Bergamot is a citrus fruit, Citrus bergamia, grown mainly in Calabria, at the southern tip of Italy. The fruit is too sour and too bitter to eat, and it is used almost exclusively for the essential oil cold-pressed from its peel. That oil smells of fresh zest, with a floral, slightly peppery facet that sets it apart from lemon and orange. It is the most widely used citrus in perfumery.
A hybrid citrus grown in Calabria
The bergamot tree is a small evergreen. Its fruit looks like a small, slightly flattened orange, green at first and yellow when ripe. Botanists consider it a hybrid, most likely between bitter orange and lemon. The origin of its name is debated.
Perfumery bergamot comes mostly from a narrow coastal strip in the province of Reggio Calabria, along the Ionian Sea. Calabria supplies most of the bergamot oil produced worldwide. It is also grown elsewhere, notably in Ivory Coast, but Calabria remains the benchmark.
The harvest takes place in winter. Fruit picked early, while still green, gives a brighter oil. Ripe fruit gives a rounder oil. Outside perfumery, bergamot flavors Earl Grey tea and the bergamot sweets of Nancy, in eastern France.
Cold pressing and the bergapten question
Like other citrus fruits, bergamot is hardly ever distilled. Its oil sits in tiny pockets on the surface of the peel, and all it takes is to burst them, without heat. In the past, the peels were pressed by hand against sponges. Today, machines grate the surface of the fruit under a stream of water, and the oil is then separated by centrifugation. Our article on how perfume materials are extracted compares this with the other methods.
The raw oil contains furocoumarins, in particular bergapten, which takes its name from bergamot. These molecules have no smell, but they make the skin sensitive to sunlight. Applied before sun exposure, they can cause brown spots or redness.
The rules of IFRA, the international association that sets good practice for the industry, therefore limit the furocoumarin content of leave-on products. Suppliers offer a treated oil known as furocoumarin-free, or FCF. The bergapten is removed by rectification or by chemical treatment, and the scent changes little. This is the most common form in today's perfumes.
What bergamot smells like
Bergamot smells of zest, but a zest less sour than lemon and less sweet than orange. It has a floral, almost lavender-like facet and a bitter, peppery edge.
That floral facet has a chemical explanation. Like all citrus oils, bergamot contains a lot of limonene, the molecule behind the zesty side. It also contains large amounts of linalyl acetate and linalool. These are the main molecules of lavender and petitgrain. They give bergamot its soft floral character and explain its affinity with lavender.
Citrus notes are the most volatile in perfumery. Limonene and related molecules evaporate quickly. On skin, bergamot comes through mostly in the first few minutes, then gives way to the heart. That is why it almost always sits at the top of the pyramid. Citrus oils also oxidize in air and light, so a citrus perfume keeps better somewhere cool and away from daylight.
Lemon, orange, yuzu: the other citrus fruits
In perfumery, the citrus family is called hesperidic. Lemon, Citrus limon, is the sharpest and cleanest. Much of its scent comes from citral. Its pressed oil also contains furocoumarins, though less than bergamot. Mandarin, Citrus reticulata, is softer and rounder, with a sweet facet. Sweet orange, Citrus sinensis, smells of juice and peel. Its oil is mostly a by-product of the juice industry, which makes it one of the cheapest natural materials.
Bitter orange, or bigarade, Citrus aurantium, is drier and more bitter. The peel gives bitter orange oil. The flowers give neroli by distillation and orange blossom absolute by solvent extraction. The leaves and small twigs give petitgrain.
Grapefruit, Citrus paradisi, is a hybrid of pomelo and orange. It has a bitter, slightly sulfurous side, and one of its signature molecules is nootkatone. Pomelo, Citrus maxima, is one of the ancestral citrus fruits, and a softer one. Yuzu, Citrus junos, is the citrus of Japan. It smells of lemon, mandarin and grapefruit all at once, with a green note. Its oil is rare, and many "yuzu" notes are reconstructions.
Citron, Citrus medica, is another ancestral citrus, with a very thick peel. It is grown in Corsica. Lime, finally, smells greener and sharper than lemon. Its oil is often distilled rather than pressed.
Bergamot in eau de Cologne and chypre
Bergamot has shaped two major families in perfumery. The first is eau de Cologne. In the early 18th century, Jean-Marie Farina, an Italian living in Cologne, began selling a fresh water that took the name of the city. It combined bergamot, lemon, orange, neroli and petitgrain, often with rosemary and lavender, at a low concentration.
The second is chypre, named after the island of Cyprus. Its classic structure pairs bergamot in the top with cistus labdanum and oakmoss in the base, often with patchouli. Bergamot brings light against a dark, forest-floor base. Oakmoss is now restricted by IFRA, and perfumers use a moss with reduced atranol or replacement molecules such as Evernyl. Our article What is patchouli looks at the other pillar of this base.
Bergamot also appears in the fougère, where it pairs with lavender and coumarin, covered in our article What is tonka bean.
Bergamot and citrus perfumes from our catalog
Bergamot is one of the most frequent notes in the pyramids of our catalog. The perfumes below list bergamot or another citrus in the pyramid published on their product page. Our selection Citrus perfumes for sunny days features other citrus scents, which we do not repeat here.
