Tarragon (Artemisia dracunculus) is a small spice plant that grows wild in Europe and America. This unusual spice is known as a great addition to the dishes of many cultures. Its fresh, green-sweet aroma with a spicy touch perfectly complements the most famous culinary specialties worldwide.
Tarragon is a flowering plant of small height, only twenty centimeters, with charming yellow flowers. It blooms in July and August, and its essential oil, which is most often used, both in the perfume industry and in many others, is obtained by steam distillation of flowers, leaves, and stems.
Tarragon has been known since ancient times, primarily because of its beneficial effects on human health. For example, the Persians used it to improve their appetite, while the Hindu Maharaja enjoyed fresh and fragrant herbal tarragon tea. Even today, tarragon is used in aromatherapy and alternative medicine to regulate the digestive system and digestive system, treat anorexia, and as a wonderful concoction for boosting immunity.
Although it grows wild, tarragon is cultivated for culinary purposes as a spice plant, mainly adding aroma and flavors to pickles, meat sauces, or an aroma to vinegar. Tarragon oil is mainly used for the needs of the perfume industry. For this purpose, tarragon is mostly produced in France, and to a lesser extent in the Netherlands, the USA, and Hungary.
Tarragon oil has a pale yellow color and a fresh, aromatic scent, in fragments of a sweet, spicy tone that fades over time. It is a bit reminiscent of anise or fresh celery. Over time, it ages, becomes darker, and loses that attractive fresh tone, which is why it is most often used in making perfume compositions. Some connoisseurs of the scent say that with aging, it can get even a very unpleasant smell that does not resemble the real, fresh smell of tarragon.
The main ingredient in tarragon oil is estragole, which is also present in pine oils and terpenes. It is easily obtained synthetically, so its use is not very common in perfumery. However, there are those perfumers who like the natural scent of tarragon, which, as they say, adds indescribable freshness and natural effect to their perfumes.
This special, herbal fragrant note is used in traces to enhance chypre and fougere perfumes, i.e., various green and herbal fragrance compositions. It is best combined with lavender, galbanum, vanilla, and oakmoss.
There is also a “fake” tarragon oil on the market, mostly made from estragole from pine oil. It differs because it has a shorter lifespan in the perfume, that is, the fresh scent of tarragon quickly fades, there is too clean scent when it dries, and the original herbal undertone that is found in tarragon is missing. Experienced perfumers know how to recognize the difference between real tarragon oil and the fake counterpart. The fact that less than one metric ton of tarragon oil is produced annually, mostly in France, says enough. It is used just as a unique, finishing touch to round up and add fullness and richness to a perfume’s composition.
You can smell it in these fragrances:
- Aftelier Trevert
- Amouage Jubilation 25
- Azzaro Bright Visit
- B Never Too Busy to B Beautiful Dirty
- Boadicea The Victorious Reviving
- Bond no 9 Washington Square
- Boss Spirit
- Burberry Mr. Burberry
- Calvin Klein Eternity for Men
- Chloe Roses de Chloe
- Dolce & Gabbana Pour Homme
- Givenchy Gentleman
- Givenchy Pi
- Givenchy Xeryus Rouge
- Gres Cabochard
- Guerlain Sous le Vent
- Guerlain Vetiver Extreme
- Houbigant Cologne Intense
- Issey Miyake L’Eau d’Issey Pour Homme
- Jo Malone French Lime Blossom
- Jo Malone London Vetyver
- Lush Lord of Goathorn
- Micallef Steel Water
- Mancera Blue Aoud
- Molinard Madrigal
- Nicolai Baladin
- Nikos Sculpture
- Paloma Picasso Minotaure
- Prada Amber
- Prada Infusion de Vetiver
- Ralf Lauren Safari for Men
- Tom Daxon Cologne Absolute
- Tom Ford Mandarino di Amalfi
- Tom Ford Moss Breches
- Versace Dreamer
- Versace Man Eau Fraiche
je rajouterais Chypre Azural par les Indémodables