Petit perfume — what is it?

The fragrance of petitgrain is a classic citrus fragrance. It resembles the smell of crushed lemon or orange leaves: green, fresh, neroli, with barely perceptible woody shades.

Perfumes with petitgrain notes lift the mood, give optimism and set up a creative «wave». They are distinguished by a ringing and bright aroma that refreshes and invigorates throughout the day.

Have you ever felt when applying the fragrance the smell of crushed orange or lemon leaves, piercingly fresh with a slight drowsiness? This is a fairly popular component of perfume compositions — Petitgrain. The essential oil of Petitgrain, Citrus bigaradia or Citrus aurantium is obtained by steam distillation from leaves, shoots, young twigs or green unripe fruits of bitter orange, much less lemon. There is another variety obtained from the leaves and the color of bitter orange petitgrain sur fleurs.

This name came from «petit grain», which means «grain» in French, because previously oil was extracted not from leaves, but from the unripe fruits of a bitter orange, the size of a cherry berry.
Already in the XVIII century, the oil was used by perfumers of France in fragrance compositions. The most high-quality, valuable and expensive oil is considered to be «petitgrain bigarad», produced in the south of France and other Mediterranean countries. To obtain two kilograms of oil, a ton of raw materials is needed.