This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
We regret to report that Moss Olfactory lab has closed.
Moss Olfactory Lab is situated in a gorgeous apartment in El Born, overlooking Pla de Palau. The lab offers an introduction into the secretive process of perfume creation, with the first workshop of its kind in Barcelona. Guests are provided with the knowledge, raw materials and a charming space to concoct their own fragrance while learning about the art of perfumery. Founders Barbora Votrubova and Peter Vijgen describe Moss Olfactory Lab as a micro-perfumery, where bespoke fragrances are crafted to suit each personality.
Perfume Workshops
Bara and Peter selected 160 individual perfumery ingredients, both natural and synthetic (aroma chemicals or molecules) sourced from the best suppliers like IFF, Firmenich and Givaudan. The workshop begins with a preview of the ingredients – spanning the diverse categories of marine, citrus, herbal, aldehydic, floral, fruity, green, spicy, woody, mossy, balsamic, gourmand, amber, animalistic, musk, leather, Chypre and Fougère.
Then it’s time to get to work. Out of the 160 scents a selection of 42 are used to help guide the process. Out of these scents, guests select base, heart and top notes for their unique perfume. Top notes are the first scents you smell in a perfume. Bergamot and lemon are examples of top notes. The heart notes emerge once the top notes fade. Popular heart notes include scents such as jasmin and ylang ylang. Base notes are the scents that remain after heart notes have faded. Vanilla, amber and oak moss are examples of commonly used base notes. Bara and Peter are on hand throughout the process, offering advice on good combinations of scents and how to effectively balance the fragrance being made.
The workshop covers many fascinating facets of the world of perfumery; from the sometimes surprising origins of scents to their ability evoke memories. Perhaps you will discover your ‘Proustian madeleine’. At the end of the workshop, guests leave with a bottle of their custom made scent and the possibility to come back to perfect it or explore more.
About the Founders
Bara and Peter moved to Barcelona from Prague. The couple have a background in both chemistry and marketing and trained their noses in Grasse, the perfume capital of the world.
Contact
Address: Pla de Palau 9 – 08003 Barcelona
Email: hello@mossolfactorylab.com
Instagram: mossolfactorylab
Facebook: www.facebook.com/mossolfactorylab