Our senses of smell and taste are inextricably linked. Often, a loss of smell results in a struggle for our taste to differentiate between flavours. For Vianney Hunter, the owner of Sydney’s Hunter Candles, food has long been an inspiration for her candle-making, while scent has always played a role in the way she remembers a meal.
One of her earliest scents – the smoky, zesty James candle – is inspired by a sentimental meal her partner James Elliott (who’s the executive chef of Nel) regularly cooks for her. The idea behind The Culinary Collection has been burning away in the back of her mind for some time now.
“I started with an olive oil one, and then there was a salt and pepper scent that really didn’t work,” Hunter tells Broadsheet. “I forget that other people don’t do this, but I see things in scents, so whenever we’re out to dinner or trying something new, I’m always thinking about how it would work as a candle.
“There are so many similarities between creating a dish and creating a candle.”
Both need to be layered but balanced, and to intrigue without overpowering. The four scents that make up the collection have taken three years to perfect. And it starts, as so many meals often do, with a scent named Baked Bread.
“Every time I go to a restaurant, the thing I always remember is the bread,” she says. “I wanted to make a candle that captures that moment when you pull off a chunk of crusty bread, and it’s all buttery and warm.”
No 2 Tomato, Basil and Fennel is a homage to the wilting basil plant on your windowsill. It’s sweet and herbaceous, with a slight bitter fennel note that gives it life. “It’s the most beautiful burn,” says Hunter. “It's definitely the prettiest of the bunch.”
Next up is Lemon Tree. For this scent, Hunter wanted to celebrate the kitchen staple that adds zing and zest to so many meals. “But I didn’t want to do lemon like everyone else does, I wanted to do lemon the way it makes me feel,” she says. “It’s bright and zesty and clean, but also reminiscent of where lemons grow, so it’s got a leafiness to it.”
No 4 Smoked Chilli was inspired by Hunter’s father, who, like many of us, took up a new hobby during lockdown: smoking meats. Hunter has been considering whacking a warning sticker on the box (“Like a spice rating on hot sauce!”) because this one is wild. Spicy chilli is balanced out with notes of smoky paprika and sweet charred capsicum. “It’s just so interesting, and I’ve never smelt anything or created anything like it,” says Hunter.
And if all that wasn’t enough, she’s also been working on a candle collaboration with Josh Niland, repurposing leftover Murray cod fat from Niland’s Fish Butchery. “My first thought was ‘What does it smell like?’” she says, laughing. “But of course, I said yes.” And that’s as much as she can share for now.
The Culinary Collection is now available online and at Hunter Candles’ Newtown store in Sydney.
