Story | Leslie Yip Boucher-Harris Photography | Hermès, Jenna Marie Wakani, Paul Lepreux
ttage overlooking Lake Muskoka. The setting may seem laid back, but the air is filled with excitement: Hermès is launching its latest women’s scent in Canada, and presiding at the launch presentation is none other than the legendary Christine Nagel, creative director of Hermès Perfumes and creator of many of the most iconic scents of our time.
The new perfume is called Barénia, after the brand’s iconic smooth and buttery calfskin first used in saddle-making. The special tanning process embodies the heritage of Hermès’ craftsmanship, while the sensual texture of the leather speaks to the skin-caressing sensation of the new scent on the skin.
Christine Nagel, Creative Director of Hermès Perfumes.
The Barénia scent constitutes another first for the house—its first chypre fragrance.
The term comes from the French word for Cyprus, referencing a style of fragrance inspired by the Mediterranean island’s natural aromas. It is beyond the more commonly known families of floral, fresh, oriental and woody. Rather, it requires the sophisticated blending of bergamot as a top note, a floral heart, a warm, earthy base of oak moss and patchouli, plus labdanum, a resin from rockrose.
Hermès Barénia Eau de Parfum 100 ml | $212 60 ml | $157 30 ml | $115
Nagel explained that she had always wanted to create a chypre for Hermès. As someone with a rare neurological condition called synesthesia, she could see and feel scents. To her, chypre is the perfect epitome of an Hermès woman: elegant, confident, curious and sensual.
“I decided in secret to create a chypre fragrance soon after I joined the house,” Nagel says. “Usually it takes around two years for me to perfect a scent, but Barénia took me eight years. That is because I had to source just the right ingredients and blend them in just the right way.”
The final blend contains Calabrian bergamot that was extracted while it was still a bit green to give it a twist. Instead of the usual rose and jasmine, she chose the delicate butterfly lily, also known in Asia as the white ginger lily. Oakwood was used in lieu of oak moss, explaining the sweet and savoury rum-like scent in the bouquet, plus two different types of patchouli—one extracted using traditional methods in Indonesia, the other obtained by modern biotechnology.
There is an unexpected fifth element in the perfume, and its origin stems from a fairy tale.
“I loved to read fairy tales when I was growing up, and there was this African story about a magician that lived in a baobab tree,” Nagel recounts. “He has the power to make everything that was bitter or sour turn sweet. I know it was just a story, but I always dreamed of finding this magic power. Then, a few years ago, I discovered the miracle berry. It contains a protein called miraculin that can turn sour food sweet. I got in touch with a young Frenchman who was importing them and I asked to receive 15 kilograms to make an extract. It has a scent that is similar to apricots or dried plums. More importantly, it proves that fairy tales can be real!”
Perfumed Soap, 125g | $37
Barénia is housed in a bottle that is inspired by another Hermès classic: the Collier de chien, literally the dog collar. The elliptical curved bottle speaks to the shape of the Collier de chien bracelet, while signature oversized metal studs flank the shoulder of the bottle. An oval-shaped perfumed soap and a perfumed body cream is also available.
