Yesterday I attended a workshop organized by The Perfume Society and presented by perfumer Ruth Mastenbroek about “The secrets of synthetics: perfumery’s magic molecules”. During the workshop we had the opportunity to sniff a lot of “mythical” synthetics that changed the course of perfumery and the first perfumes that included them in their composition.
Jo Fairley of The Perfume Society with Ruth Mastenbroek
During the process we tried Ruth’s perfumes as well and it gave me the opportunity to remember how much I really like Oxford.
Oxford – the city – is the home of the very world-renowned University where Ruth herself was a student and the perfume named after it is a tribute to her time spent there. The inspiration came from the chic and intellectual crowd that used to smoke Gitanes cigarettes and although Oxford doesn’t have tobacco or smoke notes in its composition, it achieves its goal of a nonchalant, carefree and sophisticated scent that actually is rather soft and herbal.
The notes are:
Top: Bergamot, Basil and Galbanum
Heart: Clary Sage, Rosemary and Jasmine
Base: Amber, Vetiver, Vanilla and Oudh
The initial explosion of fresh, green, basil and peppery notes are followed by sensuous jasmine floating in a herbal heart of clary sage and rosemary giving the impression of an afternoon wander through a herbal garden. As the perfume settles, its soft dry down, a mix of vanilla, amberwood, and oudh bring a cashmere texture that is soft, chic and refined with a touch of exotic thanks to the oudh.
Very long lasting and aromatic it lingers on my skin for hours and brings to mind images of Oxford when I visited it last in the summer when all the gardens were in full bloom.
