Kingdom Scotland Albaura Review

Kingdom Scotland Albaura via the brand

Perhaps it was simply my generalized adoration of Scotland that made Kingdom Scotland one of the brands I made a beeline for at the recent Barnes Fragrance Fair (which I reported on recently). Or, more likely, it was a passing recommendation that slipped the brand somewhere into my subconscious, but regardless, it’s of no matter or consequence. Because, in Kingdom Scotland, you will certainly find the kind of perfumes that reserve reverie for Scotland’s heritage and its ranging rugged scenery that you’ll feel a need to tell people about after you’ve smelled them.

Kingdom Scotland display at Barnes Fragrance Fair 2025 by Oli

The first composition that caught my nose at the Fair was Portal, a purple forest of herbs and woods that seems both vertical and transparent at the same time – it has this bracing freshness to it which feels like a woody scent memory rushing toward you. Kingdom Botanica, which was made in collaboration with Edinburgh’s Botanical Gardens, also stands out as a giddy and maximal floral that ends up being particularly tender and lush on skin.

The Scottish botanist and arctic explorer that inspired Albaura, Isobel Wylie Hutchinson via Instagram

A scented tribute to the Scottish botanist and Arctic explorer, Isobel Wylie Hutchison, the stated focus of Kingdom Scotland Albaura, however, is to capture the freshness of glacial ice and snow. As a perfume writer, this concept is the type of thing that will perpetually interest me. How does a perfumer encapsulate that exhilaration of cold, cold air, visible breath and frosted minerals? Do they use mint and embrace the inevitable toothpaste connotations? Do they go camphorous and cool with greenery? Or do they do something else a little wild and unexpected?

Perfumer Stephanie Anderson of IFF

The perfumer is IFF’s blossoming Scottish talent Stephanie Anderson, definitely embraces the green aspect, but she does so very precisely and with a drydown more focused on Atlas cedarwood and a stony grey rock moss accord. She peppers in hedione, the floral nuances of an arctic poppy accord (reportedly Hutchinson’s favourite flower) and the fronds of something like a eucalyptus throughout Albaura, giving the opening a decidedly frosted herbal note that’s very fragile but provides colour contrast, as if it were blades of grass poking out from underneath a dusting of snow.

Ultimately Kingdom Scotland Albaura is all about the cold and calm impression. There’s an intentional, muted tone to the whole perfume that I assume represents the chilly Arctic expanse Hutchinson would’ve explored and the cold air that would smother any and all aromatics in such an environment. There’s also a whisper of mint that accompanies the juniper berries in the heart that colours the perfume an icy green and conjures up connotations of ice-cold gin diluted with a rush of bubbling tonic water and served with a wedge of lemon and a sprig of rosemary.

Imogen Russon-Taylor out in the Scottish terrain, via the brand.

The brand’s founder, Imogen Russon-Taylor may have been first drawn to the world of perfumery through working with whisky brands who connected Scottish heritage to their product and explored the array of aromas involved, but she’s managed to build a brand that really excels in capturing scented snapshots of Scottish landscapes. Kingdom Scotland Albaura isn’t her only fragrance whose aim is to transport you somewhere else. It just does so vividly that it warranted implicit coverage.

Notes: iced botanicals, arctic poppy, atlas cedar, rock moss, ambergris

Disclaimer: samples of Kingdom Scotland’s perfumes were provided by the brand.

–Oli Marlow, Contributor

Kingdom Scotland Albaura via the brand

Thanks to the generosity of Imogen and Kingdom Scotland we have a 50ml bottle of Albaura available in the UK only. You must register or your entry will not count. To be eligible, please leave a comment saying what sparks your interest based on Oli’s review and that you live in the U.K. Draw closes 6/20/2025

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