Immortelle

Immortelle is a rich, warm aromatic note from the golden flowers of Helichrysum italicum, a Mediterranean shrub. It belongs to the aromatic and ambery families and smells honeyed and hay-like, with distinctive curry, maple syrup and dried-fruit facets that give depth and warmth.

What does Immortelle smell like?

Immortelle is instantly recognisable: sweet like maple or burnt sugar, spicy like curry leaf or fenugreek, with herbal and tobacco-like undertones. The essential oil is fresher and more herbaceous, while the absolute is darker, sweeter and more honeyed, closer to caramel and dried apricot. It is much warmer and more savoury than most florals, often acting as a bridge between aromatic and gourmand notes.

Where Immortelle comes from

The plant grows wild across dry, rocky coasts of the Mediterranean. Corsica is famous for high-quality oil, while the Balkans, especially Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia, produce significant volumes. Flowers are harvested in summer and steam-distilled or solvent-extracted.

Also known as: Helichrysum, everlasting flower, curry plant
Fragrance family: Aromatic / Amber
Type: Natural
Main origins: Corsica, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Italy
How it's obtained: Steam distillation (oil) or solvent extraction (absolute) of flowering tops
Key aroma molecules: Neryl acetate, alpha-pinene, gamma-curcumene, italidiones

Immortelle in perfume history

The name comes from the flowers' ability to keep their colour and shape when dried, which made them a symbol of eternity in funeral wreaths. In perfumery, immortelle rose to prominence in the 1980s, when a few pioneering compositions showed how its savoury sweetness could anchor a scent.

Immortelle in modern perfumery

Today immortelle is a niche favourite, used in ambery, leathery and gourmand compositions, and as a warm accent in fougères. Demand for Balkan wild-harvested material has raised concerns about overharvesting, prompting cultivation and certification efforts.

How Immortelle wears and what it pairs with

It is a heart-to-base note with excellent tenacity, often lasting all day. Classic pairings include lavender, labdanum, tobacco, vanilla, tonka bean, sandalwood, leather and hay.