Suave Petals – smooth and sophisticated and very feminine

^{Image - Wikipedia  -Peach flowers}

One of the pleasures of summer I look forward to each year is peaches. Even as a child, I was drawn to their sensuous fullness, the soft down that covers them, the cleft in their round shape, and their gentle colour. So, when I first smelled the nectarine blossom (peach’s fraternal twin) at the opening of Suave Petals from Italian niche line Merchant of Venice, I felt a tender tug from the past: summer family trips in our big boat of a station wagon to orchards in the Niagara region. We’d buy bushel baskets of fruits from farm stands along the roadside destined to be preserved for the winter. On the ride home, we kids would pluck cherries, apricots, nectarines and peaches from the baskets, still warm from the sun, and eat them out of hand, the juices running down our hands and staining our clothes.

Peaches are native to Northwest China, where they are highly valued as symbols of longevity and vitality. They made their way to Europe through the silk trade routes, in which Venice played a prominent role during Roman times. It’s this history that Merchant of Venice highlights with Suave Petals, one of six eau de parfum in the "Murano Collection."

The inspiration behind Suave Petals, says a Merchant of Venice press release, is this:

“In Asia, peach blossom represents feminine beauty. During the Chinese New Year, those who wish to find love must buy a peach tree. The soft velvety touch of Suave Petals creates sensorial layers that lightly grace a woman’s skin.”

Suave Petals opens with bitter, citrusy bergamot leading to notes of sweet, juicy apple and pineapple. They usher in a lush note of nectarine blossom – not peach. Nectarine and peach are the same species, but nectarine blossom is a little sweeter, with more of an apricot nuance. Used here, it gives a fuller peach effect. It also has a floral aspect that merges with the violet aspect of orris root, so the opening is fruity/sweet, floral and summery but gentle, smooth and suave.

As it blooms, the petals appear: creamy, fleshy tuberose and citrusy, honeyed orange flower, their headiness amplified with opulent, romantic rose. The fruits at the top are beautifully tempered by the flowers at the heart and make me smile every time I get a whiff of it, them rising from my skin. At the base, sandalwood and patchouli give it woodiness and are a nod to the east. A touch of vanilla sweetens it just enough while musk smooths it out, like a second, sensuous skin.

Suave Petals is so beautifully blended that I get gorgeous fruity, floral and woody whiffs, but nothing dominates. The drydown is smooth, sophisticated and very feminine. As much as I love peaches, I want to wear them in a fragrance just the way they are presented here: a soft, gentle reminder of summer days past that I carry for hours on my skin all year long.

Check out Suave Petals in our Shop.