On the Spanish island of Menorca, it can often seem as though the sea is ever-present. From the picturesque port of Mahon—among the largest natural harbors in Europe—to the wilder coastline facing north, to all the calas and inlets, nearly every view of the water appears expansive and Instagram-worthy.
In August 2020, Clara and John Molloy, along with their two young children, visited a house by the sea near the Sa Mesquida beach, which would later become a home away from their primary home in Geneva. As co-founders of the elevated perfume brand Memo Paris, they develop scents connected to destinations, including Madurai, an ode to Indian jasmine, and Odéon, which translates the Left Bank of Paris into a contemporary rose composition. Now, the Balearic island that has meant so much to the family has inspired its own fragrance.
Simply titled Menorca, the scent makes luminous contact with the skin, only to dry down with salty sensuality. There are bright, fizzy notes of bergamot, lemon, and ginger that are anchored by sandalwood and musk. There’s also a hint of neroli, a light orange blossom intended to evoke the sun on a white-walled balcony overlooking the water. Then there’s the “sillage,” or trail of the fragrance, structured as though it is imbued with Clara’s morning jogs along the beach, and family dinners under the stars.
It is one thing to smell a fragrance as a fine mist, dispersed from the atomizer of a beautiful bottle. It is another to arrive at the source of its inspiration to discover—not just with the nose, but all the senses—the composition of a richer story. Hence Clara’s invitation to Menorca for a brief immersion into her life there (John was in London overseeing a collaboration with the designer Giles Deacon). Our small group included the prolific, Paris-based perfumer Sophie Labbé and Shir Daniel, a rising artist living in London, who realized the vibrant illustrations that visualize the fragrance. Present in the role of co-host was Sarah Andelman, who has curated and consulted on a multitude of creative projects for brands like Memo Paris—not to mention her Just An Idea line of artist monographs—since she and her mother shuttered their Parisian concept store Colette in 2017. “I love that it is very personal, that there is always a destination, that she works with artists, and that there is a sense of longevity,” Andelman said. “You see the attachment.”
Clara, who grew up in Paris with Spanish parents, had always dreamed of a home by the sea, and describes Menorca as her “place of grace.” Prior to launching Memo Paris with John in 2007, she worked in publishing and completed a book of interviews with perfumers, 22 Perfumers. When she reached out to Labbé for their third collaboration, she gave a brief directed more towards the water than the island’s native plants and botanicals. During our time there, we spotted and sniffed classic lavender and a shrub topped with yellow button-like flowers known as cotton lavender. There were caper plants in bloom and mastic trees with tiny green leaves that Labbé compared to the smell of green beans. But it was the allure of a salty fresh scent that Clara was after. “We don’t do realistic paintings of the places; we use our imaginations. We find links but we don’t want to only see reality. Because when you go somewhere, you bring yourself,” she explained.
Clara brought us to sites that she frequents herself. We ventured to the mini-island occupied by the blue-chip gallery Hauser & Wirth (it was the closing day of a delightful exhibition by the trickster British artist Martin Creed) and the surrounding garden by renowned landscape designer Piet Oudolf. We traveled through the grounds of the Mola Fortress, a historic military fort that exists in a state of beautiful decay. We stopped in at a few local galleries, as well as Tabouret, a design and craft shop of impeccable taste filled with furniture, homewares, and clothing curated by Milk Magazine founder Isis-Colombe Combréas. We spent one of the evenings at Las Salinas de la Concepcíon, the breathtaking salt basins and property restored by fellow Geneva residents Rémy and Verena Best, whose brand of artisanal salts, Sal de Menorca, has collaborated with Memo Paris on a candle.
Labbé, who was experiencing Menorca for the first time, shared that while she had never worked on a salty note before, it was in the “air de temps.” In other words, salt is trending in perfumery. “It’s another way to express freshness—the summer and the breeze. Before, you had freshness with ozone or water notes. But salt is more long-lasting.”
You need not have visited Menorca to appreciate the mystique of Labbé’s creation. Of all the memories from these days with Clara and our curious group—the flamingos chilling near the salt flats; the outstanding view from Cova d’en Xoroi, a cliff-side bar that would make an incredible resort show venue; the poignantly sculpted figures by Joan Bennàssar on the decommissioned military grounds—it was the local Tramuntara wind that felt so evocative and salient. Somewhere within that breeze was the Memo Paris interpretation of Menorca, too.
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