What does Lentisk smell like?
Rub a lentisk leaf between your fingers in high summer: a green, peppery and resinous smell rises. There is a turpentine edge and a hint of fruit. The resin, mastic, is softer and more balsamic. Lentisk has nothing floral about it. It smells of sun on stones and dry scrub. In perfume it adds texture and a sense of garrigue.
Origin and production
Lentisk (Pistacia lentiscus) grows all around the Mediterranean, from Morocco to Greece. On the Greek island of Chios, a local variety produces mastic, a resin collected by cutting the bark. Perfumery mostly distils the leaves and twigs, in Morocco, Tunisia or Corsica. The resulting oil is green, peppery and resinous.
How perfumers use it
Lentisk adds a Mediterranean accent. It works with cistus, bay leaf, fig and citrus. Jean-Claude Ellena put it in the heart of Hermès Un Jardin en Méditerranée (2003), with fig and bay leaf. Parfum d'Empire Corsica Furiosa (2014) opens with it alongside mint and tomato leaf for a very green Corsican maquis. Much older, Molinard Habanita (1921) lists it among its top notes.
How to wear it
Lentisk is a summer note for holidays and hot days. Un Jardin en Méditerranée is light enough to reapply freely, while Corsica Furiosa lasts longer.