Scents · 2023

Pluviophile – The Perfume That Dances in the Rain

Author: Rei Nguyen
Published: 18 September 2023
Language: English
Reading time: 2 min
Scents: Pluviophile

Read this piece in Vietnamese: Đọc bằng tiếng Việt

First published on 18 September 2023, kept as it was written.

Pluviophile in its Patina bottle, standing upright in snow between sprigs of rust-brown conifer — Added in 2026, not part of the original post: Pluviophile in its Patina bottle, in snow. Photographed in 2023.

How was Pluviophile created?

Landscape ink painting: a lake left as blank paper in the rain, the far shore a band of trees in a grey, faintly green wash, with a few thin slanting strokes of rain. A raindrop has just met the water in three dense ink arcs and a few splashes, small ripples lie scattered near and far, and a wooden bench plank slants in at the lower right.

It was a Friday afternoon downpour at Tokyo’s Shinjuku Gyoen park, where Rei often let the dusk swallow her in silver rain while sitting on a wooden bench. The fragrance of wildflowers and swarming bees were carried by the wind blow, and that was how she described her happiness, a rain-lover.

Landscape ink painting seen from inside a wooden house: across the top a roof beam in dry-brush strokes, on the left a wooden post fading downwards, and along the bottom edge the warm plank of a bench, cut off by the frame. Beyond lies a lake left as blank paper, the far shore a band of trees in a grey, faintly green wash, with a few distant slanting strokes of rain and small ripples.

“Sometimes I still can imagine myself sitting on that wooden bench in Shinjuku Park, watching the falling rain. My heart was light and my mind flowed with the water. It was strange that I never felt lonely in the rain.

Pluviophile is for those who seek peace in the tranquility of rain.”

-Rei Nguyen-

How does Pluviophile smell like?

Have you ever heard of Geosmin - the key note of Pluviophile?

geo·smin | \ jē-ˈō-smən \

According to Merriam Webster, Geosmin is “a volatile, organic compound C12H22O that is formed especially by soil-dwelling bacteria (such as streptomyces) and aquatic cyanobacteria and that may contribute to the earthy, pleasant odor of petrichor or impart a disagreeable, musty taste and odor to drinking water and certain fish”.

Geosmin is played in R’s Pluviophile to add a light trace of the earth in the rain, recorded as less than 0.01% in the formula.

Landscape ink painting: a few thin slanting strokes of rain fall on a band of damp earth swept in wet grey-brown brushwork, with a faint warm haze rising just above the ground. A single raindrop strikes the earth in two dense ink arcs and a few splashes, and beside it a two-leaved sprout in dark ink, faintly tinged green, has just come up.

Pluviophile brings the smell of rain to your mind. But what exactly is it? There may not be an accurate answer as each Pluviophile themselves reminisce the petrichor differently.

Pluviophile - A perfume dancing in the rain

Pluviophile is a symphony of rain composed by delicated notes of water, green leaves, and wild flowers. A sense of serenity. You are protected under the calmness of rain.

Landscape ink painting: a long leaf rises from the bottom edge and arches over to the right, wet with ink at its base and dry and thin at its tip, with a few pale green streaks along it; beneath the arch stand two wild daisies with petals left as paper and pale yellow centres, the further one smaller, beside a slender leaf on the left. A few slanting strokes of rain stop above the leaf, two drops rest on its back and one falls from its tip, away from the flowers.

“Pluviophile” tells a different story of rains. In the rain, you enjoy solitude. Rain acts as a soothing sound so you can hear your inner voice more vividly. Rain evaporates quickly. But the scent for a rain lover stays. On your skin, perhaps.

The blue shade of our patina matches with the light color of “Pluviophile”. A scent that makes you feel relaxed and present. It is ok. You are doing well. You are enough. You are living your best life.

Rei Nguyen

Illustrations: new ink paintings made in 2026 for the web edition; not part of the original post, and not by Rei.