The Burren Perfumery: Celebrating St. Patrick's Day With Beautiful Irish Perfumes

I would never have known about The Burren Perfumery, a little Irish shop nestled into the northwest of County Clare amidst the rocky terrain known as The Burren, were it not for a trip my son and daughter-in-law took last autumn. Ireland has long been on my "see before I die" list. I lived next door in Scotland for three years and kick myself for never making the trip over. Anyway, on their trip they visited The Burren Perfumery and brought me back the gift that every perfume lover covets: an entire sample set, and what beautiful samples they are! The delicate artful renderings of the herbs and wildflowers on the sample folder's covers mean this is just one more item I'll never be able to throw away. Sorry my dear children, I read the book about The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning, but no can do. Look at these! How could I ever get rid of them, even after the perfume is gone. Little tiny works of art.

I had never heard of the Burren, but it is an area of significant geological phenomena, one of those wind-swept, other-worldly places that you can imagine ancient Druids using as a sacrificial offering ground or alien space ships landing, thinking they've finally found home. The ground is covered by glaciated karst with rock outcroppings covering most of the area. A portion is designated as the Burren National Park and most of the year it looks like the landscape below.

Google image of The Burren.

But every May the area bursts forth with a magnificent display of wildflowers, growing in the shallows of the rocks and sprouting between their crevices. In this area seventy percent of Ireland's wildflower species can be found, and because of the unusual geography you find arctic wildflowers growing alongside Mediterranean varieties. The word burren comes from the Gaelic bhoireann, meaning a barren stoney place. (Sidenote: Speaking of the beautiful language of Gaelic, having a man speaking Gaelic to you is a profoundly charming pleasure, and if he happens to be wearing a Scottish kilt, well, all bets are off. But I digress.) 

Photo from www.Independent.ie, Burren in bloom.

The Burren Perfumery  produce perfumes, soaps, face and body products, candles, and tea, all natural or organic. Their stated mission is to be "a small Ireland-based company making cosmetics and perfumes inspired by the landscape around us. Everything is made on site, by hand, in small batches."

Photo of Burren Perfumery blending room by Ralph Doyle, owner.

Let me introduce the fragrances, most of which are unisex. They all meet my expectation of scents based on the Irish countryside: gentle, natural, a bit delicate but not tame.

Frond

The very name Frond suggests delicacy, a leaf or a slender curl of a leaf. The perfume holds up to this image with a fragile sweetness from the first spray until it finally fades away. There is a touch of wild rose but it is softer and creamier than the roses I'm more accustomed to in perfume. Violet leaf adds a touch of grassy green and later oakmoss and woods will eventually blur the scent. There is an air of sweetness running through this scent but not the sweetness of a gourmand perfume. This is the sweetness of nature that is captured on the breeze and brings bees and butterflies searching for the source. This one is more feminine and a favorite for me. This is a bit of a random thought but rose, like all flowers, has healing properties, and when I first smelled Frond the thought popped into my head how refreshing it would be to have a cold cloth smelling of this to put on my forehead when I get one of my very rare migraines. The smell to me is healing, therapeutic, and very uplifting.

Ilaun

The perfumer's copy describes Ilaun as a light fresh perfume with top notes of wild orchid and other notes of elderflower, fern, lichen and moss. To me this smelled like my idea of Ireland; fay, a little off kilter, green with a bit of fairy dust thrown in. It's light and spring like but there is a tiny thread of bitterness running through the green, somewhat like life, with a touch of strife. I find this one really interesting and the perfect pale green scent to welcome spring. Probably the hardest of the lot to pin down with a description and unisex.

Spring Harvest

The copy said this is made to evoke an armful of herbs gathered in spring, with aromatic notes of mint, lemonbalm, and fennel. This is delightfully fragrant bouquet of herbs on first spray but in a very gentle manner. The mint is quiet but very present beneath all the other fragrant herbs. The lemonbalm gives it just a touch of citrus. This has the same feel as Ilaun, light, floaty, tender, but it is less green and more aromatic. It's unisex and another light and lovely perfume to welcome spring or wear discreetly to brighten your day.

