Gentian Resinoid — Gentiana lutea | Payan Bertrand | Alpine Bitter Root

Part of our Professional Perfumers Range — curated for the discerning natural perfumer seeking exceptional depth and rarity.

Gentian Resinoid — Alpine Bitterness, Distilled into Fine Perfumery

Gentian is one of perfumery's rarest and most unusual natural materials — a genuine curiosity that few perfumers ever encounter. Produced by Payan Bertrand from Gentiana lutea, the great yellow gentian that grows wild in Alpine meadows and takes a full decade to reach maturity, this resinoid captures the same bitter, earthy root that gives Suze, Salers, and Avèze their famous distinctive bitterness — repurposed here as a genuinely original perfumery material.

Jean-Claude Ellena chose gentian for Hermès Eau de Gentiane Blanche, proof that this obscure Alpine root can anchor a major luxury fragrance. Genuinely difficult to dissolve in its pure form, we supply this resinoid pre-diluted by the manufacturer at 10% in natural triethyl citrate (TEC) — extracted from citric acid within citrus fruit — ensuring a properly workable material rather than the notoriously stubborn paste in its concentrated state.

Scent Profile

Striking and utterly distinctive — damp earth, bitter roots, and cool Alpine air, with a green, vegetal, almost medicinal bitterness quite unlike anything else in the perfumer's palette. Beneath this sits a quiet honeyed warmth and dry woody depth, sharing the powdery, rooty quality of orris but with a cold, bitter twist entirely its own. Exceptional longevity, persisting over 240 hours on a smelling strip.

Perfumery Applications

Use sparingly to add bitter-earthy originality to green compositions, chypres, and iris accords — it shares real kinship with orris but pushes the character somewhere genuinely unexplored. A compelling material for anchoring iris and oakmoss-forward structures, or for perfumers deliberately seeking something that smells like nowhere else.

Blending Suggestions

Pairs beautifully with vetiver, oakmoss, angelica root, bergamot, orris, iris, green florals, and chypre bases.

Technical Details

• Botanical Name: Gentiana lutea L.
• Common Name: Gentian / Great Yellow Gentian
• Botanical Family: Gentianaceae
• CAS Number: 97676-22-7
• Manufacturer: Payan Bertrand, France
• Origin: France
• Plant Part: Roots
• Extraction Method: Resinoid extraction
• Dilution: 10% in natural triethyl citrate (TEC), extracted from citric acid within citrus fruit — pre-diluted by the manufacturer
• Classification: Base note
• Appearance: Dark, liquid — may show natural clouding or fine particles, characteristic of an unfiltered material
• Odour Family: Earthy / Bitter / Green / Woody / Honeyed
• Longevity: Over 240 hours on a smelling strip
• Natural: Yes — 100% natural resinoid in natural TEC carrier
• Note: A genuine perfumery rarity — notoriously difficult to dissolve in its pure form, which is why we supply it only pre-diluted by the manufacturer

Packaging

1ml sample supplied in a 5ml clear flint glass bottle. 5ml, 10ml and 30ml supplied in amber glass bottles — all with inbuilt droppers and tamper evident caps.

Safety Information

For external use only. Avoid contact with eyes and sensitive areas. Not suitable for use on babies, children, pets or broken skin. Avoid use during pregnancy or whilst nursing. Always dilute properly and perform a patch test before first use.

Sample Policy

We recommend purchasing a 1ml sample first before committing to larger quantities. Please note that no refunds can be offered on opened items.

Photo images are for illustrative purposes only.