Lost In The Woods

Jo Malone London takes the oak tree as inspiration for its latest scent creations. christina ko discovers why, in this case, strong and sturdy wins the race.

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IN SHERWOOD FOREST there lies a tree so old it has seen wars and revolutions, and been the subject of fairy tales and folklore. Its exact age is impossible to tell, but from its size and appearance historians estimate it has flourished for close to a millennium. They call it Major Oak. Legend has it that this was once a hiding place for Robin Hood and his Merry Men – whether true or simply an old wives’ tale has ceased to matter. Today, the giant oak is a symbol in England, and one that draws some half a million visitors annually.

Two such visitors were Céline Roux and Yann Vasnier, one the fragrance director of Jo Malone London, the other the perfumer contracted by the brand to work on its next fragrance. And what should two francophones do when seeking to bottle the essence of England? Head for its roots.

The pun may be an obvious one, but the motif is not. Woods are common in fragrances – sandalwood is a standard for imparting sensuality in oriental scents, cedar a reliable agent for adding musky aroma, vetiver an instant shot of verdancy that’s said to be present in more than one third of fragrances today – but oak isn’t an intuitive pick for a key note.

“In perfume we’ve used oak moss for decades and centuries, but we’ve been using [only] a little bit of the oak wood extract,” says Vasnier. Put simply: “By itself, it’s not very interesting. It doesn’t smell a lot, it doesn’t bring much in comparison with cedar or sandalwood or vetiver.“