“Do you want to do a little experiment with me?” Christine Nagel, creative director of Hermès Perfumes, challenges me. We are in one of those offices with views of the rooftops of Paris where one tends to say yes to everything. “Put this berry in your mouth and taste it. Do you notice the hint of apricot? Now take that lemon wedge; bite without fear.” Surprise: zero acidity, just the right citrus of a candy. “This berry is miraculous,” he says, laughing. It has a molecule that turns sour into sweet. It is one hundred percent natural, zero calories,” he specifies. “There is no creation without memory,” they often say at the house. This miracle berry was the protagonist of a legend that the perfumer remembers from her reading childhood. Now it is one of the distinctive notes of Barénia, “the first authentic Cyprus” from Hermès.
Define Barénia in four words.
Elegant, sensual and recognizable. Distinctive.
Why a cyprus?
I wanted to make the first Hermès Cyprus since I arrived, because they are timeless. Very few houses have the courage to make contemporary classics today. But first I had to get to know the Hermès woman well: she is driven by curiosity, has a very strong and defined taste and a lot of self-confidence. They are women who believe in their instinct and follow it, their steps are never false. And a Chypre is the most intuitive perfume.
Did you have any specific reference in mind?
Many. The adventurers, for example, who fascinate me. Alexandra David-Néel, soprano and explorer, the first Westerner to reach Tibet. Or Isabella Bird, who traveled halfway around the world in the Victorian era. Extraordinary women who dared to follow their instinct. And artists in the shadow of great men, but who managed not to lose themselves.
Barénia is also a type of leather…
For me, the most sensual in the house. We say that it has the power to return a caress. It’s delicate. There’s something delicious about it, it smells almost like rum, with hints of vanilla and spice; wood with history, like that of a select English club. It’s very sensual.
The miracle berry
© Katie Burnett
This fruit turns bitter into sweet.”
Is the relationship between smell and touch important?
I am Latina. When I talk about perfumes I talk about textures and colors, but never about music. The perfume must be tactile and sensuality is important.
Do you have little routines when you create?
I smell a lot of ingredients and perfumes. If I get saturated, I lift my top a little to smell my own body.
Is Barénia the most difficult perfume you have made?
For me there is nothing difficult, just things that take more time than others. And at Hermès there are no marketing briefings or deadlines to meet…
Mariposa lily, patchoulí, which is the last one…
In theory, a chypre has to have citrus, an opulent floral bouquet, something green and woody… That would be the basic recipe, but I wanted something different. I opted for a bergamot created especially for this perfume that is harvested when it reaches a specific maturity. The butterfly lily comes from Madagascar, it has a lot of character, because it survives in extreme conditions, and it is very refined. The oak has a toasted touch and I have worked the patchouli in two ways: a strong and rustic extract, made in the traditional way and a high-tech biotech one. Together they build one different from all of them.
Barénia, the new Hermès perfume
Hermes
A fashionable perfume
The Collier de Chien, a leather and metal bracelet by Hermès Sllier, was adopted by women of the roaring twenties to assert themselves. Her mark can be seen on bags, accessories, and the powerful bottle of Barénia, a perfume that blends with the skin. 100 ml. 159 euros
How did you come up with the miracle berry?
When I was little I liked building forts and shelters more than playing with dolls. And I loved reading books of myths and legends. One stuck out to me. It was the story of a wizard who lived in a baobab and had a berry capable of turning bitter into sweet, even character. When I became a perfumer I always dreamed of finding something like this.
And he found it…
A small fruit from Ghana reminded me a lot. I ordered 15 kilos and could barely extract anything. The smell was surprising, between apricot and nutty. I preserved the extract, analyzed the molecules and reconstructed its smell.
What is elegance in a perfume?
Personality, uniqueness. Confidence, feel good wearing it. Leave a mark without invading the space of others. Some perfumes explode in your face and lose elegance. And the highest quality ingredients.
Very personal
What character would Barénia be?
Anyone who believes in their potential to pursue their dreams, like perfumer Germaine Cellier, a pioneer in an industry then dominated by men
The last thing you bought and loved…
A graffiti by a well-known artist, in orange tones. When I brought it home my husband said, “What is this?!” I adore it and it is hung clearly visible, of course
First thought when waking up
I’m hungry! I get up at 6
Your favorite place in the world
Anyone I can share with my husband makes me happy
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