Art de Parfum Founder and Creative Director Ruta Degutyte, gives a deep dive on unisex fragrance Gin & Tonic Cologne for fans of this best selling fragrance.
How exactly is gin and tonic added to the fragrance?
I assure you that no actual gin or tonic was harmed in the making of Gin & Tonic Cologne! Perfumers draw from a broad palette of natural oils, absolutes, and aroma chemicals to create the fantasy of something for the wearer. In Gin & Tonic Cologne, we use juniper berry, an aromatic traditionally used in gin to give it its characteristic flavour, and also grapefruit oil, because its citrusy sourness captures the essence of quinine, the flavour component of Indian tonic water. The main point about a good gin & tonic is that it’s zesty and bitter, as well as joyfully effervescent – and Gin & Tonic Cologne gives you the same feeling.
Do you think there is a trend of people wanting to smell like their favourite cocktails?
Not so much a trend as something eternally appealing, I think. Smell is evocative, and so closely intertwined with our sense of taste that it is impossible to enjoy a cocktail or drink without also enjoying its aroma. The warm, peaty scent of a Scottish whiskey, for example, is deeply comforting, and somehow makes us think of being wrapped up in a blanket beside a big fire. The herbal smell of gin is a huge part of the pleasure of drinking a G&T, with one sniff evoking warm summer evenings and freshly-mown lawns.
People unconsciously link the aroma of their favourite drink with pleasure and relaxation, which is why perfumers often seek to recreate it in the form of perfume. Roses, for example, are often paired with red wine notes, because the lusty, tannic richness of red wine is very similar to the aroma of some rose oils. And both men and women love the smoky autumnal richness of whiskey notes in perfume, which are often paired with similarly earthy notes like leather, polished woods, or vetiver.
Perfumers are born sensualists, always looking for a way to combine the senses that give us the most pleasure in life, be it taste, smell, or touch. The last one might sound strange, but perfumes really do have texture. Gin & Tonic Cologne, for example, has an almost tactile fizziness.
How does the fragrance balance out the strong alcoholic scent to make it wearable?
Pretty much in the same way a mixologist will do when making the perfect cocktail, which is to balance each element in the mix with a contrasting note. For example, a good whiskey sour contrasts the earthiness of the bourbon with the sweetness of sugar syrup and the freshness of lemon, giving you the perfect ratio between sweet and sour, earth and sunshine. Perfumery is an art that is all about balance too; in Gin & Tonic Cologne, we balance the herbal dryness of juniper berry with the zesty sourness of grapefruit.
But crucially, we also add a cucumber note that brings a gentle, watery greenness that will make you think more of a Pimm’s than straight-up hard alcohol. For us, there’s nothing particularly attractive or compelling about the smell of pure alcohol itself – the magic comes in framing the note against others to create a beautiful illusion and not just something that smells like you spilled a drink on yourself. Perfume tells us a story, weaves a spell, which is surely why we choose to wear perfume rather than Special London Dry Gin, no matter how good it smells!
How similar is the Gin & tonic accord compared to the drink itself?
The accord is photorealistic at first, making you wonder if a G&T has actually just materialised in front of you. But as the perfume develops, you will notice the other notes, such as the citruses, cardamom, and the cucumber, come to the fore, making the scent far more of an abstract allusion to the cocktail than a straight-up reproduction. What is really special about Gin & Tonic Cologne is how it manages to sustain the impression of fizziness, that fresh and addictive aroma of freshly-poured Indian tonic water, throughout the entire perfume from top to bottom.
It’s just such a great feel-good scent – you put it on and you feel an extra spring in your step all day long. Part of the reason it makes you feel so good is that it alludes to the scent of a good gin & tonic, of course, but the bigger picture is the citrusy, spicy, and green watery notes that create that bright, fizzy effect which lasts all day long. It’s a Good Mood in a bottle.