Jasmine Perfume – milky, sensual white flower

Jasmine in perfumery: the flower that smells of skin

Grandiflorum and sambac, two jasmines

Perfumery works mainly with two species. Jasminum grandiflorum, grown in Grasse, Egypt and India, yields an ample, fruity and milky absolute. Jasminum sambac, native to Asia, is greener, more indolic, almost medicinal — it is the jasmine of Chinese tea. In both cases the flower is picked by hand before sunrise, when it is at its most fragrant, and it takes several hundred kilos of flowers for one kilo of absolute. Heat destroys it: it is not distilled but solvent-extracted, first into a concrete and then into an absolute. It is one of the most expensive materials on the palette.

What does jasmine smell like?

Far less primly than you would imagine. Alongside the obvious white flower, jasmine absolute is milky, fruity, almost ripe banana, and shot through with animalic facets that come from indole — a molecule also found in far less floral smells. That is what gives jasmine its carnal character and that impression of warm skin. Grandiflorum leans towards solar fruitiness, sambac towards green and tea. On skin, the flower opens up markedly in the first few minutes and then settles, softer, for several hours.

Jasmine perfumes at Le Soleil d'Or

Bouquet de Hongrie by BDK Parfums, created by Serge Majoullier, gives an ample floral reading. Tubereuse Imperiale, from the same house, pairs it with another white flower for an opulent effect. Neroli Botanica by Essential Parfums, composed by Anne Flipo, places it in a brighter setting. Naxos by Xerjoff takes it towards honey and tobacco, while Ambre Rubis by Houbigant, created by Luca Maffei and Antoine Lie, melts it into an ambery warmth.

Jasmine accords and fragrance families

Jasmine is present, often in minute quantities, in a considerable share of floral perfumes — it acts as a binder between flowers and adds volume. With rose and ylang-ylang, it builds the great bouquets. With tuberose and orange blossom, it forms the opulent, milky white-flower accords. Laid over a sandalwood or a musk, it turns carnal; set against incense or leather, it gains an unexpected gravity.

Who is it for, and when?

Jasmine carries a feminine label it could happily do without: it is massively present in men's perfumes, including the great classics, simply without being announced. Its density points it towards evenings and the in-between seasons, but the green and solar readings hold up perfectly in summer. One point to watch: this is a flower that gains volume on warm skin and in a closed room. Two sprays are almost always enough.

How to choose your jasmine perfume

Jasmine is one of the rare materials where people are wrong about their own tastes: many think they dislike it because they have met soapy jasmines, when they in fact enjoy, without knowing it, compositions that contain it. Try it on skin and let it come: the character reveals itself after twenty minutes. The bespoke discovery box brings together five hand-filled 2 mL samples. To get your bearings, take an openly floral jasmine such as Bouquet de Hongrie, and a jasmine melted into an amber such as Naxos.

Jasmine at Le Soleil d'Or, a Lille perfumery since 1953

Founded in 1953 by Jeanne Muyllaert on the Grand'Place in Lille, Le Soleil d'Or is an independent perfumery passed down from one generation to the next. Hubert Maes (third generation) turned it into a reference for niche perfumery; today his daughters Victorine and Apolline Maes (fourth generation) uphold the same standards at 22 rue de la Clef, Lille (59800). Our team will let you smell the jasmine perfumes in the catalogue, with expert advice and guided trials, and can point you in the right direction using our guide to fragrance families.

Delivery & free in-store collection in Lille

Within mainland France, Colissimo delivery is free from 49 € to a pickup point and from 79 € to your door. Within Europe, it is free from 90 € to a pickup point and from 120 € to your door; we also ship worldwide. Live in Lille or nearby? Free in-store collection at 22 rue de la Clef is the fastest and most economical option. Full terms on our shipping page.