Meyer Lemon

Note Profile

Botanical

About

Meyer lemon is the fruit of Citrus x meyeri, a lemon crossed with a mandarin or an orange. It is a rounder, sweeter, much less acidic lemon. The note is the peel.

Scent Profile

Citrus leads and is nearly all of it. It is recognisably a lemon, so the facet sits close to the published lemon note. Sour carries the whole difference: every source says Meyer is sweeter and less acidic than the Lisbon and Eureka lemons in a supermarket, so sour drops from lemon's. It is reduced, not removed, because Wikipedia still reports a slight tartness. A soft sweetness and a light fruity roundness sit behind that. Those are what sources mean when they say it tastes a bit like a tangerine or a navel orange. Floral and green are scored low and with wide spreads. The fragrant white flowers Wikipedia describes are the blossom on the tree, not the peel, and the peel is what this note is.

ScentWheel

Breadthmedium

EnvelopeTop · ~2h lasting

Family Fresh & Citrus

Read off the wheel, not a label applied to the note.

Origin

Citrus x meyeri is a citron crossed with a mandarin-pomelo hybrid, brought from China to the United States in 1908 by the plant explorer Frank Meyer. The ripe skin is thin, fragrant, and a deep yellow with a slight orange tint. I could not confirm that a true Meyer lemon essential oil is pressed or distilled commercially: the trade suppliers checked, including Eden Botanicals, carry only Citrus limon. The 'Meyer Lemon' fragrance oils sold to candle and soap makers are blends built with mandarin, jasmine and musk for a marketing effect, and they are not evidence of what the fruit smells like.

Usage in Perfumery

A top note, used where lemon is wanted without the acid attack. It reads softer than lemon and warmer than lime. Nine brands on Parfumo print the term, so it is used as a named departure from plain lemon rather than as a synonym for it.