Grab iris by the root

Historically, the Egyptians prized irises as a symbol of power, while the ancient Greeks and Romans bottled it as an essential oil. In Japan, the roots of the plant were hung in the eaves of a house to protect occupants from attacks by evil spirits. Other magic uses include as a love potion, with the root powder sprinkled in between bedsheets. The flowers are lavishly sculptural, most stunning in supernatural blues and purples. But when it comes to perfumery it’s the iris root, specifically its rhizomes, which produce the buttery-soft scent referred to as orris. It takes about 1000 kg of dry rhizomes (carefully dried and cured for up to six years) to produce just 2 kg of orris, making it the single most expensive raw material in perfumery.

And what does orris have to show for itself after such a big build-up? Plenty. It is a mesmerising material that whispers rather than screams, murmuring its nuances in a surprising variety of ways. Its aroma profile encompasses suede, clean linen, fresh-baked bread and warm skin. Lean and serene on its own, iris becomes deeply complex when combined with floral, smoky or citrusy nuances, moving from cerebral to sensual.

Given the sticker shock of expensive orris, perfumers have found a clever hack to enhance and extend iris’ effect in compositions: carrot seed. Carrot seed is fifty times cheaper than precious orris, and is also woody, powdery and slightly earthy, singing in unison with its smell-kins orris and violet. And then there are ionones, which are present in the rhizome and are partly responsible for the crisp aroma. These molecules can be synthesised, and were first used in perfume in 1893. Like carrot seed, ionones have an artistic value in themselves, and their olfactory range mimics orris’ woody, fruity and floral aspects.

Discover the many faces of iris in this sophisticated and surprising edit.