Long, pointed leaves that scratch the air all around, scenting it with their pungent, sharp aroma. A green spot moving in the breeze, gently yet statuarily bending and growing in height or length depending on the climatic conditions in which it lives. Strong, stoic, heroic, tough, resilient. In a nut-shell: a free plant. That is the Juniper, which has always been known for its almost legendary prop-erties and used in history as a “spiritual shield” to protect what man loved the most.

In the past, for example, Italian families used to grow a Juniper plant near their homes because it was believed to protect from plague and infectious diseases. Furthermore, it defended against snakes and wild animals due to its pointed leaves. It was not uncommon to find Juniper twigs hanging on house and barn doors to ward off evil spirits and thus protect people and animals. In the countryside, finally, people traditionally used to burn Juniper during the holiday season, and the resulting coal was then used for remedies and magic rituals. This is why we from L’Erbolario have chosen to encompass this sense of protection into a line designed to “protect” every man’s well-being and vitality.

An Italian typical plant, the Juniper is an undis-puted protagonist of our history and tradition. Not only, as already mentioned, for charmful rituals, but also for its renowned properties, well-known even to the ancient Egyptians. Over time, mankind has been able to really take advantage of any part of this prodigious, invaluable plant. Juniper wood, for example, is used for carving tools and utensils as well as smoking certain foods, as it is very fragrant. Its purplish coloured berries are known for their sour and very aromatic taste, and for this reason they are often used in cooking to flavour dishes, herbal teas, distilled spirits and alcoholic beverages. Not only: for centuries we have resorted to berries for their diuretic properties as well as toning and astringent virtues.

By precisely drawing inspiration from the qual-ities of these berries, L’Erbolario’s phytocosmetic research has formulated the Black Juniper line including cosmetics for vital, dynamic men who, albeit over-committed and overwhelmed, want to find the time and energy to take care of themselves .

From Juniper berries we obtained distilled wa-ter and a most valuable extract which, combined with Sesame and black Cumin extracts, enrich these products making it possible to recover vital force thanks to their selected active ingredients and brave, masculine fragrance.

A line that will take care of every man’s skin and “pamper” it with its beneficial properties. Not surprisingly, Juniper berries are precisely called… cuddles.