Black Vetyver Café – warm and woody and sensual

Photo: perfumeniche

My husband is the breakfast guy in our household. He likes to get up before the rest of us and make the toast, squeeze the orange juice, put out the cereal, milk and jam and make the coffee. Ahh, the coffee. He’s very particular about the coffee. He sources the beans, grinds them, and brews them in a traditional Bialetti Moka pot. When the rich, bold, enticing aroma of coffee wafts up to the bedroom, like a mating call, I head downstairs to the kitchen for breakfast.

I’m not a big coffee drinker, but I find the smell of fresh-brewed coffee irresistible, especially in perfumes, and one of my favourite coffee-based scents is Black Vetiver Café cologne from Jo Malone London. 

The story behind the fragrance is that it was inspired by a visit Malone made to New York’s iconic gourmet grocery store Dean & Deluca, in SoHo. Founded in 1977, Dean & Deluca transformed grocery shopping by introducing New Yorkers to high-end artisanal breads, baked goods, produce, cheeses, meats, fish and fresh flowers. I have vivid memories of visits to the flagship store at the corner of Broadway and Prince Streets. White-tiled walls and 18-foot cast-iron pillars, marble floors, and wire shelving all gave the store an industrial, loft-like vibe. And each visit was capped off with a coffee and a black and white cookie in the coffee bar near the front of the store. When Malone stepped into the store one day to pick up groceries for dinner, she was struck by the aroma of freshly brewed coffee, mingling with the scents of fruits, vegetables, herbs, and spices. The experience prompted the creation of Black Vetyver Café.

On me, Black Vetyver Café opens with a note of roasted coffee beans that’s rich, dark, slightly smoky, with a bitter aspect. It’s brightened by a note of sparkling, bitter grapefruit. Nutmeg at the heart adds complexity with its spicy warmth. It’s joined by a note of green pepper that's vegetal and grassy, bringing out the coffee's green aspect and a freshness that echoes the citrus at the opening. Coriander rounds out the heart with its fresh, aromatic, woody scent. Then there’s the base, packed with woods, it’s the part of the journey I look forward to the most. Vetiver is here. It’s light and green and dry. It’s joined by creamy, woody sandalwood that’s kissed with cozy vanilla. A note of incense here is woody, warm and comforting. Sequoia wood is rich, green, earthy, and is perfectly pitched. Lichen, woody, earthy, and mossy completes the composition. 

Black Vetyver Café dries down to a warm, woody, green, sensual scent. It is a cologne, though, so it doesn’t have heft. Think of it as the smell of the coffee bar, you go to every morning with that barista who makes your cup of joe, just the way you like it. It’s the smell that clings to you after you’ve left with your hot coffee in hand. This is what has earned Black Vetyver Café its cult following.

Check out Black Vetyver Café in our Shop.