Hello everyone,
In this seventh installment of FRAGRANCE LAB.BLOG, we would like to talk about fascinating flowers.
The fragrance of the flowers mesmerizes not only humans, but also butterflies and bees.
ESSENCE & FLEUR Vol.1, we will talk about the fragrance of roses.
Classification of Rose and its fragrance
Flowers, like animals, have a mechanism to leave offspring for the purpose of preserving species, but the difference is that flowers cannot pollinate (as the act of leaving offspring) of their own will.
As you all know, most orchard flowers have stamens and pistils, which are only pollinated when pollen is carried by insects or wind, and those that bear fruit eventually do so. As birds and animals eat the fruit, the seeds are carried away and eventually their offspring will come to life in another land.
For this, it is said that the fruit’s fragrant, sweet, alluring aroma is used to attract insects and birds.
Their beautiful colors and lovely shapes captivate us human beings as well.
Gardening has never lost its popularity, and under the pandemic, the number of gardeners seems to be growing even more. You could say that they are so mesmerizing that people lose track of time and become absorbed to take care of them.
I believe roses are the queen among other flowers.
It is said that there are about 20,000 species of roses in the world, and the number of species will continue to increase as they are selectively bred.
There are so many variations not only in appearance and color, but also in fragrance, so that it is impossible to describe “rose fragrance” in a few words.
What are wild roses, old roses, and modern roses?
Roses are broadly classified into three categories: wild roses, old roses, and modern roses.
Most of the roses sold in flower shops and gardening stores today are classified as modern roses, that are new roses created through repeated breeding from wild roses to old roses.
The damask rose, which is classified as an old rose and for which Bulgaria is famous for, has a slight aroma of sweetpotato (Ipomoea-batatas)
This is due to its aromatic component, phenylethyl alcohol, which accounts for about 75% of its aroma and is commonly known as “Rose P.”
What kind of roses are Modern Rose?
The first hybrid tea rose variety named “La France” was introduced in 1867, and the roses grown after the introduction of La France were categorized as modern roses. (Reference: Yoshihiro Ueda, “Roses: History and Prospects for the Future,” The Encyclopedia of Roses, NHK Publishing, 2006)
(Reference: Yoshihiro Ueda, “Roses: History and Prospects for the Future,” The Encyclopedia of Roses, NHK Publishing, 2006)
Old roses, whose fragrance has been beloved by people since Roman times, are gorgeous and have a strong sweetness, while modern roses have a slightly less intensity in fragrance.
This may be the result of selective breeding that has focused more on flower shape, flower color, good flowering, and ease of cultivation, rather than the richness of fragrance.
However, some modern roses have a unique fragrance, and I find their elegant and soft fragrance very soothing.
A rose that smells like Darjeeling tea!?(Tea Rose)
Among them, the “Lady Hillingdon” is a Tea Rose and smells like Darjeeling tea leaves.
It is assumed that this rose was derived from the legendary Chinese tea rose “Rosa odorata,” after it came to Europe. There is a rose called “Hohjun”, which also has the smell of Darjeeling tea.
According to Shoji Nakamura, a perfumer at Shiseido for many years, the ingredient that characterizes this fragrance is dimethoxy methylbenzene.
A familiar rose to us, white ” Lady Banks,” has a rich fragrance also.
The Lady Banks’ rose is in full bloom every year around May in my garden. It twines its vines around the archway and gets bigger year after year. Its rich fragrance has powdery notes with a hint of orange blossom and neroli.
The intoxicating fragrance fills the garden and attracts bees.
The quality of the fragrance changes subtly from the beginning of the bloom to the end when the flowers are falling.
It starts as fresh and sweet, and gradually becomes vanillic and powdery rich scent with depth, that is perfume like.
The Lady Banks comes in yellow and white, but the yellow has almost no fragrance.
If you want to enjoy the fragrance, we recommend the white double-flowered kind.
It is easy to take care of since it does not have thorns and it is rather tough and grows well. Plant it in a sunny place.
Plants of the rose family, from apples and strawberries to pears
Do you know that there are many varieties of Rosaceae plants?
There are 2,500 varieties of Rosaceae plants in 90 genera, including cherry blossoms, apples, strawberries, cherries, raspberries, and pears. There are also many variety of roses that belong to this family.
As I mentioned, there are many varieties of roses themselves, I think it is fair to say that those plants that are not roses belong to the same Rosaceae family have some relevance in their fragrance components.
Many modern roses have a fruity fragrance, and some have a pear or subtle cherry-like scent.
English Roses are also generally highly fragrant, and some of them are said to have a myrrh scent.
Myrrh is the oil obtained from the resin of the myrrh tree belongs to Burseraceae, which was used in ancient Egyptian rituals as offering of incense for the sun god Ra and is also used in modern perfumes.
Its balsamic, smoky aroma has antiseptic properties and was used to protect mummies from decomposition, that is how the name myrrh came about.
I have yet to experience such a fragrance in roses, but I would love to smell it.
The Sakura Kusabue Hill Rose Garden in Sakura City, Chiba Prefecture, has the myrrh-scented roses, so if you are interested, please visit.
It seems to be the variety called Ayrshire Splendens.
This rose garden is amazing that it is home to 2,500 roses of 1,250varieties . One more great thing about this place is that there is a section where only fragrant roses are planted.
This rose garden is truly irresistible to anyone who likes the smell of roses!
It is not an exaggeration that the rose garden is a true paradise of roses with its impressive rose collection, including Rosa Gallica, the original rose that appears in Botticelli’s “Spring,” as well as Centifolia rose and Bulgaria rose, from which the oil for perfume is derived.
This issue of ESSENCE & FLEUR, Vol. 1, was all about roses.
We are also introducing a fragrance containing rose as a room fragrance below, we hope you enjoy it the space of your choice.
Next time, I would like to talk about “Jasmine.”
We look forward to introducing the next installment of FRAGRANCE LAB.BLOG No. 8.
