If you had to choose one flower of spring, which would it be? For us, this was an easy answer: the narcissus.
First, the emerging stem, almost white against the dark, damp earth. Then the leaves, clean and symmetrical. And finally the nodding bud, bursting to reveal a golden corona, a ruff of six creamy petals - and a heady scent that drifts through the meadows, the woods and along the riverbank.
The scent of narcissus absolute is sweet and herbaceous, a little like honeyed jasmine. But there is a depth to it, with warm hay and a hint of tobacco rounding out the edges, that makes this an unusual and rewarding floral to work with. A base note, it may take a few minutes to awaken - soft, polleny and undeniably green.
For Spring 23, we took narcissus as our starting point - and from it, we grew a landscape. The woods came forth in petitgrain, cedar and vetiver. Ginger and basil grand vert (favourite ingredients amongst our spring fragrances) brought earthiness and spice, balanced by the sunshine notes of bergamot and green mandarin.
Timut pepper is a new ingredient which we have been waiting to use for some time now. Sharp, herbaceous, but with a light citrus undertone, it pairs beautifully with orange blossom water**. We found a perfect place for it within Spring 23, where it brought a delicious crispness to the fragrance, enlivening its quieter notes, making it sparkle.