Bergamot in the spirit of a Cologne
From ChuJian, Tianshan Spring N°L31 evokes the spring of the Tianshan mountains, fed by melting glaciers. Lemon, bergamot and juniper berry open the composition. The heart brings together aquatic notes, musk and lavender, over a base of ambrette, ambroxan and cedar. The citrus and lavender recall a Cologne. Our introduction to ChuJian tells the story of the house.
Blue Fever, by Aaron Terence Hughes, opens on three organic citrus fruits: lemon, bergamot and blood mandarin. The heart pairs apple, sea salt and lavender, the base organic cedar and amber. Our introduction to Aaron Terence Hughes explains the house's concentration.
Bergamot and tea
Bergamot and tea is the pairing of Earl Grey. Oolong Rocking Green N°P26, by ChuJian, takes its name from a step in making oolong tea, when Tieguanyin leaves are shaken to release their aroma. Bergamot, grapefruit, pear and green notes form the top. The heart brings together jasmine, orange blossom, ylang-ylang, rose and orchid, the base oolong tea, vetiver, moss and musk.
Bergamot and moss: chypre structures
Moonlight Silken Veil N°L32, by ChuJian, opens on bitter orange, bergamot, lemon and blackcurrant. The heart pairs peach, rose, ylang-ylang, two jasmines and a touch of oregano. The base of fir, musk and moss echoes the chypre idea: bright citrus over a forest-floor base.
Baniyas, by Widian, gathers bergamot, mugwort and lavender in the top, before a heart of geranium, cedar and oud. The base combines patchouli, sandalwood, vetiver and Evernyl, the molecule that often replaces oakmoss. Our article on Widian introduces the house.
Bergamot and leather
Yellow, the second creation from Kanchaveli, translates the color yellow into scent. The pyramid on the product page places bergamot and lemon in the top, cinnamon in the heart and leather in the base. The description speaks of an immediate leather paired with a lemony note. See also our introduction to Bidzina Kanchaveli.
Bitter orange and pomelo
Throne, by Zhufu, is built around citrus and pepper. Bitter orange, lime and mint open the composition, and the description adds grapefruit. The heart pairs black pepper and pink pepper, the base cashmere wood, cedar and vetiver. Our article on Zhufu presents the house's other perfumes.
Yan Qi Dian Xia, by Cinojad, means "summer in the meadows of Yanqi". The top brings together Corsican pomelo, bitter orange and wild calamus. The heart places pomelo blossom alongside houttuynia and a meadow accord, over a base of marjoram, sphagnum moss and green vetiver. The fruit and the flower of the same citrus answer each other. Our article on Cinojad presents its other creations.
Grapefruit
Mezcal My Love, by Adi ale Van, composed by Jimmy Bodin, opens on Italian grapefruit, Japanese peppermint and ginger. The heart brings together a mezcal accord, agave syrup, smoky notes, geranium and rosemary. The base combines oakmoss, Haitian vetiver and hinoki. Our introduction to Adi ale Van tells the story of the house.
Yuzu
Yuma, by Pernoire, takes the Swiss Alps as its model. Swiss mint, peppermint, yuzu and bergamot open the composition. The heart brings together an alpine breeze accord, edelweiss, ginger and cashmeran, over a base of dry amber, vetiver, musk and patchouli. The product page describes it as the house's only fresh perfume. See also our introduction to Pernoire.
Moonlit Lullaby, by Tada Parfumeur, is inspired by a cocktail. Chamomile, yuzu, apple, lime and green notes form the top. The heart pairs sugar, lavender and grapefruit zest, the base heliotrope, a vodka accord and honey. Our introduction to Tada Parfumeur tells the perfumer's story.
Citron and finger lime
Two perfumes already featured in our article on sandalwood list rarer citrus fruits. ChangBai Sandal N°M37, by ChuJian, opens on citron, pink pepper and lime, before a heart of tea and fig and a sandalwood base. From Zhufu, Mango Ambrosia specifies a Calabrian bergamot. In the top it is paired with finger lime, a small Australian citrus, Yingde pomelo, green mango leaf absolute and saffron.
More citrus compositions can be found in our selection of fresh perfumes.
Frequently asked questions
What is Calabrian bergamot?
It is the bergamot grown on the Ionian coast of the province of Reggio Calabria, in southern Italy. This region produces most of the bergamot oil used worldwide.
Is bergamot dangerous in the sun?
The raw oil contains bergapten, which can cause spots on skin exposed to the sun. Perfumery mostly uses furocoumarin-free bergamot, and IFRA limits their content in leave-on products. As a precaution, avoid applying perfume to skin that will spend a long time in the sun.
Why do citrus notes last so briefly on skin?
Their main molecules, such as limonene, are highly volatile and evaporate within the first few minutes. Musks and woods in the base help extend their freshness.
What is the difference between bergamot and lemon?
Lemon is sharper and cleaner. Bergamot is less sour, more floral and a little peppery, thanks to the linalyl acetate and linalool it shares with lavender.
Is neroli a citrus?
Neroli comes from the bitter orange tree, but it is distilled from the flowers, not the peel. It smells of white flowers, with a green facet. It often accompanies bergamot in colognes.
Further reading
Bergamot is one of the materials covered in our guide Perfume materials. For the materials that serve as a base for citrus, see also our articles What is sandalwood and What is patchouli. To compare a Cologne bergamot, a chypre and a yuzu on your own skin, the perfumes mentioned are available as 2 ml samples depending on the house, on our samples page.