Iris perfumes

The root, not the petal

The material called iris, orris or iris butter comes from the rhizome, the underground root, of certain irises. The roots are aged for a long time before they are processed, and the finished extract is waxy, which is why the pure material is called a butter. Its scent is powdery, cool and earthy, with a violet-like facet from a molecule called irone. Pyramids use several terms: iris, orris, orris roots, iris roots, iris butter and orris butter.

What it does in a composition

Iris is usually a heart note, and it works as a texture as much as a smell. It adds a powdery, suede-like softness, and it separates sweet notes from woods. It pairs naturally with violet, rose and musks for an elegant, cosmetic mood, with leather and woods for a dry, dressed-up one, and with vanilla or amber for a creamy, powdery warmth. In small doses it adds polish; in large ones it leads.

Iris perfumes in the collection

• Ex Nihilo Iris Porcelana is the most direct: violet leaves at the top, iris and rose in the heart, sandalwood, musks and cedarwood below. Ex Nihilo files it as floral and powdery.
• Les Eaux Primordiales Iris Palladium is described by Les Eaux Primordiales as creamy, sensual iris and sandalwood, with cardamom, lavender and cilantro on top, mugwort, violet and iris in the heart, and sandalwood, vanilla, guaiac wood, amber, benzoin and cedar below.
• Maison Crivelli Iris Malikhân has no pyramid: Maison Crivelli lists orris butter with cypress, lentisque, galbanum, mimosa, vanilla, a leather accord, amber and musks, and calls it powdery gourmand leather.
• Fascent Red Flag pairs iris with frankincense in the heart, between cardamom, beetroot accord and ginger and a base of tonka bean, Palo Santo wood, vetiver and patchouli. Fascent calls it woody, earthy iris.
• Amouage Interlude Black Iris Man puts orris in the heart with amber, frankincense, cistus, myrrh and vanilla, beneath bergamot, rosemary and violet leaves, above leather, agarwood smoke, patchouli, sandalwood and cedarwood. See Amouage.
• Sospiro Accento Viola lists iris with jasmine and pink pepper in the heart, between pineapple and hyacinth and a base of musk, amber, vetiver, patchouli and vanilla. Sospiro calls it floral.
• Stéphane Humbert Lucas Mortal Skin sets iris beside sandalwood and opoponax in the heart, after blackberry, saffron and cardamom, before labdanum, musk and ambergris. See Stéphane Humbert Lucas.

Choosing an iris perfume

Look at what surrounds the root. With violet, rose and musk it feels clean, cool and elegant. With leather, resin or wood it becomes dry and smoky. With vanilla, sandalwood or milk accords it turns creamy and soft. Iris is known for its cosmetic, powdery feel, so if you like that, choose a perfume where it sits in the heart rather than far down the pyramid, and where the base is simple enough to leave it room.