Scents for Christmas

Christmas is a feast for all the senses, with the sights and sounds of late-night shopping under the illuminations, the tastes and textures of festive favourite snacks and treats, and possibly the widest variety of seasonal aromas to tickle the nose buds.

Fragrance ingredients for Christmas span the full range from fruits and foody flavours, to sumptuous spices from the Far East, to winter scents like smoky wood and pine.

Here’s our pick of some legendary scents for Christmas that will help flavour and fragrance products alike to capture the unique personality of this holiday season.

Juniper berry

Juniper berry is a flavour and fragrance ingredient that taps into the trend to celebrate the season with gin.  It is also added to savoury retail products such as sauerkraut, stuffings and vegetable pates.

Just like in gin, sweet and fresh Juniper berry pairs with botanicals and other aromas such as cedarwood, sandalwood and conifers like cypress and fir, to create a woody fragrance landscape.

Myrrh

It’s one of the iconic scents of Christmas and still makes a great addition to seasonal scent blends.  Its balsamic, amber-like and spicy profile blends well with juniper berry, mandarin, sandalwood and patchouli.  As a base note in blends, it is ideal when used for spiritual and meditative incense.

Used widely in fragrances since Biblical times, Myrrh is also known for its antiseptic and soothing properties in skincare and natural oral care products such as toothpastes and mouth rinses.

As a flavouring it adds a woody and mushroom note.  In its essential oil and resinoid form it’s also suitable for aromatherapy to help alleviate coughs and congestion.

Nutmeg

Nutmeg is a truly unique flavour and aroma ingredient. It has the sharpness of spice but with a rounded richness that adds an earthy almost truffle-like quality.

Used sparingly it can add subtle warmth, or combine it with its ‘pumpkin spice’ siblings such as cinnamon, cloves, ginger and allspice for a fragrance palate that has come to define the entire autumn-winter season.  Think of baked goods, syrups and carbonated beverages found on the shelves of supermarkets near you.

Another all-rounder, Nutmeg essential oil is used for flavour, fragrance and aromatherapy applications.

Pine

Pine can be an excellent addition to scented candles and room diffusers, giving that aroma of forests, Christmas trees, and the frosty outdoors.

Yet it’s not a cold scent – in fact it can be comforting whilst uplifting and invigorating.  In aromatherapy, it helps eliminate fatigue and promotes concentration.

It is often used in cosmetics, toiletries, soaps and detergents. Pine essential oil soothes itching and skin inflammation, and contains antimicrobial properties.

Sage Officinalis

Sage Officinalis, also called Salvia Officinalis, is common sage – the type you find in sage and onion stuffing on your turkey dinner!

This strong and herbaceous aroma is used to flavour black tea in North Africa, as well as soft drinks and alcoholic drinks like vermouth consumed in the UK.  It is also used in over-the-counter preparations such as mouthwashes and toothpastes.

Fragrance compound manufacturers use it in soaps, shampoos, detergents, anti-perspirants and men’s fragrances.

It’s not surprising that these common Christmas scents can be found in every part of your house this season. Here at Zanos, we supply these and a variety of essential oils from our trusted suppliers to B2B fragrance and flavour manufacturers.

Email webenquiries@zanos.co.uk or speak to our Sales Specialists on 01565 755899.