This substance, formed in the bile ducts of sperm whales, has been used in fragrances for over a millennium and is prized for the musky and woody aroma it develops when dried.
Whale hunting has been illegal since 1986, when these species were endangered due to overfishing.
Currently, most perfumers use a cheap synthetic version to try to capture its unique scent, but for Khalifé, only the authentic ingredient suffices.
Therefore, fishermen from the Maldives and other places search for pieces of the ingredient that have washed ashore, the only way to obtain it. When they find it, their first contact is usually Henry Jacques, the French fragrance house founded by Khalifé’s grandfather in the late 1970s.
“When they deliver it to us, they do it as if it were gold, in an armored car,” he says.
