The Herb of the Angels; Green Fragrant and Delicious

Once upon a time, there was a little herb that grew. She was sweet, and pale used to flavour drinks, or candied in desserts. But this simple leaf and root gave her flavour to food and to medicine and her stalk to perfumery. So loved she was named ‘herb of the angels’ Angelica is her name, green is her colour, and her scent goes from facets to citrus all the way to deep and earthy. Meet her here is Roos and Roos Perfumers’ newest launch Angelica Florae

This angelic herb is a member of the parsley family and was once thought to be a remedy against witchcraft, poison, and plague. Its pale green, celery-like stalks stimulate the production of digestive juices, improve the flow of bile into the digestive tract and combat digestive spasms. Angelica is also used to flavor gin and sweet wines.

On top of that it has been used for heartburn, intestinal gas (flatulence), loss of appetite, arthritis, circulation problems, a “runny nose” from a cold, and trouble sleeping. Even stranger than those ailments is to know it has been used to improve sex drive, and been used for treating premature ejaculation.

Photograph by Mike Peel

Candied Angelica is used to decorate cakes and desserts. Find it in Paris stores where it is quite expensive but originally it would have been grown in gardens, particularly used in medicine gardens for centuries. Most notably her name is related to, of course, an angel yet Angelica is related to Hemlock, and the plant bares a casual resemblance so if picked mistakenly it can be poisonous.

Born in the Middle Ages, the “gardens of simples,” or as we may know them better, Medicinal gardens. were planted and tended by monks who mainly cultivated aromatic plants intended for various uses, in particular therapeutic, medicinal purposes, and occasionally for food.

Many of these gardens contained  over 1,100 plants, but most were lost over time, leaving a trail of mystery behind them The Simples perfume collection takes inspirational and flourishing memories
of this traditional past, bringing them up to date via perfumes inspired by these holistic green gardens.

It has now been over a year since the launch in the UK of the Les Simples Collection from Roos and Roos. The collection is deliberately natural in the choice of its ingredients. A bucolic getaway for Roos & Roos perfumes, a tribute to an exquisite forgotten practice. An utterly delicious nod to pleasant aspects of the countryside and country life. The bringing to life the herbaceous garden, bottled.

The latest plant to be captured in a bottle is Angelica. The root, seed, and fruit are used to make medicine. But when it comes to perfumery its aroma is quite strong, so it’s typically used in very small quantities, as a component of a complex fragrance. As a note, it is earthy, and musky, with a hint of its cousin Celery, also Pepper, and herby facets, sometimes find just a slight suggestion of warm citrus.

So Angelica Florae here opens with Angelica seed alongside the sweet spice of Star Anise both bringing green facets to the rush of the top. Its heart-warm spice via both pink and black Pepper with voluptuous Jasmine and flowery, powdery Iris. The angel rears her head in the base with Angelica alongside earthy rain-like-damp from sexy Patchouli to round the whole elixir together. The nose behind this fragrance is Nicolas Bonneville this vivacious green lively scent.

Three scents already exist, Bel Absinthe, an aromatic, woody, musky fragrance, then Malamata a floral, green fragrance alongside Globulus an aromatic, spicy, woody fragrance. now comes the latest family member, Angelica Florae, a lively green floral fragrance.

The Company Roos and Roose is run by mother-daughter duo Chantal and Alexandra who chose to join forces, in 2014, around their common love of perfume. The company supports the “Fondation des femmes « (A French foundation that raises money to help women in need) and redistributes 10% of online purchase

This unusual herb may be tied into the world of witchcraft but here she weaves a magical scent that is quite simply, angelic.

To find out more about Angelica Florae please visit here and to find out more about the brand and the other scents on offer please visit here www.roosandroos

If you enjoyed reading The Herb of the Angels; Green Fragrant and Delicious. why not read The Iconic Karl Lagerfeld Here