Bourbon vanilla smells creamy, boozy and slightly smoky, with a rum-like warmth and a soft leathery undertone. It is considered the reference vanilla for fine perfumery.
The beans come from Vanilla planifolia, the flat-leaved vanilla orchid, grown mainly on Madagascar and nearby Reunion Island (formerly Bourbon, which gives the name). Cured beans are solvent-extracted to produce vanilla absolute, a thick dark material rich in vanillin plus hundreds of trace molecules that give bourbon vanilla its distinctive complexity. Madagascar supplies around eighty per cent of the world's vanilla, and prices are notoriously volatile due to climate and theft.
Bourbon vanilla is a base note and a fixative. Perfumers use it as the sweet heart of gourmand compositions (Guerlain Shalimar Initial, Tom Ford Tobacco Vanille), to soften amber and oriental bases, and to add creamy warmth to oud, rose and leather. It pairs beautifully with tonka, benzoin, sandalwood and spice.
Bourbon vanilla performs best in autumn, winter and evening wear.
