Sophia’s Perfume Diary: Hot on the Scent of the Olfactory Holy Grail (Part Two)

To follow is the second excerpt from PlayFirst’s blog series for Passport to Perfume. The diary is written from the perspective of Sophia, the central character and owner of a perfume store.

Manaus, Brazil 1947

Whew! The humidity here definitely reminds me that I’m not in London any more. It’s taken me the better part of a day to get here by plane and the journey was tiring but I’m excited at the prospect of finding some exciting new ingredients for my perfumes.

I’ve had to pack a new wardrobe for my trip as I’m planning to venture into the Amazonian jungle – I’m going from designer wear to my trusty jungle attire and heavy boots.

They call Manaus “Heart of the Amazon” and the “City of the Forest”. I can see why with such an abundance of tropical rain forest around me. The land is beautiful, lush and green - the perfect backdrop for sourcing exotic and rare botanicals.

There aren’t a lot of perfumers that will travel to these lengths to ensure their customers have access to the most sophisticated and rare perfumes. I intend to bring back ingredients that will enable my customers to re-live the experience of such a tropical paradise.

As I make my way through the jungle with my guides, I recognize some of the familiar plants and flowers from my research. My first target’s scientific name is “Ipomoea alba”. Moonflowers are so called because they bloom in the evening lasting through the night until touched by the morning Sun. Using Brazilian moonflower perennials also increases the value of the perfume as these are typically hard to source.

My next target is French Jasmine – seems ironic that I’m sourcing this in Manaus but this is a staple ingredient in many fine perfumes. Jasmine translated from Persian means “gift from God” and I can understand why when I’m enveloped by this heavenly fragrance!

One of the most popular and widely used ingredients in perfumery and the culinary arts is vanilla. It’s also the second most expensive spice after saffron. This is a key ingredient in my perfume inventory. The first to cultivate the orchids bearing vanilla were the Totonac people, who inhabit the Mazantla Valley of Mexico. According to Totonac mythology, the tropical orchid was born when Princess Xanat, forbidden by her father from marrying a mortal, fled to the forest with her lover. The lovers were captured and beheaded. Where their blood touched the ground, the vine of the tropical orchid grew. My customers always love to hear the romantic stories behind the scents they wear!

Finally on this trip I will need to stock up on some freesia. These strongly scented flowers are beautiful to look at and I often have them on display in my shop. I must pick them carefully though as they are quite delicate and need to be stored properly so they make the trip back to London with their essences intact. Thankfully my guides have advised me well on how to carefully cut and preserve my botanicals in this climate.

As evening falls, I make my way back into town after a long but rewarding day. Now I am anxious to combine my new ingredients into exciting new perfumes. The value and rarity of some of these botanicals make for expensive perfumes that can fetch a high price back in London.

However, my work is not yet done and I will need to gather more essentials at my next destination before I get back home. Stay tuned to hear more about the next stop on my world adventure and the seductive scents that lie in wait!