Geranium Bourbon or rose geranium is native to South Africa but it was transplanted to Réunion island (known as Île de Bourbon from 1665–1793) by the French colonists in the 1840s after natural disasters destroyed the coffee industry in 1806 and 1807. In time the importance of the Island in international trade fell and most geranium Bourbon is now produced on the neighbouring island of Madagascar, from whence this essential oil comes. Our geranium Bourbon essential oil is, for all intents and purposes, the closest in scent you can find to the odour quality loved by the great perfumers of the 20th century who particularly enjoyed the balanced and easily managed green and floral scent. It is a key note in most of the earliest fougère fragrances.
