When Emily asked if I’d be up for writing about my first impression of Yorabode’s new scent, Ground, I asked that there be one condition: I didn’t want to know anything but the name before I could smell it. Scent is notoriously difficult to describe, and as it is so closely linked to memories, I wanted to maintain the purity of my own associations rather than let assumptions and expectations percolate and cloud the experience of the scent. We agreed that I ought to avoid the Yorabode Instagram in the meantime, lest I expose myself to any exciting details. A couple of weeks later, as I unboxed the candles and essential oil, a beautiful matte card revealed one element: halved grapefruits. I allowed myself to read the label: “Scent: Grapefruit, larch + earth.” Rather fortunately, I couldn’t imagine the smell. “What is larch, again?” I wondered. Earth? Some ingredients, even as a layperson, are easy to imagine the scent extraction process – “earth” is not one of those things. Some things just have a smell, but one doesn’t often ponder how to capture that scent. Even though I had given myself these hints, I couldn’t do much with them, so thankfully I felt my unadulterated first impression would remain intact.