Parfumeurs du Monde Les Fleurs de la Pluie and Terre du Soleil (collage)

“The earth laughs in flowers”. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson, New England poet and Transcendentalist philosopher

 

 Stéphanie Bakouche and Thierry Bernard courtesy of the brand

Parfumeurs du Monde is its own fragrant anomaly: a perfume house which specializes in rare natural compositions of exceptional quality. In the translated words of its founder, perfumer, and adventurer Thierry Bernard, “The brand does not impose any specifications or constraints; our perfumers are given carte blanche. This underlines an extraordinary freedom. The result is that of the heart and the spirit: a sincere, generous perfume which is meaningful. A rather fabulous compendium of emotions.” The most recent compositions are Parfumeurs du Monde Les Fleurs de la Pluie (Rain Flowers) by Thierry Bernard, inspired by his travels to Saudi Arabia; and Terre de Soleil (Land of Sunshine) by Stéphanie Bakouche, whose inspiration was the rocky, wild terrain of Corsica’s maquis (dense, scrubby evergreen underbrush which grows along the Mediterranean coastline). I was thrilled to anticipate their arrival, and deeply satisfied when I sampled them.

 

courtesy of the brand

Parfumeurs du Monde’s journey began in 2016, (and CaFleureBon was one of the first to write about the brand). I believe that the inimitable partnership, mutual passion for exploration, and profound respect for natural materials which Thierry and collaborator/ sourceur/perfumer Stéphane Piquart (proprietor of Le Sourceur) share initially fueled their projects – and continues to do so. These two gentlemen scour the globe in order to discover new aromatic plants, all the while attentive to the welfare of the environments in which they find themselves – and those individuals who cultivate these precious materials. The pioneering circle of perfumers at the brand’s inception were Isabelle Gellé (Androgyne 16020, one of my top fragrances of 2021, Kashi), Perinne Scandel (Izwe), Thierry Bernard (Tsingy, Les Larmes d’Aden, Val d’Orcia, Üjan), Michel Roudnitska (Agua Nativa), Clémentine Humeau (Brin de Peau), and Eric et Jean Claude Gigodot (Tundzha). They were joined in 2021 by Nathalie Feisthauer (Nam Chaa), Ellen Dahlgren (Tjärn), Bertrand Duchaufour (Petite Fumée), Alexandre Isaie Helwani (Makeda) – and soon after, Stéphane Piquart in 2023 (Albedo), and Patrice Révillard (Blanc de Chine).

The abundant written information which was sent me is entirely in French, accompanied by the Latin names of plant matter. Its English translation loses much of the original copy’s charm and doesn’t do the fragrances justice. I also urge you to look under the note descriptions for “natural allergens”: here you will uncover other notes which aren’t listed in the given pyramids, but may help explain what you experience when you actually smell them. This is why I’ve included them with the notes.

 Parfumeurs du Monde Les Fleurs de la Pluie by Thierry Bernard

Les Fleurs de la Pluie encapsulates Thierry Bernard’s revelatory moment near the ancient Arabian oasis city of Al-’Ula, where he experienced a sudden downpour in the Sharaan nature reserve desert. The next morning he awakened to the sight of a swath of fragile, ephemeral blooms which released their perfume in the shadow of Nabatean ruins, burning ocher sands, and verdant oases under a vast cloudless blue sky. What fascinates me is how many fragrant plants flourish in this environment, and equally how masterfully they are employed. Not having had the opportunity to visit the Middle East, I had no idea that a particular species of lavender grew there, or artemisia (mugwort, a relative of chamomile) – with its gentle herbal piquancy. This perfume commences with the citrus tonicity of citron, grapefruit, orange peel, and petitgrain from the lemon tree. Its tender heart encompasses the deservedly famous Taifi rose and lavande des sables – as well as touches of geranium and ylang-ylang. The licorice-like subtleties of anise alcohol and anethole (natural) are offset by the presence of clove. All of this lushness sits atop a resinous base worthy of awe: red cedar, myrrh, olibanum, labdanum and the merest soupçon of oud and vanilla. Parfumeurs du Monde Les Fleurs de la Pluie awakens a slumbering wanderlust in me, a longing to participate in such an adventure. It is a heartbreaking floral.

Les Fleurs de la Pluie Notes: shoots of citron, lemon petitgrain, grapefruit, artemisia, anthemis deserti (a flowering plant related to chamomile which grows on the Arabian peninsula), Taifi rose, lavender (referred to as lavande des sables, it flourishes on the Arabian peninsula and in Iran), myrrh, olibanum, labdanum, oud

Notes listed under natural allergens: geranium oil, orange peel oil, red cedar oil, patchouli oil, vanillin, ylang-ylang oil/absolute, anise alcohol, anethole, clove oil,

 Parfumeurs du Monde Terre de Soleil by Stéphanie Bakouche

Stéphanie Bakouche’s portrayal of the Corsican maquis is nothing short of poetic. The earth sings of a merciless sun which appears to stop the passage of time in its tracks; under this pitiless orb, the sun-scorched herbs and grasses exhale their perfume in concert with a botanical evocation of native fig (no mean feat).

Stéphanie cites fellow perfumer and friend Marc-Antoine Corticchiato as her muse – inspired by the poignant accords which celebrate his native Corsica. Terre de Soleil is a complex, highly-nuanced potion – and for those amongst us who crave the savory, it is an olfactory must. Citrus notes (yuzu, petigrain, sweet orange, orange peel, bergamot) introduce the pleasures of kitchen and garden: peppermint, fenugreek, oregano, rosemary, clary sage, armoise, and carrot seed (enhanced by orris) make the mouth water. It wouldn’t be the Mediterranean without the anisic tones of dusty/delicious immortelle, ever-present fig, lavender, or the dried tobacco-like warmth of hay. No Corsican scrub would be complete without cistus labdanum’s leathery richness, or a whisper of pine (smelt here as pinene). Elements of cedar, patchouli, oakmoss, and vetiver flesh out the composition and contribute to its overall earthiness.

Terre de Soleil Notes: yuzu, sweet orange, petitgrain Paraguay, lavender, armoise, peppermint, clary sage, rosemary, fig, oregano, immortelle, orris root, fenugreek, carrot seed, cedarwood, hay, cistus labdanum, vetiver, patchouli, oakmoss

Notes listed under natural allergens: bergamot peel oil, orange peel oil, geraniol (from geranium), pinene

I wouldn’t want to have to choose between these two marvelous fragrances – and I may have to succumb to purchasing them both in the future at some point. Each is gentle and ferocious in its own way, proof positive that the earth does indeed sing for us, if we are willing to listen.

Samples kindly provided by Parfumeurs du Monde – many thanks! My nose is my own…

~ Ida Meister, Deputy and Natural Perfumery Editor

 

Parfumeurs du Monde Les Fleurs de la Pluie and Terre du Soleil

Thanks to the generosity of Parfumeurs du Monde we have a 50 ml bottle of either Parfumeurs du Monde Les Fleurs de la Pluie or Terre de Soleil for one registered reader in the EU or US. You must register or your entry will not count. To be eligible, please leave a comment saying what sparks your interest based on Ida’s reviews, which fragrance you would prefer, and where you live.

Editor’s note: All Parfumeurs du Monde Perfumes are 100 percent natural and a portion of the sales are donated to Coeur de Forêt. The entire collection of Parfumeurs Du Monde, is available on  Parfumeurs du Monde and Jovoy’s websites.

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