Santal Royal is a fragrance built around one of the rarest and most precious essences: sandalwood. Moreover, it is the work of one of the greatest perfumers on the planet, the talented Thierry Wasser.
It was in 2015 that Guerlain presented Santal Royal. As its name indicates, the Guerlain house decided to honor sandalwood, an ingredient echoing the Middle East, as much as the black and gold bottle. Here, sandalwood is entrancing, mysterious, and lets warm, distant sensations linger, evoking oriental lands, almost imaginary. In order to create Santal Royal, Thierry Wasser set up a perfect play of contrast between oud wood, sandalwood and the floral tonalities of jasmine and rose.
Santal Royal, Thierry Wasser’s masterpiece
Thierry Wasser is the successor to 4 generations of Guerlain (Pierre-François-Pascal, the founder, Aimé, Jacques and Jean-Paul). He is thus the first perfumer not to be part of the family, even though he is considered the spiritual son of Jean-Paul Guerlain. The latter passed on to him all his expertise and revealed to him the secrets, as well as the olfactory mysteries, of the Guerlain house. Thierry Wasser is regarded as a rare creator, highly sensitive and immensely talented. Thierry Wasser has been Guerlain’s official perfumer since 2008. He reinterpreted the famous Guerlinade, but he has also created Guerlain Homme, Idylle, Habit Rouge, La Petite Robe Noire, Mon Guerlain, as well as L’Homme Idéal. Thierry Wasser, who has a perfect command of raw materials, has managed not only to blend into the values of the Guerlain house, but also to innovate, as if he were one of its own. With Santal Royal, he signs a new masterpiece, an exceptional essence. Between mysteries, warm notes and floral notes, Thierry Wasser drew his inspiration from the heart of the Orient.
The wonderful story of sandalwood
Sandalwood is an evergreen tree. It originates mainly from Tropical Asia. India accounts for the largest share of its global production, with 70%. Sandalwood has been known and used for 4,000 years as incense for meditation. Sandalwood calms the mind and body. The Egyptians used to use sandalwood to embalm mummies, while Muslims used to burn sandalwood at the feet of the dead in order to lift their souls. In perfumery, sandalwood essential oil is used. It is obtained by distillation of the roots and heartwood, reduced to powder and dried. It is an ingredient that has become rare, and therefore expensive. Sandalwood is mainly used in oriental, sensual and warm fragrances. Santal Royal is a mysterious essence that pays homage to oriental tonalities. It opens with ultra-luminous notes of neroli and star jasmine, which also comes from India. The heart is contrasted, as it combines spicy tonalities such as cinnamon, a spice likewise from the Middle East, with the fruity, velvety tonalities of peach, as well as the floral tonalities of rose, feminine and romantic. The base is meant to be mysterious, enveloping, sensual, as it combines oud wood, leather accords, amber accords and patchouli, the whole enhancing the noble vibrations of sandalwood.