Aug 8, 2023
Dominique Roques visits Google to discuss his book “In Search of
Perfumes: A Lifetime Journey to the Source of Nature's Scents.” The
book contains a mix of history, travelog, and memoir from one of
the perfume industry’s leading scouts of natural ingredients, as he
tells the story of the precious plants needed to make our favorite
fragrances.
Do you know how many flowers it takes to produce a kilo of rose
oil? One million roses, each handpicked. When it comes to nature,
Dominique Roques is a unique authority. He has spent the last
thirty years working closely with local communities across the
globe to establish a sustainable supply of natural ingredients
crucial to perfume making.
From resin cultivated by traditional methods in El Salvador to rose
oil distilleries in India as old as the Taj Mahal, his network
reveals an elusive trade built on the fault lines of tradition and
modernity. Roques tells the story of seventeen of the industry’s
most precious ingredients–where they come from, their cultural and
historic significance, and why we love them—from Indonesian
patchouli to the "Damask rose,” interweaving his own recollections
and reflections on his life and work.
Entertaining and eye-opening, and decorated with beautiful
black-and-white illustrations, “In Search of Perfumes” is an
irresistible exploration of the smells that fuel our nostalgia and
suffuse our fantasies.
Visit YouTube.com/TalksatGoogle
to
watch the video.