Inhale the Juicy Scent of Bergamot Blast

All You Need to Know About Bergamot

Let me take you on a journey down the isle of Italy. As you drive from one destination to the other, you can almost smell the scent of this delicious citrus fruit lingering in the air.

Refreshing, subtle, yet rich, and rounded, it is multifaceted in its profile with sweet, floral, sour, bitter, and even mildly spicy accords, those closely reminiscent to lavender. All tied into one, this complex structure makes bergamot oil vastly intriguing, and a highly-prized ingredient that all perfumers dream of!

Considered, in comparison to other citrus fruits within its family, as the “finest flower of citrus”, or even more boldly, as the “prince of citrus”; it is most commonly renowned for being the DNA of colognes. Popularly the signature ingredient in the structure of male perfumery, specifically within the fougere and chypre fragrance families, it is even said that the accords of bergamot separate the men from the boys.

Found in the hottest and most exclusive perfumes, some of our favourites are Bergamote 22 by Le Labo, Blu Mediterraneo Bergamotto Di Calabria by Acqua Di Parma, Afternoon Swim by Louis Vuitton and Le Jardin De Monsieur Li by Hermès. Therefore, it is no wonder why we, at Maison 21G, are excited about this ingredient and urge you to integrate it into your custom perfume!

A Little History

Like lime in its appearance, rather small, and green, the bergamot orange or the Citrus bergamia, is a bitter orange that is grown on a relatively small evergreen tree during the winter. Although bergamot is usually found in Earl Grey tea (a recipe that dates back to 1830 from the UK), which gives it the elusive scent and taste that we love, it is in fact inedible. Instead, it is widely cultivated for its thick skin from which we obtain the scented oil.

Predominantly grown in Calabria, in Southern Italy; the fruit's name is derived from the Turkish word, “bey armudu”, which translates to "the Lord's pear". Alternatively, others claim that the name actually references the Italian city, Bergamo, just north of Milan where the fruit was initially cultivated and sold. Nonetheless, Calabria remains the world’s largest producer of bergamot, holding 80% of production, where you will find the highest quality oil.

Aside from perfumery, bergamot oil is commonly used in aromatherapy, where it is believed to elevate one’s mood and alleviate stress and depression. Moreover, similar to its citrus family cousin, the grapefruit, it is also thought to be an antiseptic, analgesic, and can relieve muscle cramps and pain.

It has recently been discovered that Bergamot juice has a considerable amount and variety of nutraceutical compounds, leading it to become increasingly important within the food and confectionery industries.

From Fruit to Oil

The year 1714 was the first recorded use of Bergamot being in a fragrance. Till today, this citrus fruit continues to invigorate and refresh once sprayed on your skin,

With the harvest typically running through the winter, the process begins with hand-picking the fruits from October to February. After being selected, it is washed, grated, and prepared to be cold-pressed. In the past, the oil was acquired by manually using our hands to press the fruit's rind into a sea sponge. However, thanks to modern technology, it is slightly more manageable now. The peel is first removed from the fruit and pierced all over to create numerous small holes, before being mechanically pressed to produce the essential oil.

To give you an idea of how strenuous and lengthy the process may be, only 1kg of oil can be obtained from a jaw-dropping amount of 200 kilograms of Bergamot! And just when you thought, that was not enough pressure for the harvester, bergamot oil remains a challenge to tap, due to reasons such as the weather, soil and ingredients can dictate how the oil obtained will conclusively smell!

Our Recommended Mixes

Before we dive in with our recommendations, we want to give you a bit more detail and reassurance about our composition. Although bergapten, a tanning accelerator, and confirmed to-be-phototoxic, has been found in bergamot essential oil, at Maison 21G, we have successfully removed this ingredient by distillation.

Therefore, set your worries aside, as our BERGAMOT BLAST perfume, is clean and safe, and will make you more confident, bold, fearless, elegant, refreshed, and simply on top of the trend!

If you're seeking for an invigorating, sexy, head-turning elixir, then BERGAMOT BLAST along with the scent of AMBER AFFAIR, is exactly what you need. A weapon of seduction, that surprises even us each time, with its magical fusion of the oriental accents of amber, and the refreshing fresh accords of bergamot. It will simply leave you wanting more.

For our gentlemen who seek a more elegant and charming, everyday perfume, then we would recommend the combo of BERGAMOT BLAST and our VETIVER VIRTUOSO fragrance. A Terre d’Hermes inspired mix, that is intensely fresh with opening top notes of reviving bergamot, that slowly diffuses into the warm arms of the smoky, woody vetiver. Give it a try, and we can be assured to see you coming back for your second mix!

A fragrance that would be more suitable for our playful, carefree, dynamic ladies can also be considered a unisex scent, BERGAMOT BLAST with our RASPBERRY REDEMPTION perfume. A few sprays of this mix onto your skin, and you will be transported to a summer’s day! Charged with positivity, this is a brilliant tous le jour wear!  

Related articles

• How To Become A Perfumer
• Journey To The Caribbean With Frangipani Freedom
• Why You Should Love Sandalwood Scent