When winter comes over, we seek comfort among different olfactory notes. In the West, many are those who prefer smoked wood notes evoking the warmth of the fireplace. In Asia, rice is often in the spotlight in traditional households.

It is also in winter that Korea celebrates the year’s longest night and therefore the shortest day, according to the lunar calendar. This day, marking the beginning of winter, is called in Korean "Dongji", which means "extreme winter": the rays of the sun touch the Earth with the most inclined angle in the northern pole.

This long night has inspired various beliefs. In Korea, families following the old Confucian tradition gather in the main room of the house to perform a ritual and offer gosa to the domestic spirits and the ancestors of the house, asking for their protection and to bring prosperity for the year to come.

On this occasion, people prepare various dishes, such as patjuk, a porridge with red bean paste, to ward off the evil spirits of the night. Steamed glutinous rice cakes tteok and osmanthus-based rice alcohol follow the ritual.

In perfumery, the rice note is reproduced through its steam, as it is during boiling that its olfactory dimension takes shape, recalling the powdery notes of cotton. As for osmanthus, its rare white flowers native to Asia remind of the fruity notes of peach and apricot, over a leather base.

Discover below our fragrances evoking the Asian winter.