Assam tea in new Jo Malone fragrance

Ok, a bit off the subject of the blog, but I just had to report on this. It may even be a fragrance that does not set off my hayfever. Unfortunately I have so much perfume already I cannot justify buying any more.

Reported in the Bangkok Post.

It's tea time

Published: 9/07/2011 at 12:00 AM
Newspaper section: Muse

It's such an irony that during the course of Jo Malone's 17 years in perfumery, the British perfume house has teased with the diverse cultures from all over the world _ the passionate rhythm of Latin music for Blue Agava & Cacao, the exotic beauty of Thai cuisine for Sweet Lime & Cedar or the Japanese Kohdo ceremony for the two colognes in Kohdo Wood collection _ before it finally goes back to the true tradition that the Brits are most associated with in the world: Tea drinking.

So, it's not surprising that the Jo Malone house finally visits the quintessential British tradition for its lastest summer fragrance collection: Tea Fragrance Blends. The five scents are Assam & Grapefruit, Earl Grey & Cucumber, Fresh Mint leaf, Sweet Lemon and Sweet Milk. Created by master perfumer Christine Nagel, the collection attempts to re-interpret classic rituals and capture the essence of such authentic practice into Jo Malone's olfactory signature.

In reality, unlike many previous Jo Malone's scents, the Tea Fragrance Blends take a more literal approach towards the scent that lends its name and inspiration to the cologne. You have Earl Grey & Cucumber that smells distinctly like Earl Grey, and it's by far the scent with strongest staying power in this collection, with the vanilla and musk in the base note ensuring the warm scent reminiscent of the tea.

Those preferring a brighter, more invigorating fragrance that is similar to morning tea could check out Assam & Grapefruit _ a scent that starts off pretty refreshing with the dashing shot of fruity odour, before fading down into the bold scent of Assam tea.

Fresh Mint Leaf completes the main all-day tea ceremony collection as the representation of evening blend, with a strong, spiky mint scent _ more mint compared to Jo Malone's jasmine-y, highly floral White Jasmine & Mint.

Sweet Lemon and Sweet Milk complete the collection the way sugar, lemon and milk complete our tea time. Whereas Sweet Milk is nothing but literal _ transpiring a scent that is milky and sweet, and is nearly impossible to be worn on its own. Sweet Lemon is a fruity twist that can both be layered on any of the scents in the collection or even worn on its own.

As a final thought, the Tea Fragrance Blends is one of Jo Malone's most straightforward interpretations of its source of inspiration, resulting in scents that are true to its name, rather than a new, distinctive creation _ hence the need to master the art of fragrance combination to achieve a more customised scent of your own, unless you just love tea so much and prefer to have the characteristically tea-like odour with you.

SAMILA WENIN