Lemon

Lemon oil is pressed from the peel of the fruit, where the scent is concentrated. In perfume it smells sharp, bright and zesty, with a clean tartness that is less sweet than orange and less floral than bergamot. It wakes up a composition at once. Perfumers use it for freshness in colognes, aquatic scents and woody fragrances, and it blends easily with ginger, herbs, neroli and musk. Lemon is also one of the most fleeting notes, so it is placed at the very start of a perfume, where it gives the first seconds their lift and clarity.

Lemon sits almost entirely in the top in this range, giving the first spray a sharp, clean sparkle that fades into the heart.