The Story
Why it exists.
The beginning
Miller Harris has always treated scent as storytelling, and Cassis en Feuille is one of their most literal chapters. The name translates to "blackcurrant leaf", a nod to the plant itself rather than the berry. Jean-Michel Santorini built this fragrance around the idea of greenery in motion: the leaves you brush past, the stems that release their scent when you crush them. Launched in 2015, it slots into Miller Harris's broader interest in naturalistic narratives, places, moments, and the plants that define them. This one is about the garden on a summer afternoon, before the flowers take over.
What makes Cassis en Feuille unusual is the tomato leaf note. It's not common in perfumery, it reads as almost savory, green in a way that goes beyond the typical cut-grass freshness. Paired with galbanum, which adds that slightly bitter, resinous edge of green vines, the composition avoids the "fresh and clean" trap that catches so many green fragrances. The blackcurrant note here is the leaf, not the berry, it's greener, more tannic. The bergamot keeps it bright. The rose doesn't dominate; it lingers in the middle, adding a quiet floral warmth that stops the green from feeling austere.
The evolution
The opening is the loudest moment. Bergamot and blackcurrant arrive together, tart, citrus-forward, immediately alive. Thirty minutes in, the green takes over. Tomato leaf and galbanum push forward, earthy and almost vegetable, while the rose quietly opens underneath. This is where the fragrance earns its name. By hour two, the fruity brightness has softened. The cedar emerges, dry, slightly pencil-shaving in its warmth, alongside musk that keeps everything close to the skin. The sillage moderates noticeably after the first hour; this becomes a skin scent, a private one. Lasting power sits around 6-8 hours on most skin types, with the drydown arriving somewhere around hour four and staying linear through the end.
Cultural impact
Cassis en Feuille occupies a specific corner of the green fragrance landscape. It's not aquatic, not ozonic, not the fresh-and-clean school that dominated the 2000s. Instead, it's herbal and almost vegetable, closer to a garden than a shower. Wearers tend to either love the tomato leaf note immediately or need time to adjust. It's the kind of fragrance that sparks conversation because it smells like something real that most people haven't encountered in a perfume. Similar fragrances in Miller Harris's range include La Feuille, which leans harder into green ivy and oak, and Verger, which focuses on orchard fruit. For those coming from other houses, English Oak & Redcurrant by Jo Malone shares some territory but is sweeter.
