Time For Tea

Tea is the second most popular drink in the world after water. But since water would make a pretty boring perfume, instead we offer an invigorating selection of fragrances inspired by the tea leaf in all of its forms.

The tea plant, or Camellia sinensis, is an evergreen shrub. This species has two varieties – sinensis (from China) and assamica (from Assam). Together they are the source of all white, green, yellow, pu’er, oolong and black teas. The method of oxidising and processing Camellia sinensis leaves after they’re picked determines the end result, with black tea being the most oxidised and green tea the least.

Perfumers utilise natural tea extracts to introduce a novel texture to otherwise-basic floral or woody bouquets. Or as in the case of Myrriad by Pierre Guillaume Black Collection, to enliven an aromatic gourmand with the leatheriness of natural black tea. Tea-forward perfumes also provide a non-cliched addition to the “fresh” genre, shaking up the standard playing field of crisp citrus, green and marine notes.

The irony of natural materials is that they often smell nothing like our experience of the flavour or flower out in the world. Raw black tea, or green, or white, is a different proposition to the hot tea we savour in a cup. This is where accords and aromachemicals come in, giving us photorealistic or prettier-than-real teas (eg Thé Basilic by Molinard) — too fresh and clean to be true.

Whatever your cup of tea is, find comfort and stimulation in these carefully-brewed picks.