What does Neroli smell like?
Neroli opens with a green, lemony, almost bitter freshness, then reveals a white, honeyed, slightly soapy floral side. Clearer and airier than orange blossom absolute, it keeps a sunny cleanliness, like the Mediterranean in spring. On skin it stays bright but rather fleeting, and is usually extended by the musks and orange blossom that accompany it in the formula. It is the smell of freshly laundered cotton drying in a citrus grove.
Origin and production
Neroli comes from the bitter orange tree, Citrus aurantium, whose flowers are steam-distilled. Tunisia, Morocco and Egypt are important producers. It takes an enormous quantity of blossoms to obtain a kilo of oil, which makes it a precious material. Its name is said to come from a seventeenth-century princess of Nerola who made it fashionable. The same tree also gives orange blossom absolute, petitgrain from the leaves and bitter orange oil from the peel.
How perfumers use it
Placed in the top or heart, neroli is the soul of eau de Cologne alongside bergamot, lemon and rosemary. It brings sparkle and cleanliness to florals and fresh woody scents. Tom Ford's Neroli Portofino makes it the hero of a contemporary cologne; Chanel N°5 uses it in the top to brighten the aldehydes, and Giorgio Armani's Acqua di Gio uses it to soften its marine freshness.
How to wear it
Neroli suits spring and summer, for daytime. It appeals to anyone who loves clean, luminous, elegant fragrances, whatever their gender.
