Alizarin

Moreover, it remains particularly favored by this type of clientele and accordingly creates highly prestigious perfumes bearing no resemblance to the fragrances commonly found on shelves. Thus, Penhaligon's has just enriched its Trade Routes collection with a new fragrance named Alizarin.

Penhaligon's sources of inspiration

If Penhaligon's chose to create a collection named Trade Routes, it is above all in homage to the legendary routes of London trade at the end of the nineteenth century, a true golden age for the house. Thus, this array of fragrances is composed of raw materials coming from the four corners of the globe, each more luxurious than the last. In this sense, they evoke materials filled with the exoticism of yesteryear that flooded the ports upon the arrival of ships. These were loaded with merchandise arriving from the most remote corners of our planet. It piled up daily on the docks of the British capital, representing for many an abundance of rare treasures fragrant with distant lands. Alizarin was thus preceded by the fragrances Empressa, Lothair and Levantium from 2014 as well as by Halfeti and As Sawira from 2015. Each of these names may not mean much to you. Yet they were indeed luxurious materials traded in the London Docks at the end of the nineteenth century. In this same vein, such is also the case with alizarin. It is a red dye of plant origin extracted from the root of the dyer's madder, a perennial plant cultivated in Egypt since Antiquity. Moreover, alizarin is also a powerful symbol for the English, as it is a distinctive red color worn for centuries by British soldiers, giving them incidentally their nickname of Redcoats. Such is therefore the material that served as the source of inspiration for the creation of the Alizarin perfume.

The leathery scent of Alizarin

Alizarin is a perfume for women with a leather scent. It is an intense and mysterious fragrance recalling old and traditional compositions. Breathing in its scent is somewhat like being plunged back into the heart of Ancient Egypt. Thus, Alizarin is a true journey through time and space. It opens with refreshing notes of mandarin combined with the green, floral aspect of narcissus. Then, its heart turns toward a concentration of powdery, luxurious flowers such as tuberose, iris, and mimosa. Finally, it is in its base that Alizarin truly becomes vibrant. Its leather note surfaces, accompanied by a fascinating and intense oud wood. Incense also lays down its inimitable dried curls, while its scent concludes with the depth of vetiver.