2 Bees by John Wiltshire

Deep meadows yet, for to forget
The lies, and truths, and pain? . . . oh! yet
Stands the Church clock at ten to three?
And is there honey still for tea? — Rupert Brooke, “The Old Vicarage”

Cristiano Canali photo by Lauryn at Pitti Fragranze 2019

Watch bees after extracting pollen and they often look like an inebriated pilot trying to fly a straight line. Dipping and somersaulting like tiny rollercoasters, bees can, in fact, get honey drunk, causing flying accidents and even forgetting their way back home. Zoologists’ newest fragrance, Bee, could leave them in a state of permanent, dizzy delirium. With its syrupy floral notes, rich resins and ginger, creative director Victor Wong’s and perfumer Cristiano Canali’s beautiful, intoxicating brew will set any honey lover’s heart abuzz.

Photo via Trendhunter

But be warned: Zoologist Bee is no ordinary honey fragrance. Produced in extrait form, it is rich, deeply floral, and dreamily evocative – but not literal. Instead, it references everything about the striped insect’s habitat that you’d be hard-pressed to notice the absence of honey in the listed notes; the beeswax of the comb, the secretions of royal jelly, the pollen-drained flowers, the fields where they grow. It is uniquely lovely.  One spray brings a head-spinning amalgam of orange blossom, ginger syrup and royal jelly. Nectarous range blossom dominates initially, its drowsy voluptuousness a perfect complement for the toothsome top notes. Ginger syrup at this stage is a smart choice, as it melds with the royal jelly’s beeswax sweetness while simultaneously keeping the sugar tamed with its fresh pungency. Pollen-like mimosa flutters in, powdery-dusty, honeyed, shaking her delicate blossoms invitingly. Met by the off-sweet, maple-hay fragrance of broom, the flowers make Bee begins to smell like a mid-spring meadow.

photo courtesy of Zoologist Perfumes

Canali plays with different aspects of sweet and floral through the middle section; the saturated scents of the opening flow forward then ebb as the floral scents weave in and out as if blown by a slight breeze. As time inches forward, touches of sweet spice, almondy heliotrope, vanilla and tonka bean allude to teatime sweets. Benzoin adds another layer vanillic richness, and Bee’s aromas become deeper, even darker, almost chewy now.

The Orchard Tea Garden, Granchester, photo via The Orchard

I raise my wrist a third time and inhale. There’s a familiarity in this scent, but for the longest time I am not sure what it is. By the dry-down, which brings counterbalancing woody notes and a specific time and place that now echoes back quietly. Smelling Bee again, I see the route above the fields along the River Cam as it was decades ago. The air hangs quiet and sleepy with late spring flowers, myriad insects hum busily about the grasses on the bankside. Approaching the Old Vicarage, teacups clink and the smell of bitter orange beckons ever so slightly as Earl Grey is poured. This is Zoologist Bee. A barely perceptible tendril of incense seeps from the nearby churchyard. I am in Grantchester again.

And, yes, there is honey still for tea.

Notes: Orange, ginger syrup, royal jelly accord, broom, heliotrope, mimosa, orange flower, benzoin, labdanum, musks, sandalwood, tonka, vanilla.

Disclaimer: Sample of Bee generously provided by Zoologist Perfumes. My opinions are my own.

— Lauryn Beer, Senior Editor

Zoologist Bee Travel Spray

Thanks to the generosity of Zoologist, we have a travel spray of Zoologist Bee extrait for one registered reader in the U.S or Canada. To be eligible, please leave a comment saying what strikes you about Zoologist Bee based on Lauryn’s review, and if you have a favourite Zoologist perfume. Draw closes 1/13/2019.

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