this year’s version of Madame Chouteau. These add a rich, fruity floral yet throaty floral note to add a counterpoint without weighing things down too much.
Naturally, this leads into the orange bigarade note. The foundation for this note has already been laid. In order to avoid the typical pulpy orange overload, I used a delicate hand, simply using corps oranger, another orange/orange blossom note, and a tamarind base that is also green, mandarin and slightly aldehydic. I used a C-10 aldehyde, a citrus orange sparkle, to further enhance these sunshine citrus notes.
Finally, apritone (an apricot-type note) and vetikone (a grapefruit peel/vetiver note) add a creamy fruity note and a citrus peel bitterness to the composition, respectively.
Next, a black currant bud absolute keeps pushing the narcissus to the fruity side, especially when fortified with a bit of cassifix, which enhances the fruity quality of black currant. A splash of damascene alpha, an apple note found in some of the fruitier roses, further softens up the black currant note and adds to the joyful vibe of the top notes.
Now I was faced with how to start to bring some gravity to this composition without sacrificing the sunshine brilliance that I hoped to preserve. I came up with a solution: a chamomile absolute that is far more rich and complex than other chamomiles I have smelled, far less tea-like and more fruity green and almost vaguely syrupy, but more sappy than what you would put on pancakes, as well as a tinge of apple, as well.
Finally, in the base is a Texas cedar, not a huge dose, but enough to add some terpenic aspects in addition to a rich, deep woodiness. And then the final touch, the amber accord.
This amber accord is heavy on the labdanum absolute and light on the ethyl vanillin, keeping it from venturing into the overly thick or powdery territory, but rather adding a sense of fullness and longevity, the idea of air saturated with sunshine. Iso e super also keeps it lighter than the typical amber accord, as well as olibanum frankincense and elemi essential oils. Finally, the accord uses habanolide and ambrettolide musks, to round everything out and add just a touch of bared teeth to it. And last but not least, beeswax absolute adds some sweetness while also further enhancing the sunshine day in the country sense.
I’m excited about this new scent, as it is the first addition to the Maher Olfactive line to be so lighthearted. But I still fully believe that it retains the same fullness and complexity that is the hallmark of the line. There are still limited samples available from the test batch, but when those are out the full release will be available on May 15.
Scent Notes by Shawn Maher 