What does Blackberry smell like?
Crush a blackberry between your fingers. First sugar, then sharpness, then something almost winey. A blackberry accord follows the same order: a juicy top, a warm jam facet and a slightly green edge that recalls the stem and the bramble leaf. Done well, it smells like fruit picked by a lane in August. Done badly, it turns to syrup. On skin it stays in the opening for about an hour before the heart takes over.
Origin and production
The blackberry comes from Rubus fruticosus, a thorny shrub found all over Europe in hedges and waste ground. There is no workable way to extract a perfume oil from the fruit. So perfumers build the accord from synthetic fruity molecules, often borrowing from blackcurrant and raspberry. Results vary a lot. Some blackberries are tangy, others close to liqueur.
How perfumers use it
L'Artisan Parfumeur put blackberry in a perfume's name as early as 1978 with Mûre et Musc, one of the first scents to pair a specific fruit with a clean musk. The note later spread to the mainstream. Burberry Her (2018) opens on a mix of red and dark berries, and Her Elixir (2022) pushes it sweeter. Cacharel Promesse (2005) puts it at the top of a light fruity floral. Amouage Jubilation XXV Man (2007) is the surprise, using it in a rich, incense-heavy masculine.
How to wear it
Blackberry suits spring and late summer. Burberry Her stays easy for daytime. For evenings, Jubilation XXV needs one spray and no more.