Fleur de sel

What it brings

A mineral, salty touch that gives relief to soft notes.

Origins and uses

Fleur de sel is the thin layer of white crystals that forms on the surface of salt marshes, especially on summer afternoons, when wind and evaporation combine. The wind pushes it towards the edges of the pond, and it stays white because it never touches the clay at the bottom. The salt workers of Guérande, Ré and Noirmoutier gather it by hand every evening, with a tool called a lousse, before rain can dissolve it.

In perfumery, it is an evocation: salt itself has no smell, and no material is drawn from it. The perfumer recreates its mineral, slightly iodised sensation with other materials, to give an impression of sea air or to lift a gourmand note.

In our catalogue, fleur de sel opens Vanilla Vibes by Juliette Has a Gun, where it contrasts with a heart of orchid and vanilla and a base of benzoin and sandalwood.