Violet, the scent of divine loves

Violet is the base of many scents, although its penetrating aroma is increasingly softened in Haute Parfumerie. Such a small and widespread flower, and yet so highly prized.

The botanical name of the violet flower is Viola Odorata, it is a small plant that reaches 15 centimeters in height, without stem and with a perennial root. It has large flowers - 2 centimeters long - and very showy. These flowers are fragrant, with a sweet and penetrating aromaand is widely used in perfumery. They are of a color between blue and purple -which gives its name to the violet color-, but they can alsobe white.

The violet blooms between March and April, the fields are mowed to recover the stems and leaves and then distilled with volatile solvents to obtain the absolute essence. It has been used in perfumery since its origins.

Did you know that mythology attributes the creation of the violet to a request from Zeus to the goddess Gaea, to honor his lover Io?

The legend says that when the god Zeus fell in love with Io, he ordered the Earth to create in her honor the most exquisite flower and Gaea created Ion -violet in Greek-. Zeus had become infatuated with the beautyof Io and tempted her in dreams to give herself to him, against the will of his wife and Io's father. To make her fall in love was the request for the creation of the violet, that simple, striking and fragrant-smelling plant.

Napoleon also received the nickname Caporal Violette, because of his fondness for this flower, which also became the Napoleonic imperial symbol. And in the Victorian era, its fragrance was very popular and was used primarily in the perfuming of leather gloves; a widespread tendency to exhale a fragrant aroma, at a time when kissing was protocol.

Today it is used in confectionery - who has not tasted a violet candy?-, in pastry and, of course, in perfumery.