The Language Of Glaciers – fresh and green and cozy

Photo: perfumeniche

Last week, I met a friend downtown for dinner. I was early, so I ducked into my favourite perfume place in Toronto, Etiket. I’m familiar with the lines they carry, and the knowledgeable, pleasant and patient staff are always happy to share their new additions to the boutique.

On this day, I wanted to explore the Portland-based indie line Imaginary Authors, founded by self-taught perfumer Josh Meyer in 2012. An avid reader, Meyer discovered that books connected him to people through the shared experience of reading. His passion for fragrances connects people in a similar way. This is the concept behind the line, where fragrances are based on fictitious novels written by authors who don’t exist – imaginary authors.

Sampling the line at Etiket, I was struck by how varied and intriguing the fragrances are, but I never imagined I’d fall for The Language Of Glaciers.

According to the Imaginary Authors website, The Language Of Glaciers was inspired by a non-existent novel by imaginary novelist Margaux Zweig:

“Let’s do marvelous things, says the glacier, sit with me and consider the magnitude of what we are capable of.”

The Language Of Glaciers opens with a nose-tingling note of white pine that’s fresh, clean and invigorating without being sharp or harsh. It’s followed by a note of delicate, tender lilac that’s floral, fresh, and a little creamy. A note of woody, cozy cashmere joins it. The balsamy aspect of cashmere links to a note of juniper that’s crisp and refreshing, like a cool, brisk breeze. Then, more flowers pop up: forget-me-not, fresh, clean and delicate, along with blue bugle, a semi-evergreen from the mint family, herbaceous and cool, keeps the freshness vibrant. The cashmere brings the purple flowers together and amplifies their floral silhouette. A note of new-fallen snow blankets it all, muting the trees and the flowers and giving The Language Of Glaciers a gentle, cozy Alpine beauty.

When my son was young, we used to spend summers in Chamonix. Each day, weather permitting, we’d pack a lunch, along with sunglasses, sunscreen and a sweater and take a cable car up to La Flégère, Planpraz or Aiguille du Midi to explore hiking trails and glaciers, ice caves and waterfalls. Riding up a mountainside in a cable car is thrilling; Chamonix shrinks, patches of wildflowers dot the hillside, then disappear, replaced by conifer trees that fly by, until they’re replaced by rocks, snow and ice. After hiking for hours, we’d earned our sleep at day’s end. Cozy in an Alpine cabin, we’d open the bedroom windows and let that cool, fresh mountain breeze, softly scented with pine trees and wildflowers, lull us to sleep.

This is the feeling that The Language Of Glaciers evokes for me. It’s a cozy scent that’s perfect for winter but cool enough to wear in warmer weather.

Check out The Language Of Glaciers in our Shop.