Ingredient Guide
Bay is called gekkeiju (bay laurel) in Japanese and laurier in French (strictly speaking, in Japan, gekkeiju and laurier are slightly different). Its scent is green and herbal, with a slight floral sweetness.
What Does It Smell Like in Perfume?
One natural fragrance material called “bay” in perfumery is laurel oil, steam-distilled from the leaves of Laurus nobilis. Its aromatic, fresh scent is layered with facets reminiscent of sweet spices, lavender, lemon, and eucalyptus, giving herbal notes both freshness and warmth. In English, “bay” can also refer to other plants; laurel oil is a different material from the leaf oil of Pimenta racemosa used in bay rum.
How to Choose Bay / Laurel Fragrances
Blackberry & Bay combines green leaves with sweet-tart fruit. Escentric 05 places laurel among other herbs and woods. Treating these separately from bay rum makes the differences easier to appreciate.
Comparing Bay / Laurel Fragrances
Blackberry & Bay Cologne (Jo Malone London)
Sweet-tart blackberry and freshly gathered bay combine in a cologne that adds green leaves to the fruit.
Escentric 05 (Escentric Molecules)
Laurel and rosemary meet bergamot, fig, juniper and Cashmeran. A fragrance inspired by the plants of a Mediterranean island, with the warmth of woods and resins as well as leaves and fruit.
Find Your Next Fragrance
To explore more perfumes, open our Fragrance Finder. Choose “Favorite fragrances & notes” on the home screen, then search in the “Favorite notes” field. Select a note you like from the results and press “Next” to continue. You can start with notes even if you do not yet have a favorite perfume.
