Jo Malone steeps a luxe pot of tea-scented perfume

Darjeeling to Oolong and all teas in-between inspire the new Jo Malone Rare Teas Collection.

Tea notes have been perfuming the fragrance industry for some time now with the likes of Guerlain, Annick Goutal and The Body Shop having tried their hands at these aromatic, elegant and earthy scents.

Jo Malone first experimented with tea in 2011 when it launched five fragrances as part of its British Tea Collection—that lineup included blends such as Earl Grey and Cucumber, Assam and Grapefruit, Sweet Tea, Sweet Milk and Fresh Mint Leaf.

According to WWD.com, that 2011 collection sparked the idea for more research. Vice-president of product development Céline Roux and perfumer Serge Majoullier then spent four years researching ingredients in order to produce one-of-a-kind notes for a new Jo Malone Rare Teas Collection which has just landed on store shelves.

The tea notes in this new assortment have reportedly not previously been used in perfumery, which, along with the quality of the ingredients, accounts for the steeper price point than we’re accustomed to seeing from the brand.

The Rare Teas Collection focuses primarily on the single tea note, with other notes being used only to enhance. Forget your top, middle and base notes—this collection is all tea. Jo Malone also introduced new bottles (for the first time in 25 years—and they are beautiful!) to accompany these exclusive scents.

The Jo Malone Rare Teas Collection:

Silver Needle Tea: Silver needle tea picked at dawn in China paired with rose, sage and musk.
Jade Leaf Tea: Japanese jade leaf tea grown on the island of Kyushu. Notes of pomelo, sesame and mate leaf accompany.
Darjeeling Tea: Found in the Himalayas, darjeeling tea is combined with jasmine, freesia and apricot.
Oolong Tea: Found in Fujian, China, this tea note is paired with cocoa, tonka bean and tobacco leaf.
Golden Needle Tea: Chinese golden needle tea is mixed with sandalwood and benzoin resin.
Midnight Black Tea: Black tea from China is accompanied by vanilla absolute, labdanum and guaiac wood.

Jo Malone Rare Teas Collection, $440 (175 ml) each, www.holtrenfrew.com