Summer Harvest

"Lying in a meadow on a summer's afternoon" is how Summer Harvest is described. I had expected it might be a little stronger than Spring Harvest, to reflect the season heating up but I guess summer in Ireland is pretty mild. This is not the summer scent of the part of the world I'm from, with indolic flowers and honey laden blooms. This is altogether more delicate, but dazzling in its freshness. I love the names of the notes: meadowsweet, lady's bedstraw, and chamomile scent this perfume.  The scent truly is reminiscent of the gentle scent of a meadow dotted with wildflowers. There is a hazy, lazy, easy quality to wearing it, and it is is one of those perfumes you could buy for just about anyone and they wouldn't be offended by any of the notes.  

Autumn Harvest

 This is supposed to evoke an autumn walk through the woods. It starts out with more power than any of the other fragrances. If you like perfumes with berry notes this might be the perfume for you. I'm reminded of the black currant note in Diptyque L'Ombre Dans L'Eau minus the rose or Jo Malone Blackberry & Bay, minus the bay leaf. These are not sweet berries over-ripened in the sun. Think brambles and thorns, and the tartness of the berries, and the green of the stems. The tartness makes my mouth have a sympathetic reaction like I've had a pickle. At first I thought I didn't care for it but found myself respraying again and again, and it grows on me more every time I wear it.

Winter Woods

There are herbal notes listed in the opening of Winter Woods but I just get a feeling of freshness, no specific herb. But it's not a minute before I can smell the iris, accompanied by a slight touch of lavender. This smells powdery and comforting like a warm blanket on a cold night. Fairly quickly woody notes of cedar, pine and vetiver smooth this to a quiet elegance, as soft as mouse paw prints on snow. The perfumery lists this scent as masculine but I find it unisex.

Man of Aran

This is the first fragrances introduced at the Burren Perfumery and is inspired by the Atlantic Ocean waves crashing into the rugged western coastline. Ozonic fragrance is my least favorite scent category so I'm probably not the best to review Man of Aran. Normally the ozone rush in an aquatic perfume smells very chemical to me, however I am happy to say that in this cologne that is not the case. There are citrus notes in the opening and you do get that sensation of waves or water, followed by pleasant wood notes which is where it settles. It is a good representation of this type of scent, just not for me.

I know a lot of my readers are still buried in snow and cold winds while I'm over here in Australia where summer still lingers. Partially because of the weather I'm finding lighter perfumes really appealing lately, but your spring is coming and trust me, these light will-o-the-wisp fragrances which smell natural and pure are the perfect way to welcome spring. I don't know if the perfumery mails samples but their perfume cost is quite reasonable, 44 euro for eau de parfums and 36 euro for eau de toilettes, both in 50 ml size. Orders over 60 euro ship free worldwide.

Call me sentimental but I do believe that intentions and mindfulness can color the experience we receive as a consumer. I came across this lovely statement from co-owner Sadie Chowen on a blog post wrapping up her reflections on the close of 2017 for the perfumery. I am copying her words here:

Money isn't a strong motivator for either myself or Ralph (husband). We all need to earn a living and pay the rent, and a business has to at least break even or it faces going under. However community, creativity, sustainability, respect for the beautiful environment that we live in -- these are the things that add richness and satisfaction to day-to-day living. Many years ago we took a decision to make manufacturing by hand in Clare a core part of the Perfumery's ethos because it creates and maintains rural employment, and we believe manufacturing here has long term benefits for community, environment, and customers alike. The Perfumery provides 32 full and part time jobs.

I found these words quite inspiring and I am happy to recommend these perfumes to you as the perfect spring fragrances for those of you longing to leave winter behind and welcome the earth's greening renewal. I am looking forward to ordering once my samples are used. At the moment my front runners are Frond, Ilaun, and either Spring Harvest or Summer Harvest. My dark horse entry is Autumn Harvest, whose bitter berry thorniness is growing addictive and strangely has me craving a blackberry cobbler.

And finally, thanks to these two who introduced me to The Burren Perfumery with their thoughtful gift, pictured here by the iconic Cliffs of Moher in the area of the Burren.

 

Top photo of Cliffs of Mohor, County Clare, Ireland from Travel Ireland website.