‘The scent of two rocks slammed together. Hard.’
A novel for the nose
Terre d’Hermès the fragrance by Jean-Claude Ellena, has a number of qualities that make it unique. Chiseled refinement of its structure, unconventional, transparent interpretation on the woody notes and remarkable quality of its ingredients. The composition reflects the intensity of sunlight against the stones of Roman ruins.
Fresh green hardness
Jean-Claude Ellena’s theme of multifaceted transparency is incorporated in Terre’s leitmotif of dry radiance introduced by the citrus notes which sparkle like crystals embedded in marble. The clarity is extended by the herbaceous green notes and the crisp silk of woods and vetiver.
No musk
Unconventionally, instead of arranging the composition into a classical masculine triptych of citrus, woods and musk, Ellena eschews the latter altogether. Instead, the mineral dust binds the entire arrangement, suspending the light and preserving the sensation of being dazzled by the sun. Terre d’Hermès notes include grapefruit, orange, flint, pepper, pink pepper, geranium, patchouli, cedar, vetiver, benzoin.
Ellena
Jean-Claude Ellena is a French perfumer. He was born in Grasse, Alpes-Maritimes. From 2004, he has been Hermès' exclusive in-house perfumer. He has created fragrances for several major perfume houses including The Different Company, which he founded before joining Hermès. In 2005, Ellena created Un Jardin sur le Nil for the house of Hermès. The story behind the creation of this fragrance was the subject of the book The Perfect Scent: A Year in the Perfume Industry in Paris and New York, by Chandler Burr.
Ellena's creations exclusively for the House of Hermès include:
Un Jardin en Méditerranée (2003)
Un Jardin sur le Nil (2005)
Elixir des Merveilles (2006)
Terre d'Hermès (2006)
Kelly Calèche (2007)
Un Jardin après la Mousson (2008)
Voyage d'Hermès (2010)
For Van Cleef & Arpels Ellena created two classic compositions:
First (1976)
Miss Arpels
The World of Hermès
