Category: Essays

Nonfiction pieces exploring perfume, flavor, botanicals, distillation, and much more, from a wide array of perspectives.

A small, ragged-edged rectangular slab looks like a fragment of weathered, earthen material, its surface dense with grit, cracks, and compressed fibers. Carved into the center is a sinuous, worm-like “S” shape that dips and curves across the panel. The groove is filled with a coarse, brick-red pigment that sits unevenly in the trench, giving it a textured, raised, almost crumbly feel. The surrounding brown surface appears rough and organic, as if the whole piece were excavated from soil or made of compacted earth. The contrast between the matte, mottled brown field and the vivid, tactile red line makes the form appear both primal and deliberately inscribed. Made for “The Worms.”

“The Worms” * Nonfiction * David Lowe

aromatica poetica December 3, 2025

The worms live in our basement, in two large storage bins stacked on the floor amid the clutter. Eventually, when I’ve built out more shelves and cabinets, they’ll have their own oversize drawers I can easily slide out when it’s time to feed them. I’ll carve the word WORMS into the wood, knowing that when Caroline and I are dead, new owners will puzzle over what was meant by WORMS. I mean worms. Red wigglers; Eisenia fetida in the Latin. …

A cluster of delicate jasmine flowers with soft pink and white petals is displayed prominently. The flowers are bathed in warm light, highlighting their gentle hues. Beyond the flowers, there is no distinct background visible, just a soft, neutral backdrop that doesn't provide specific details about the surroundings. The parts of the flowers, such as the petals and buds, are prominent and clearly visible, showing their delicate structure and suggesting the sexy scent of indole.

“Jasmine: the Indole Paradox” * Nonfiction * Fiona Lindsay Shen

aromatica poetica April 17, 2025

It starts as a faint whiff of horse sweat and stables. On Spring nights when I walk home from the subway through our compound in Shanghai, I can map where I am in relation to the jasmine vines surging over the rockeries. Under lantern light, these boulders look as though they are capped with snow. From twenty feet away, the scent is seductive – a mix of barely-ripe banana, paperwhites, and pony muzzle. Ten feet away, it’s intoxicating. Especially if …

A soft pink background sets the stage for this layered erotic lit perfumes collage. The base layer features a subtly blurred photograph of an elegant silver tray with curved, ornamental handles extending outward on both sides. The tray rests on a neutral-toned surface, holding an oval-shaped perfume bottle labeled “Les Cahiers Secrets”, with a gold spherical cap. Surrounding the bottle are scattered yellow flower petals, adding a delicate, natural touch. Superimposed on this background are five distinct perfume bottles, each slightly transparent, creating a dreamy, layered effect. These bottles are arranged in a balanced composition: 1. Far left: A rectangular glass bottle labeled “Delta of Venus” (Eris), with a black cap and a pale, translucent liquid inside. 2. Slightly left of center: A vintage-inspired bottle with vertical ridges, a golden cap, and a black velvet bow at the neck. The label reads “Marissa Zappas”. 3. Center: The original bottle from the tray, “Les Cahiers Secrets,” remains clearly visible, reinforcing its role as the focal point. 4. Slightly right of center: Another tall rectangular bottle labeled “Belle de Jour” (Eris), with a black cap and golden liquid. 5. Far right: A modern, minimalist square bottle labeled “Nishane”, featuring a gold cap and a warm amber-hued perfume. The semi-transparent effect of the superimposed bottles gives the impression of a layered memory, a sensual haze, or a soft-focus dream—an aesthetic that evokes elegance, nostalgia, and a sense of intimate luxury. The pink background adds a warm, romantic, and slightly playful touch, while the metallic accents from the tray and perfume caps create a subtle contrast.

“Erotic Literature Hits the Bottle” * Nonfiction * Beatriz Zimmermann

aromatica poetica February 12, 2025

You always remember your first erotic book. That deep unexpected stirring that comes from mere words suddenly pulsating on the page. It’s safe to say D.H. Lawrence’s long-banned Lady Chatterley’s Lover inspired a whole generation of lady of the manor fantasies while taboo tales like The Story of O and Venus in Furs swerved into a decidedly S&M space, immediately taking their place as classics for the whipped-into-a-frenzy crowd. Erica Jong’s Fear of Flying (recently feted for its 50th anniversary) …

A photorealistic image of a white woman’s legs wearing a black skirt and brown tennis shoes steps out of a subway. To her right is a pile of dog shit she is trying to avoid. Credit: Imagine.Art.

