Quince Flower
Note Profile
About
Quince flower is the spring blossom of the quince, not the autumn fruit. It is a light Rosaceae floral with a fruity undertone that recalls apple and pear blossom, "often blended with other stronger floral or citrus scents" because it cannot carry a composition alone. It has a real history as a perfumery material in its own right: Greek and Roman perfumers made a flower perfume from it called Melinum.
Scent Profile
Quince flower smells floral first, delicate and light rather than heady. A fruity undertone runs underneath, close to apple or pear blossom, sweet and slightly tangy. It reads as a clean, pale white flower rather than an indolic one. A faint green edge shows as the bloom matures.
ScentWheel
Read off the wheel, not a label applied to the note.
ScentArt
Origin
Flowers of Cydonia oblonga, a small deciduous tree of the rose family. Gardenia.net records "fragrant pinkish-white spring flowers" before the pale-yellow autumn fruit. The Perfume Society records the ancient use directly: early Arab, Greek and Roman perfumers "steeped the fruit in oil, and made a perfume from its flowers that was called 'Melinum'". A second plant carries the same common name. Chaenomeles, the flowering quince, is a separate ornamental genus, and Gardenia.net warns against confusing the two.
Usage in Perfumery
Attested 7 times on Parfumo across 6 brands, and absent from Fragrantica. Six separate brands is shared vocabulary, what each brand means by it is not recorded anywhere reachable.
Similar Notes
Perfumes featuring Quince Flower
A selection of reviewed perfumes where Quince Flower appears prominently.
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