Happy St. Patrick's Day with Demeter!

It is that time of the year again, the time where I wear tons of green and am in a good mood every single day. Most people list Halloween or Christmas as their favorite holiday...or even Valentine's Day. But I'm unique and I love St. Patrick's Day and have ever since I was a young child. I have always wanted to visit the Emerald Isle and still have not gotten the chance. Last year, I talked about body products from Bathed and Infused that reminded me of the holiday, this year, I am going to look at fragrances from Demeter that remind me of the atmosphere and smells of Ireland itself. Since I haven't been there, my list may not be complete but this will start us all out for right now.

Demeter creates fragrances that are called Pick Me Up sprays and each one consists of one single note. The website from this company states that their fragrances are inspired by everyday objects and experiences and the scents that are drawn from these memories. This company states that their mission is to make the pleasure and luxury of fine fragrance something that can be afforded by anyone. We are going to look at four of of these single note fragrances today; Rain, Clover, Grass, and Wet Garden.

I chose Rain because it rain most of the year in Ireland and that is responsible for the lush, green landscape. Of the three fragrances, Rain is the hardest to describe. I have always loved the scent of the air before a rainstorm, but I never really knew what made that scent or how to accurately describe it. The Demeter website was able to explain to me what this fragrance is in the description of the Pick Me Up Spray. "Have you ever considered the olfactory side of rain? You know it's coming, you can smell it in the air (exactly!). It does seem that on summer days when it is hot and dry, with a thunderstorm brewing just over the next hill, you can 'smell the rain'. Well, you can smell something, but rain? Have you ever tried to smell this same rain in January when the ground in frozen solid? Not a chance, but when the ground and plants are warmer, you can smell something. What you really smell comes not from the air, but the ground! Plants release oils that enter the soil and blend with the other earthy odors. These odors are released into the air when the relative humidity at ground level exceeds 75 percent. Moist humid air will transport odors far better than dry air. In these moist humid conditions we notice these odors more readily. And since rain is so often connected with moist humid air, we tend to associate one with the other. The Demeter Fragrance Rain captures this complex sensory moment perfectly. Like poetry, Rain is subtle and difficult to define, but real, with Rain being the cleanest and most delicate of all Demeter fragrances." A friend gave me this fragrance and it is one of the lightest fragrances that I own, while still having a complex series of notes.

The next fragrance that makes me think of Ireland is a brand new Pick Me Up called Clover. The bottle of this fragrance has clovers on it, making it a clear favorite of mine. I haven't smelled this fragrance yet so hopefully I can find this one soon. "The 3 leaf clover, or shamrock, is a symbol closely associated with Ireland, and thus St. Patrick's Day, although its origins as a such are a bit shrouded by history. One Irish legend holds that the three leaf clover, or 'Shamrock' was what St. Patrick used to represent the Holy Trinity. The four-leaf clover is an uncommon variation of the common, three leaf clover. It has been estimated that there are approximately 10,000 three-leaf clovers for every four-leaf clover. According to tradition, such leaves bring good luck to their finders, especially if found accidently. By legand, each leaflet represents something: the first is for hope, the second is for faith, the third is for love, and the fourth is for luck. Demeter's Clover is a celebration of not just the clover but the rugged and untamed nature of the Irish countryside. But only for two weeks a year. Available through March 17th only."

The third fragrance is Grass, my favorite fragrance from this company. I bought a bottle of this years ago and went through it like water. I must get myself some more of it very soon. "Playing in it...lying on it...or even mowing it...Grass smells wonderful. Centipede grass, the most widely used lawn grass in the southeast United States, has something of a romantic history. Around 1918, the U.S. Department of Agriculture sent a Dr. Meyer, a plant explorer, to China in search of plants that might be economically useful. Tragically, before his return home Chinese bandits killed Dr. Meyer. His suitcases arrived in the U.S. where a collection of seeds was found, including a packet of Chinese centipede grass seeds. That packet of seed was sent to USDA experimental station vear Savannah, Georgia. In the 1920s, Jack Renfroe took four sprigs of the grass to his father, Mr. Riley Renfroe, who had a 400 acre farn near Quitman. In 1950, Ray Jensen, a soil scientist for the USDA, visited the Renfroe farm to make a soil survey. Although 96 years oil, Mr. Riley Renfroe wanted to accompany Jensen on the survey. That evening the two settled down to a wonderful southern dinner and that is when the story of the centipede grass on the Renfroe farm was told. Ray Jensen has just finished building his home in Tifton, Georgia. Mr. Renfroe insisted that he take a pick-up load home with him for his yard, where Jensen planted all the grass. The following year, Jensen contacted Mr. Renfroe to produce centipede seed from the 40 acre pasture he has developed from just three live sprigs of the Chinese grass. Ray Jensen had a vision to produce and sell this wonderful grass and seed and offer it as a foundation to southern homes and businesses. From China to Washington D.C., to Savannah to Quitman, to the entire Southeast and beyond, from one packet of seed and three live sprigs, today centipede grass can be found on lawns and ornamental turf areas around the world. In Demeter's Grass Pick Me Up cologne, we have captured the freshness and sweetness of a lush green grass pasture, much like the pasture that Mr. Riley Renfroe planted with centipede grass from those three live sprigs over 80 years ago." This fragrance is both earthy, green, and sweet at the same time. Very unique.

This last fragrance is called Wet Garden. I have had a hard time finding this fragrance and the only time that I ever found it, only the tester was out and the store was sold out of the product. It reminded me of Grass, mixed with Rain, with more floral notes in it. "Not perhaps the original Wet Garden, but...very popular! Just as all Dirt is not created equal, so too, all Wet Gardens are not created equal. In the case of our Demeter Wet Garden, time is as important as place. Our Wet Garden takes place at Easter, full of early spring flowers, including young shoots and buds, after a hard April rain. It is the combination of those flowers, the rain and the oils from the rich spring soil that comprise this fragrance, one of the most complex in the Library, but one that remains accessible, understandable, and eminently wearable."

All of these fragrance tie in together and could be layered or worn alone. Each fragrance brings Ireland to my mind and hopefully to yours now too. Happy St. Patrick's Day!

photo courtesy of Demeter