Three releases have recently given me the opportunity to explore the pleasures of linden blossom fragrances. I wrote about D’Orsay Vouloir Être Ailleurs EDT in my last blog post of 2025. This time, it’s the turn of Marc-Antoine Barrois Tilia EDP and Thomas de Monaco Sol Salgado Extrait de Parfum. But first, some quick background on linden blossom.
According to Britannica, botanically, linden is a “genus of about 30 species of trees in the hibiscus or mallow family (Malvacae) native to the Northern Hemisphere.
“Lindens are large graceful deciduous trees. The asymmetrical leaves are heart-shaped and coarsely toothed. The fragrant cream-coloured flowers are bisexual and pollinated by insects.”
The tree’s fragrant yellow flowers, described by many as honeyed, have provided inspiration for linden blossom fragrances such as Goutal Eau de Ciel EDT (1985), Jo Malone French Lime Blossom Cologne (1995), Elizabeth Arden 5th Avenue EDP (1996) and 27 87 Flâneur EDP (2021).
Linden blossom is sometimes called lime blossom but is not related to the lime tree.
FRANK VOELKL ON LINDEN BLOSSOM fragrances
I wanted to know more about linden blossom from a perfumer’s perspective and the ever-helpful Frank Voelkl, principal perfumer at dsm-firmenich, obliged with the following answers:
Is linden blossom a natural raw material, or is it recreated through other means?
There is no natural extract of linden blossom available to perfumers to use in their creations. However, at dsm-dirmenich, we have done a Headspace analysis to capture the scent of linden blossom in the air.
Why do you enjoy a linden blossom note?
There are two places I know of and walk by regularly and enjoy the smell of linden blossom when they bloom: Central Park in NYC and in Hoboken where I live.
The smell is unique, recognisable, diffusive and fills the street with a gentle green note with orange flower facets.
Which of your creations features it?
I created a fragrance called Leisure by the Chinese brand To Summer which features a linden blossom note.
THOMAS DE MONACO SOL SALGADO EXTRAIT DE PARFUM (MAURUS BACHMANN)
I’d been seeing this Swiss house quite a lot on IG, so when it made its way to South Africa, I had to get my nose on it. Fuego Futuro and Raw Gold were both great introductions. Would Sol Salgado maintain the positive momentum? Absolutely! But with a proviso.
Another day, another extrait. The word alone elicits a yawn from me. However, from the opening, it’s clear this 2023 release is not just another extrait. There’s the richness of linden blossom in tandem with the powderiness of mimosa and cotton flower.
That boldness segues into the intriguing combo of salty muskiness (listed as ambergris on the house’s website) and creaminess via heliotrope, sandalwood and vanilla.
This is superb stuff. Certainly not an everyday wear. And with its richness, something I can only wear when the time is right. On the wrong days, it can be overpowering, even nauseating.
MARC-ANTOINE BARROIS TILIA EDP (QUENTIN BISCH)
After the experimentation of Encelade and Ganymede, this 2024 release might seem conventional at first.
But the collaboration between Quentin Bisch and French designer Marc-Antoine Barrois is not about the norm. And it shows in this scent, which displays a different (floral) side to the house, with its eternal summer inspiration.
This is a bright summer day kind of perfume. If Thomas de Monaco Sol Salgado Extrait is unapologetically bold in its treatment of linden blossom, Tilia (the far more romantic term for linden blossom) sees the floral more beneath the surface, but equally alluring, with support from sunny jasmine sambac and broom pushed in a honeyed apricot direction. There’s also heliotropin powderiness in the mix.
The sweetness is balanced with the earthiness of vetiver, while Ambroxan gives it a lovely fizzy muskiness.
Marc-Antoine Barrois Tilia EDP and Thomas de Monaco Sol Salgado Extrait de Parfum are both available in South Africa from Skins.
They sound delicious.
Thank you, dear Yvonne. Undoubtedly.
A nice well-rounded view of the flower and the note! Happy New Year!
Thank you so much! Hope it’s a good one for you.
Happy New Year, Rich. That’s a great roundup on linden blossom. I haven’t tried anything by Thomas de Monaco, but Tilia is fantastic.
Happy New Year to you too, dear Daniel. Many thanks. I’m hoping to try more from Thomas de Monaco.
I absolutely loved your linden sketch, Richard Thank you for highlighting this remarkable yet inadvertently overlooked bloom. Frank Voelkl’s statement perfectly captures the essence of the linden flower, describing it as a “gentle green note with orange flower facets.” That’s precisely how I perceive this charming little blossom. I’ve mentioned more than once that almost every location I’ve lived in has had a linden tree in plain sight. The scent of linden is captivating and perplexing in its beauty.
I can appreciate Goutal Eau de Ciel, Sol Salgado and Tilia all for different reasons, but I’m not certain that any of these perfumes could ever take the place of the real McCoy.
Wishing you a very Happy New Year!
Thank you for the great compliment, dear Flaconneur. What a pleasure to have had these trees in so many of the areas you have lived in. They come very close in their different ways.
Richard, interested to experience the assimilation of the Linden scent in a fragrance… My London flat is in a street of Linden trees and I have not experienced the scent… Andre
It’s something to experience, dear Andre. I imagine it must be a beautiful street with all those linden trees.