shi_sõ

shi_sõ plays on two readings. A long vowel points toward the Japanese word for thought, while the shorter sound recalls shiso, the herb familiar in Japanese cooking. Rarely used in perfume, the smell of shiso, a blend of mint, basil and cumin with a metallic flash, had long fascinated perfumer Bertrand Duchaufour.

He used it to reinterpret the classic eau de Cologne, replacing the usual citrus with a range of green notes: the bite of cardamom, cool spearmint, lemony verbena, raspy blackcurrant, almond-tinged anise and tart rhubarb. The Cologne reference describes the style; the product itself is labelled Eau de Parfum.

At the center is Givaudan's Glycolierral®, which captures the cool scent of a crushed ivy leaf; its name comes from lierre, French for ivy. It wraps the blend in a sweet, milky, sap-like effect. The listed notes are Glycolierral®, shiso, ivy leaf, cardamom, spearmint, verbena and blackcurrant.