Taif Rose
The Taif rose, fresh with a green edge and jammy beneath, framed by soft rose water above and a roasted coffee base.
Perfumer: Marie Salamagne
Taif Rose is built around one flower from one place: the rose grown in Taif, a mountain city in Saudi Arabia. Céline Roux, Jo Malone London's Global Head of Fragrance, and perfumer Marie Salamagne kept hearing about it on a trip to the country, so they went back to Taif and timed the visit to the height of the rose season.
Salamagne describes the Taif rose as fresh and bright with a crisp green edge, yet jammy and almost syrupy underneath. To keep that character intact, the fragrance house recorded the flower by headspace, placing it under glass and analysing the scented air around it.
The scent opens on a rose infusion that recalls Arabian rose water, then lets the Taif rose take over the heart. Coffee anchors the base with roasted warmth and depth. In Salamagne's account, amber and white musk help the rose diffuse while preserving its character.