“Dog Shit” * Nonfiction * Ro Miller

aromatica poetica May 29, 2024

I stepped in dog shit right before getting on a Brooklyn-bound Q train and spent the remaining twenty-six minutes considering scent as a social factor. The first thing about dog shit is the feel of the sole of your shoe sliding beneath you. The squish is muted, but immediately there is an odor. Not one that you can smell but rather one that exists as quiet disgust in the back of your throat. A quick glance backward pushes the nausea …

Black and white illustration of a woman sitting at a desk looking at her computer screen from a back/side angle. Her hair is in a loose bun on the top of her head and she’s wearing a tank top. Beside her is a window with curtains that are bunched and tied revealing a night sky: a crescent moon and some stars beyond. Glowing light shows a portion of face and arm, but all is mostly black. On the desk is a big computer screen, keyboard, a cup with pencils, some books, and a tissue box. On the screen is a color promo photo of Fille en Aiguilles. The sleek black bottle, skyscraper like, with a rectangular body and cylindrical top is resting in an amber pond surrounded by pine needles. Illustration by Alabaster Rhumb for The Sillage Series. This one about trauma.

Sillage 4: Fille en Aiguilles * Poem + Essay * Jehanne Dubrow

aromatica poetica April 18, 2024

Aromatica Poetica is delighted to present the fourth in the Sillage series by Jehanne Dubrow. She is the author of several books of poetry and prose that dance with our heart’s senses, including Taste: A Book of Small Bites, which we highly recommend! Each of the 12 poems are written in the voice of a specific perfume—this one is Fille en Aiguilles[i]—and were begun during the height of the pandemic. For this Sillage series, the poems are paired with a …

A digital illustration of a white woman in a black sleeveless dress stands against a black backdrop. She holds a smoking object in her left hand, and, in her right, she holds a cord connected to a hanging cauldron. Subtle, amber light emanates from the right hand. From Ro Miller, credit: Imagine.Art.

“Scent of Faith” * Nonfiction * Ro Miller

aromatica poetica February 15, 2024

I was indoctrinated as a Catholic, so you will forgive the following several hundred words. I recently attended the Riverside Church Candlelight Carol Festival, an event aptly structured around a selection of Christian Carols. Upon sitting in the closely packed pews, wearing what now amounts to my Sunday best, I was thrust back into the bittersweet memories of Sunday mass. The proximity of strangers, the lukewarm dread at the approaching sermon, and the stoic resignation that worship was my reality …

Sillage 3: Carnal Flower * Poetry + Prose * Jehanne Dubrow

aromatica poetica January 11, 2024

Aromatica Poetica is delighted to present the third in a series called Sillage by Jehanne Dubrow. She is the author of several books of poetry and prose that dance with our heart’s senses, including Taste: A Book of Small Bites, which we highly recommend! Each of the 12 poems are written in the voice of a specific perfume—this one is Carnal Flower—and were begun during the height of the pandemic. For this Sillage series, the poems are paired with a …

“Once I came to you as smoke and cognac, / which is to say something to take / into the mouth. I didn’t mind / being pure pleasure…” –“Ambre Narguilé”

SILLAGE #2: Ambre Narguilé * Poetry + Prose * Jehanne Dubrow

aromatica poetica November 14, 2023

Aromatica Poetica is delighted to present the second in a series called Sillage by Jehanne Dubrow. She is the author of several books of poetry and prose that dance with our heart’s senses, including Taste: A Book of Small Bites, which we highly recommend! Each of the 12 poems are written in the voice of a specific perfume—this one is Ambre Narguilé—and were begun during the height of the pandemic. For this Sillage series, the poems are paired with a …

Sillage 1: Chanel No. 19 * Poetry + PROSE * Jehanne Dubrow

aromatica poetica September 6, 2023

Aromatica Poetica is delighted to present the first in a new series called Sillage by Jehanne Dubrow. She is the author of several books of poetry and prose that dance with our heart’s senses, including Taste: A Book of Small Bites, which we highly recommend! Each of the 12 poems are written in the voice of a specific perfume—this first one is Chanel No. 19—and were begun during the height of the pandemic. For this Sillage series, the poems are …

An impressionist painting of aromas emanating from roses, lemons, eucalyptus leaves, with dots of scented colors like spices in the air. Thanks to OpenAI DALL.E for this one!

“I Never Labeled My Spices: An Elegy To Olfactory” * Nonfiction * Alice Eakes

aromatica poetica June 21, 2023

I lost my sense of smell. This nasty little virus sweeping the world, killing millions, invaded my home in January 2022 despite vaccinations and other protective protocols. My symptoms were somewhere between mild and life-threatening. I rode it out, and in the end, I discovered I no longer possessed the powerful olfactory sense that has been my lifelong companion. My first-grade teacher is responsible for my ability to identify just about anything from smell. She figured if I would eventually …