The scent of history
– September 21, 2023 | Text & Photos Maria Simiris
Portuguese navigator Gil Eanes, born in Lagos, was the first man to successfully sail past the Cape Bojador in 1434. His feat went down in the history of the Portuguese Discoveries and, over half a millennium later, a new fragrance has been created which celebrates his achievement.
It is called ‘Algarve’ and was officially unveiled in the form of a perfume and soap. “This is a journey to the soul of the Algarve, far beyond the beaches for which the region is known,” said Luís Pereira, founder of the Leme Perfumes com Estória (Perfume with a Story) brand.
“It is a floral-citrus fragrance that takes us on a discovery of the local olfactory trail. From the intoxicating scent of orange and almond blossoms to the warm notes of a summer day, it is an ancestral, profound, and timeless connection to our sea. This is also our tribute to the Algarve, and that’s why we created this collection,” he added.
“We work with important tourist shops that sell Portuguese souvenirs. The idea was to create a perfume brand for this audience, a product with an interesting story that would be an appealing gift to offer someone after their vacation and, in this case, bring the Algarve to other countries,” said Pereira.
The foundation of the fragrance for LEME was orange, orange blossom, and rockrose. The goal was to create a perfume that evoked a “more authentic Algarve, beyond just the beach” – in other words, it could not be an aquatic scent typically associated with summer.
Perfumer Paula Gomes from I-sensis Perfume Design was entrusted with bringing this idea to life. “In olfactory marketing as well, the first step is storytelling. What does the Algarve convey to us? What fragrances do we identify with it? Orange, orange blossom, and summer.
The perfume carries those warm notes of heat with amber and vanilla. It also features rockrose, a plant that is abundant in the region. Additionally, it includes almond blossom, which is so characteristic and intriguing, adding a certain mystery to the fragrance. That’s how I constructed the structure of this fragrance, based on this story and these notes,” explained Paula Gomes.
The ‘Algarve’ soap and perfume are sold at 60 stores nationwide, with prices ranging from €45 for the perfume to €4.50 for the soap. In the Algarve, they are sold at all Casa da Bli stores, Mar d’Estórias (Lagos), and Autêntica (Sagres). A shower gel using the same fragrance is also in the works.
