Vernus

Limited seasonal release - 926 bottles

Spring has sprung! A chroma of gilded blooms awash with hazy vernal sunshine enticing noses to hover ever closer.

Impression

Petitgrain sur Fleurs, Quince, Marigold, Sunflower, Magnolia, Narcissus, Jonquil Absolute, Jasmine Absolute

Fade

Hickory, Paprika, Goldenrod, Hay oil, Hay Absolute, Eau de Brout Absolute

Perfumer’s notes:

Nothing signals spring like the first signs of narcissus piercing through soil.

Growing up in rural Scotland was, in hindsight, an absolute gift. Some of my fondest childhood memories involve springtime wandering. The seasonal shift bringing a new aromatic scentscape with it. I remember spending most of my youthful years in one of the woodlands in my village, a simply magical place especially in spring – muscari, hyacinth, bluebells, snowdrops and millions of narcissus rioting mostly undisturbed beneath ancient chestnuts, oaks and peculiar hickory trees planted by my friends family decades ago. The scene cut by a picturesque burn which seemed to have only two settings, raging or nearly still. Of all the wildflowers growing in this woodland meadow, narcissus were the most memorable for me, radiating their weirdly wonderful aroma in a low-lying carpet of sun dappled warmth. The jonquil were and still are my favourite of the genus.

The woodland in question was flanked on all sides by hay fields making for a more immersive experience that grew incredibly powerful as the spring faded to summer and, eventually, the start of the harvest.

I would take books and magazines into the woods and sit under the trees for hours, lost in pages, aromas and shifts in sunlight and temperature. So vivid and formative are these memories, they informed a large part of our perfume Athenaeum as well as Vernus.

Scent memories are such astounding phenomena. On a trip to the Auvergne in my late teens we happened upon the most amazing narcissus meadow growing into a hay field. I was instantly transported to my pre-teen years building gang-huts and tree swings shooting over the burn in the ‘daffodil woods’ (or ‘bluebell woods’ depending on who you asked in the village) and watching the hay being collected by huge harvesters and balers. This event brought together some of my favourite aromas; hay and narcissus. I scribbled down a bunch of aromatic impressions into my notebook for future reference.

Vernus was made around 8 or 9 years ago. I kept coming back to the formula wondering if anyone else would relate to it in the same way I did. It felt right to launch Vernus for our 2025 Spring TIME limited release… I look forward to hearing if it igniting similar memories in others.

Made in Scotland.