I’ve been having nightmares recently — images of haunted, ancient buildings, scary-looking storytellers with harsh words and amazing powers, “gifts” that are full of trickery and cruel irony invade my thoughts throughout the night. To combat this nighttime onslaught, I’ve been forcing myself to have happy daydreams. Some of my best daydreams involve travel: places I’ve visited and been enchanted by. One such place is southern Italy and a wonderful vacation spent in the area stretching from Naples to Paestum. Apart from the fragrant foods of Campania — ripe San Marzano tomatoes “baking” in the sunshine, limoncello, mozzarella di bufala, pizzas cooking in wood-burning ovens, cinnamon-scented sfogliatella — I remember one afternoon spent at Pompeii, where the air was scented with a combination of sweet smoke (from Vesuvius?) and flowers. For once, the flowers outdid the smoke…because the flowers were ginestra (Genista juncea).
Ginestra (also known as broom) is part of a big plant family — the legume (Fabaceae) group. As I was searching online, trying to figure out the type of broom I smelled at Pompeii, I saw the Italian poet Giacomo Leopardi was inspired by broom to write his poem The Ginestra, or The Flower of the Wilderness:
Here on the arid ridge of dead Vesuvius,
Exterminator terrible,
That by no other tree or flower is cheered,
Thou scatterest thy lonely leaves around,
O fragrant flower,
With desert wastes content. Thy graceful stems
I, in the solitary paths have found....Now all around, one ruin lies,
Where thou dost dwell, O gentle flower,
And, as in pity of another’s woe,
A perfume sweet thou dost exhale,
To heaven, an offering,
And consolation to the desert bring.*
Santa Maria Novella references Scotland in its description of Ginestra, but I’ve never smelled the broom of Scotland. I was interested to see if Ginestra reproduced the aroma of the broom of southern Italy. Ginestra goes on MOSSY (it’s as if IFRA never existed). This sweet moss lingers and Ginestra, at first, smells like a more intense Eau de Guerlain. As the moss calms a little, I detect some citrus and the beginnings of a floral note. The floral note quickly strengthens and smells almost tropical, with its intensity, sweetness and touch of fruitiness (some days I thought I smelled pineapple, other days coconut). In mid-development, Ginestra comes closest to the broom I enjoyed in Italy: it has an intoxicating honeyed-floral aroma, light moss/muskiness, and a touch of hay (or super-light tobacco). The dry down behaves as if Ginestra's about to turn powdery, but it never does; the perfume ends as a paler version of its "younger" self.
Ginestra is beautiful, but my search for an “Italian” broom perfume continues; Ginestra didn’t transport me to Pompeii (a big order, I admit). Ginestra is a feminine fragrance with an old-fashioned “French perfume” character (check it out, all you vintage perfume lovers). The lasting power of Ginestra is great, and it might be just a bit much for hot-weather wear.
All this broom research and nightmare-fighting activity makes me believe my next vacation should be near summertime Naples. I’d like to find that little hill on the south-east side of Pompeii where my partner and I sat, surrounded by deliciously scented ginestra, and watched the scruffy, busy dogs of Pompeii outmaneuver frantic tourists below us. Even in crazy, crowded Pompeii, there was a quiet spot to sniff flowers, hear birds and feel at peace.
Santa Maria Novella Ginestra is available in 100 ml Eau de Cologne, $125. For buying information, see the listing for Santa Maria Novella under Perfume Houses.
Note: top image via Wikimedia Commons.
*Excerpt: Leopardi translation courtesy of poemhunter.
I would definitely love a ginestra fragrance as you envision it! Let us know if you find it. And thanks for Leopardi.
Morgana: if I find one, I’ll review it for sure. Maybe someone “out there” will have some recommendations for us as well.
You had me at * mossy * Kevin ! Love me some moss. I have heard good things about Ginestra and perhaps one day I will acquire a bottle. Lovely review as always- I always look forward to reading your words. I hope the nightmares cease !
Mitsouko: thank you! I wish it were easier to get samples of SMN perfumes!
I loved your review, and I really must try this perfume. It sounds wonderful.
Sorry to hear of your scary nightmares! Some lemon balm tea in the evening may be worth a shot. Chamomile is good old standby too. Sending good vibes your way!
Rustic…I have some lemon balm growing in the front yard..I’ll try it.
Your description suggests my wife would like a sample. I’ll work on that. And pleasant dreams to you, Kevin.
Thanks, Donnie. Good luck with findng the Ginestra sample. Samples do appear every so often in good ole Google search…never found one on eBay.
Doesn’t Amouage Opus III have a good dose of broom in it? Or is that Beloved? I know one of the two does…No, Opus III has mimosa and violet. Must be Beloved. Now I have to go check…
Opus III definitely has broom.
Joe: I think I might have a sample of that somewhere…I’ll look for it. Thanks.
Mough: HA! Let me know….
The nightmares sound both terrifying and intriguing; perhaps even more fascinating than the scent!
Merlin: you might be right!
I love broom. I have two rather large ones in the yard and they were in bloom a few weeks ago. The whole backyard smelled wonderful. It made me wonder if anyone had done a fragrance highlighting broom and now you’ve answered my question.
Sorry you’re having some nightmares lately. I hope you have better night’s ahead of you.
Poodle: broom is just gorgeous…the ones I’ve smelled here in Seattle just aren’t fragrant, alas.
The **best** SMN fragrance, in the entire line, IMO.
Well, except for the crazy Nostalgia.
I really should own a bottle. And I think it’s very unisex.
Mike: good to know you think it’s unisex. I think I might try it again in cold weather…just a HINT of it would be nice on a man.
Very timely review, Kevin. I just obtained a partial bottle from a friend. Ginestra had been on my “long list” for awhile, after testing and loving it a couple years ago. I haven’t unwrapped this bottle yet, but now I think I must do so and maybe wear it tomorrow. Definitely a great SMN scent, and I really like several in their line.
Joe: ENJOY! (Have you tried the Seoul one? I’m tempted by that pine)
I just heard about that the other day. A friend said she sampled it and that she found it boring, a bit soapy, and with not very much, if any, pine.
Joe: darn…too bad! If only they had done it in “old style” SMN fashion…it would have smelled like we were covered in pine sap.
Kevin, try a nighttime perfume with jasmine or narcissus. More soothing than lavender, I think.
There’s a Metro-accessible SNM boutique about an hour (each way) from where I live. I must find time for that trek.
Noz: wish I could join you on that trek! I have a great jasmine … I’ll give it a try before bed.
Like Poodle, I have two large broom plants in my yard flanking the driveway and providing good privacy from the construction going on next door. The blooms have past, and the scent is merely a memory. I’d been idly wondering if a fragrance exists that captures this scent, so your article is very timely. Thank you for this lovely post. I’ll have to try to locate some Ginestra to sample.
Farouche: you’re welcome…and hope Ginestra hits the spot for you.
I live in Spain, and broom grows wildly and widely here, all over the country.. These days broom plants are blooming, and I can smell the air full of its sweet scent while I am driving and its a wonderful experience… besides everything looks stunning with hundreds of yellow spots..
mk-adri: you just reminded me of ANOTHER fantastic trip…driving all over spain in spring when the olive and cork trees were just getting leaves. Enjoy all that broom…I’m envious.