This past week, we took our last vacation for the year until the winter holidays in the state of Oregon and divided our time between Portland and wine country. For the first part, our hotel was nice but in a rough area downtown, so long stretches of sidewalk along empty buildings smelled of urine—though, surprisingly, not of weed as well. Several of the few (is that an oxymoron?) boutiques that were open had doorbells to ring for entry or else requested customers to make appointments.

My personal scent-track for this trip was composed of a travel spray of Essential Parfums Mon Vetiver (which I used up) and a mini of Jo Malone Wood Sage & Sea Salt, both pretty good against the humid heat. I also brought along the novelty Vacation^® Classic Whip sunscreen by Arquiste, which smells and feels a delight with its airy texture. Advertised notes are “coconut, banana, pool water, pool toy and swimsuit lycra,” although luckily the coconut is tempered by petitgrain to the effect of something floral.

Perfume was just around the corner at MACHUS, an independent store featuring menswear by emerging designers. Blackbird and Imaginary Authors were spotlighted as Portland-based brands.

Now I shall reveal that the main reason for this trip was to attend the MADE handmade bike show. We’ve been letting our passions guide our vacations this year—back in May, it was Bulgaria for my love of roses and perfumery—and this time, it was Portland for my other half’s love of bikes. I was also impressed by a lot of small innovations and paint work. My favorite new idea was this giant chain ring by Brûlé Bicycles:

Salt & Straw

Having made the rounds and stood around at booths a lot on a hot day called for an ice cream break, and we headed to Division Street to visit Salt & Straw. I had first heard of this shop last year, when they collaborated with Imaginary Authors on three edible perfumes to spray on their ice creams to enhance the flavors through scent. At the time, I had written to both brands to ask about the shelf life and longevity on skin, and gotten no response from either. Regardless of the snub, I still wanted to try them, so I did.

The perfumes are A Swoon of Citrus, A Cloud of Cocoa, and A Plume of Blooms. I had to ask about them as they were not proactively offered with each ice cream order. The employees also said they didn’t sell very many of them. I requested A Plume of Blooms as the notes of jasmine, honeysuckle, and wild country garden seemed to go best with the honey-lavender ice cream, which was delicious on its own.

I couldn’t smell or taste the perfume on my ice cream, so I sprayed some more from the tester, and spritzed my arm as well. By the time I finished taking pictures, the effect was yet again undetectable. Sad to say, they all smelled synthetic and the one lasted maybe 20 minutes on skin.

While we’re on the topic of ice cream, Fifty Licks is also on par—I had a delectable lavender salted caramel. Are you detecting a theme?

Fumerie Parfumerie

Also on Division Street is Fumerie Parfumerie, Portland’s niche perfumery. The experience style is similar to Scent Bar, where you literally sit at a bar and someone shows you perfumes and sprays them for you. The sales associate was busy talking with another excited perfumista, so I moseyed around looking at the clusters of bottles on the counter that were organized by fragrance family and sniffing the pre-sprayed blotters.

While my other half plopped himself down on a cozy chair in front of a full selection of perfume-related books, I got lost in the visual sea of bottles on the wall and couldn’t decide what to ask to try. Finally I picked up Ormonde Jayne Sakura from the counter and sprayed it on my other arm (that didn’t already have ice cream perfume on it). That is one I’d been interested in for a while. It was indeed very pretty, and familiar… I soon realized that it reminded me of Osmanthus from the same brand, but more delicately floral and with less citrus—and, of course, rounded and glossed by Iso E Super in its woody-musk glory.

Powell's Books

What an apt segue to the establishment that claims to be the world’s largest independent bookstore, Powell’s Books. The first two times I walked by it… frankly, I didn’t give it any notice. The third time, the name suddenly rang a bell. Was this the bookstore that had commissioned a signature scent?

Back in 2020, it had released Powell’s by Powell’s, supposed to “smell like a million books.” They had licensed Paperback from Demeter to package in their own branding, and it had sold out quickly.

When I asked the person at the information desk inside whether this was the bookstore with a signature scent, they had no idea. But they looked it up and seemed amazed to find that, in fact, it was! And even gave me the helpful advice that I might be able to find it on eBay.

So my other half and I browsed books, and I came across Powell’s signature… candle! It’s called Summer Reading and smells really refreshing, with notes of “fresh-cut grass, spruce, soil, fresh green notes, spring petrichor, and damp forest.” The maker is local Wildwood Candle Co. I bought one, along with a book explaining fashion to uninitiated people like me, because I’ve recently developed an interest in fashion and started watching runway shows instead of old British sitcoms in my spare time…

The store is seriously huge, with rooms divided by color (green, blue, rose, pearl, red, purple), and even a rare book room on the top floor. It was gratifying to see a brick-and-mortar bookstore thriving in today’s digital environment.

Willamette Valley

The second part of our trip was to wine country in Willamette Valley. We stayed in McMinnville, about 40 miles southwest of Portland, with easy access to several AVAs (per Wikipedia: an American Viticultural Area (AVA) is a designated appellation for American wine in the United States distinguishable by geographic, geologic, and climatic features). Many vineyards boasted spectacular views.

Over three days, we visited Dundee Hills, Eola-Amity Hills, and Ribbon Ridge AVAs. We enjoy wine but are not connoisseurs, so I will just say that I found the pinot noirs, for which the region is generally known, bright and berry forward. I fell in love with a brut rosé and some rieslings from wineries in Ribbon Ridge.

We stopped by the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum and saw the famous Spruce Goose, a seaplane built of wood (mostly birch, not spruce!) and resin and holding the record for the world’s largest wingspan at 320 feet and 11 inches. We also learned a lot about the evolution of aircraft throughout history.

I mention this not to document everything we did on the trip, but rather because I was surprised to discover that at some point in time, Caron perfumes were given as amenities aboard TWA flights! Along with a comb, an eye mask, and other items, a box of 2 minis (10 mL each) were provided. Ah, were those the days!?

Indeed, perfume is everywhere…

Hotel Grand Stark

On our last night, we stayed at a different hotel in Portland, the Hotel Grand Stark. It might have echoes of The Grand Budapest Hotel on a much smaller scale, but I first noticed the signature scent in the lobby. Something pleasant.

To my great surprise, it had Diptyque toiletries in the bathroom! Philosykos shampoo, conditioner, and body wash, and 34 Boulevard Saint Germain soap and lotion. Such a treat! Coming back down to the lobby, I guessed that the scent might be a version of L’Ombre dans L’Eau, although the person at the front desk didn’t know.

So, that sums up my olfactory experiences of Portland. I plan to write about the fragrant International Rose Test Garden in a separate post.