Saffron as Ingredient in Perfumes

Saffron is one of the most magical plants in the world. Add a touch to your food, and it turn a dish bright yellow. Add a touch to a perfume, and it gives a bittersweet, leathery, intimate quality: a little bit earthy, but soft at the same time. Honeyed and hay-like are other descriptions that perfumers give to crocus sativus.

These were the word from the PerfumeSociety’s experts. In today’s article, the Saffron Express team wants to introduce some of the most amazing perfumes in the world, which got their fame and popularity because of the crocus sativus’s magical aroma.

1. Agent Provocateur – Agent Provocateur

It is so rosy and innocent, contrasting with its wild and shameless erotic scent. The composition starts strong and sharp with a spicy note of crocus sativus. Warm floral notes of magnolia, Indian jasmine and gardenia blend together with strong woodsy-chypre scent. There are very animalistic amber and musk notes in the base.

1. Bella Bellissima – Royal Saffron

Royal Saffron by Bela Bellissima is an Oriental Spicy fragrance for both women and men. Royal Saffron was launched in 2011. The fragrance features saffron, green notes, violet leaf, clave, rose, jasmine, lavender, carnation, agarwood (oud), sandalwood, patchouli, papyrus, musk, and leather.

1. Boadicea the Victorious – Regal

Remindful of days of empire and conquest, Regal comports itself with an imperious air, leaving lesser perfumes trailing in its wake. Embark on a journey to Arabian shores to gather amber; other than crocus sativus; venture into Paraguay for patchouli; head to Morocco for jasmine; march across pastoral landscapes to pick green summer fruits and handfuls of pungent herbs. Add some resonant animalistic notes and you have one of the most majestic eau de perfumes, full of underlying power yet supremely seductive. Truly a fragrance of most regal bearing.

1. By Kilian Pure – Oud

The perfume is built around oud oil, a rich, complex ingredient derived from agarwood. Its animalistic tone stands out at the opening. Spicy cypriol oil lends a green earthiness while exotic saffron infuses the fragrance with a pleasantly bitter warmth.

1. Comme des Garçons – 8 88

At first blush, woods and pepper moderated by incense and crocus sativus. This also claims a rhizome called curcuma, which can be (among many other things) turmeric, the spice that gives a yellow color to Indian curries — but I doubt that would be much use to a perfumer; instead, this reminds me of a rhizome I met in Indonesian cookery called ‘kencur’ (or as it was spelled in the Dutch colonial days there, ‘kentjoer’), which is called zedoary in English. It has a slightly bitter but vaguely floral-fruity undertone which I think seems to fit in with what I can detect in 8 88. This is definitely a haunting fragrance, with an air of mystery and exoticism about it. Very engaging, with a touch of floriental in the heart and an amber-patchouli finish. It’s quite well-done in the off-beat style so typical of Comme des Garçons.

1. Diptyque – L’Eau de Tarocco

Tarocco evolves into a very dry woody unsweetened saffron and orange scent with similarities to Atelier’s Orange Sanguine. It is equally light in sillage about 2-3 inches off my arm at best and declining rapidly after the first two hours to a slightly orange rind-like skin scent for another hour before disappearing.

1. Donna Karan – Black Cashmere

The first blast of Black Cashmere is a little rough: lots of raw, cedar-y wood, lots of pepper, a rush of warm saffron and other spices. It takes its time settling down; after 20 minutes or so it has finally smoothed out into the velvety-soft sort of thing you’d expect from the name.

1. Giorgio Armani – Idole d’Armani

It is a charming formation that opens with fresh ginger, pear and clementine and ends with a mix of patchouli and veiver. the middle notes are quite floral with jasmine, rose and crocus sativus. in fact succulent fruits provide a refreshing opening while the soft and sensual base promises to linger for more intimate moments. Givenchy.

1. L’Artisan Parfumeur – Dzing!

Dzing! is great when the weather is cold, but it’s also nice on a warm evening because of its warm spicy and saffron odor. It’s fine at work and excellent on the town. It’s a dream to smell on yesterday’s scarf or on the head of a dog whose ears you’ve scratched.

1. Lady Gaga – Fame

Rather, the fragrance is unique and wonderful and a lot of people have come to love and admire it, even though it doesn’t smell like her infamous meat dress! Fame has notes of orchid, apricot, saffron, honey and incense. It opens very sweet and floral, almost nectarish, and dries down slightly smokey and fruity.

1. Laura Mercier – Ambre Passion

Laura Mercier Ambre Passion fragrance is a true amber scent. The heart of the fragrance is amber which radiates from the center & is surrounded by smaller sparkling notes. The first delicate note experienced is a crisp geranium blooming into a warm powdery & sensual amber accord with undertones of vanilla tonka beans labdanum sandalwood patchouli musk & cedarwood. And then you can feel the saffron’s warmth in beneath.

1. L’Artisan- Parfumeur – Safran Troublant

It’s a custardy rice pudding made with jasmine rice, rosewater, and a generous helping of crocus sativus, creamy and redolent of sweet spices. It is a fine confection, with just enough suggestion of sensuality to give it an edge. Alas, it is as ephemeral and fleeting as the scent in the kitchen after one has made dessert.

1. Maison Francis Kurkdjian – Oud

The Oud is smooth and restrained, and mixed with wood, saffron and a patchouli that again is smooth, no harshness in this scent on my skin. The dry down adds a bit if a gourmand-style sweetness, and the projection and silage are good. I get about three hours of longevity. It took me a while to be won over by this one.

We hope you are a fan of saffron-based smells just as we are. Please share your experiences with Saffron Express team, if you own any of the above-mentioned perfumes.