After introducing you to the Domaine de Manon in Provence, DiorMag now turns its sights to India. To Madurai, to be exact. The J'adore journey continues.

In the world of perfume, the different cultivation sites are unique, each with their own speciality, their own inherent savoir-faire, and its this that François Demachy, the perfumer-creator of Dior, is looking for on his long voyages to find the elements that make up J'adore . Here in Madurai flowers form part of daily life. They adorn houses and dress their inhabitants. More than a decoration, they're akin to an offering or a benediction since, in India, flowers have a soul and a spirit. They possess, according to François Demachy, "a highly mystic dimension". 
In Madurai, as in Grasse, it's jasmine that's harvested - but it's quite different from the grandiflorum jasmine of Provence. In India, sambac jasmin is harvested when the bloom is still in bud. The flower hasn't blossomed, has neither opened its petals nor exhaled all its scent. After their collection, the flowers are spread out on the ground so that they have enough space to open, which happens in two or three hours, most commonly in the evening. The flowers are then selected and their essences extracted. "It's not enough just to grow the flowers, you have to transform them. The hand of man is very important,"   François Demachy explains.

It's this ancestral know-how that he seeks out when traveling and meeting people. J'adore    is the most precious illustration of this.  
Monsieur Dior used to say that perfume was the finishing touch to an outfit. Today, for François Demachy, it's the exceptional ingredients that provide that "final touch to the perfume" . They give it all its soul and its strength. And it's singularity, too. The story of J'adore   is a story of exchange - between nature and those who distill its wonder.  "Sambac jasmine is a species of jasmine that's quasi-endemic to India. And it's thanks to J'adore that sambac jasmine has managed to acquire a new level of distinction,"   the perfumer reveals.