Little used in perfumery, absolute coffee has until now been found in men's perfumes, such as A Men Pure Coffee by Thierry Mugler, where his biting and nervous notes evoke espresso. Obtained by extraction with volatile solvents of the roasted coffee beans (the green coffee bean has no smell, it is the roasting which gives it all its aromas), the absolute coffee is, indeed, a thick and very dark liquid presenting difficulties of solubility. The fragrance, much more complex than it seems, reveals spicy but also sweet facets. Recently, a bleached absolute coffee (proposed by Robertet) has been found, which is extracted using volatile solvents from roasted coffee on mygliol. This heavy solvent avoids overheating the raw material and respects the smell of freshly ground coffee powder. The kind of smell you get when you walk past a store roasting your own coffee! The result is a colourless absolute (discoloured on solvent) which no longer risks darkening the juice. The fragrance obtained is round, sweet (evoking coffee liqueur), chocolate, almost tobacco and much more gourmand. We can also, according to Bertrand Duchaufour, perfumer,"…". distill coffee with supercritical CO2. We then obtain a very rare coffee essential oil with toasted tones where there are much less colouring principles. ". Whatever the case, absolute, accord or essential oil… the coffee note seduces a growing number of perfumers.

The coffee bean accord

Yves Saint Laurent was one of the first to exploit this note in a feminine perfume. Nathalie Courson designed the intense coffee bean accord of the eau de parfum Black Opium by Yves Saint Laurent, launched in 2014. Never exploited in a woman to such a concentration, this agreement gave birth to the first"floral coffee" of perfumery. Enough to awaken the senses and strike with full force! Still at the heart of the new Black Opium eau de toilette (30 ml, 49 €; 50 ml, 69 €; 90 ml, 91 €), it is associated with more fruity tonalities (blackcurrant, pear, citrus fruits, green mandarin peel…) and a bouquet of white, solar and sensual flowers dominated by orange blossom. The tasty notes of coffee beans are enhanced by creamy musks and a white wood accord.

Frankly greedy…

Absolute coffee and coffee distilled with supercritical CO2 have also inspired Bertrand Duchaufour, who creates for L'Artisan Parfumeur Exquisite Black (Eau de parfum, 50 ml, 92 € or 100 ml, 112 €), a deep and intense amber fragrance, where one can also distinguish the comforting aromas of maple syrup and marrons glacés. For Bertrand Duchaufour," the toasted notes of the coffee are in perfect harmony with those of the chestnuts and also recall the'burnt heated' effect of the maple syrup ". The aura is warm and appetizing, a perfect winter delicacy that the brand did not hesitate to create, by associating with the pastry chocolatier Meilleur Ouvrier de France Arnaud Larher, to propose The Exquisite an original and ephemeral cake. In love with exceptional coffees, conquered by the olfactory complexity of the fragrance, Arnaud Larher thus composes a vanilla shortbread tart, with maple syrup biscuit and pure arabica Indian coffee ganache, covered with a creamy Ardèche chestnut mousse (6.50 €, to discover from October 7 to December 31).

… or associated with tobacco and rather smoky

With Timeless Gold  1888 (Collection Black Premier Eau de parfum, 100 ml, 270 €, from November), Lalique blends absolute coffee with tobacco, a scent that suits her well (as in life!). The fragrance is textured with a warm cold spice (cardamom, nutmeg, black pepper) that express the contrast between the sunny color of gold and the coldness of metal. Vanilla and tolu balm, supported by a patchouli line, soften this dark palette of rich golden shades. A fragrance with a contrasting character, both modern and vintage, elegant and sensual. In a word: timeless.

Finally, the coffee note reinforces the darkness of the fragrances, an element that has all its importance. Whether it's the bottles, the names of the perfumes or the ingredients, black is furiously trendy in perfumery at the moment, so we'll have the opportunity to come back to it soon…

Ariane Le Febvre