
Discover Your Favorite Scent
Our fragrance samples are available for purchase online only. No samples will be available in store at Merz Apothecary.
Would you love to try Varanasi? Try a sample for a fraction of the cost of a full bottle!
Our samples are either packaged by the perfume house, or hand-poured here at Smallflower and presented in a spray vial. Each vial is filled to a variable volume to reflect the concentration of the fragrance being sampled.
About the Fragrance:
"Varanasi is inspired by my trip to India experienced in 2017, it tells what of India has remained in my heart, mind, soul and nose. Varanasi is a sacred and profane place of smell, full of contrasts and meanings. I composed this perfume letting myself be guided by the visceral emotion I felt the day I felt the sacred water of the Ganges in my hands, I tried to search my olfactory memory and found the source, from which everything was created.
Varanasi is an olfactory mandala, where the aquatic, animal and visceral notes of Grey Amber, cradle our soul. The ritual begins with the warm and red spicy notes of Saffron, Nutmeg and Cardamom. A dizzying approach to the floral heart, amulets of Roses and Jasmine, a dusty and woody body of Ambrette and Cypriol. Like a Sadhu covered in white ash, the ritual takes shape among the sacred notes of Nard, Incense and Gurjum.
Perfume becomes a magical experience, without compromise. A whirling chant rises in the Varanasi night, the temple, the shadows walking around, Oud, Vetiver and a mystic leather chord, envelop our body. Sounds of unknown instruments. On the slow river, the dawn comes, Varanasi is the place where spirituality sublimates the human being. Where souls will try to find refuge. Varanasi is a magnetic scent." -Giuseppe Imprezzabile, Founder & Perfumer
Varanasi, an olfactory mandala: When you smell Varanasi, imagine water flowing through the bowels of the earth, touching the roots of everything, nourishing our souls.
Musical inspiration: Stockhausen & Mortazavi – Hamdelaneh
Fragrance Notes:
Top: Oud, Leather accord, Ambergris, Gurjum, Saffron
Middle: Spikenard, Incense, Vetiver, Ambrette, Cypriol
Base: Nutmeg, Cardamom, Jasmine, Rose
Same Day pickup for curbside orders containing samples is not available.
Shipped orders containing samples will be picked and processed in 1-3 business days.
Why can't I purchase this online?
A small number of our brands and products are not allowed to be sold online. Please give us a call at 1-800-252-0275 or stop into one of our stores to order this product.