Jane Cate

Big Sur is a fabled piece of the California Coastline that has been wondered over, written about, and photographed for decades, if not centuries. Home to majestic redwood trees, kissed by the salt air of the Pacific, with the winding Pacific Coast Highway meandering through, it is a magical place. It is home to artists, writers, spirit guides, and free-thinkers of all stripes. That I live in California and have only seen it once is a travesty. It is just one of those things: too far away for a day trip, never quite on the radar for a vacation. It is in my mind as a place to return to someday.

Big Sur by Eyvind Earle

Jane Cate, the perfumer behind A Wing & A Prayer, sent me a sample of her latest creation, Big Sur. I expected a perfume with a heavy dose of conifer. Instead, Ms. Cate has taken a different approach and accentuated the more underlying nature of the woods and coastline: moss, thorny blackberries, and the subtle waft of wild flowers.

Old Big Sur Road by Edward Weston

Although oakmoss is a base note of this perfume, it makes its presence known from the first moment.  It is a hearty, full bodied moss, lifted by the slightly sweet berry notes. The composition is warmed by Ms. Cate’s own tonka bean tincture. The interesting part about this fragrance is that it is made with a perfumer’s alcohol that has been scented with lavender. I am enjoying the shimmer that the subtle use of the lavender has added to the fragrance, as though you were waking in the woods and trod on some lavender growing there. I don’t think I have seen lavender growing wild anywhere, but I like the idea of adding it to the scent of the outdoors, and it works wonderfully.

Big Sur Bridge by Frances Gearhart

I have enjoyed several of Ms. Cate’s creations in the past, especially her rose scents, and this is a nice departure for her. Although rose is listed in the notes, it is not obvious; more a lovely ingredient that serves the composition as a whole and would be missed were it not included, like a bay leaf in a soup.  I love her use of oakmoss here. It is a difficult note for me: love the top, hate the drydown, but here that drydown translates more to a warm current of ocean air rather than the bitter effect I usually encounter. It is possible my nose is changing, of course, as I have come to enjoy notes I previously avoided as my journey progresses. Perhaps Big Sur is my breakthrough oakmoss perfume.

Big Sur Lightning from Partington Ridge by Stan Russell

Big Sur is an all-natural perfume with medium sillage and decent longevity. I recommend it to all oakmoss devotees. I also want to say that if you are afraid of lavender, it is very subtle and well-incorporated here. Ms. Cate’s supply of the lavender alcohol is limited, so if this perfume interests you, don’t wait too long.

Notes: Pink Pepper, blackberry isolate, rose, oakmoss, tonka bean tincture

I received my sample of Big Sur from Jane Cate, and she has offered a 15ml bottle to one lucky reader. Tell us about any visit you have made to Big Sur, or if you have a favorite forest or coastland. Draw ends March 1, 2013.

We announce the winners only onsite and on our Facebook page, so Like CaFleureBon and use our RSS option…..or your dream prize will be just spilled perfume.

Editor’s Note: The author Henry Miller spent time in Big Sur, and there is a Henry Miller Memorial Library in town that is a bookstore, theater and music venue, and gallery. Here is a charming short video where he talks about his time there. The restaurant they show the sign for, Nepenthe, is still the place to go for a burger.

–Tama Blough, Senior Editor