As a seller of Yankee Candles on E-bay, one of the most frequently asked questions is, "is this a strong scent?" It certainly is a fair question. While some Yankee Candle scents are strong enough to perfume the whole house, others have a lighter scent that may not be as noticeable. Why is this?

THE CHEMISTRY OF SCENT

Believe it or not, some odors that may be awful at very high concentrations may actually be quite nice when used sparingly. When blending fragrances to create a scent, a fragrance chemist must take this into account.

Using too high a concentration of a certain chemical may make a candle smell very bitter, or not as natural, so the chemist will settle for a lighter scent to achieve a certain "flavor."

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THAT'S NOT ALL

Chemistry is not the only variable that affects scent. The strength of a scent may vary from one candle to the next. You may have two jars of Macintosh, and one smells stronger than the other.

Several factors come into play here. If the candle is cold, it may not smell as strong as the next candle. If you have just finished smelling a very strong candle, your scent receptors may become overloaded and be temporarily not as sensitive (this is why you see those jars of coffee beans to smell  in between sniffing scents), or the fragrance oil may not be uniformly mixed throughout the candle, making the middle smell stronger than the top, or vice-versa. In this case, tarts and votives will have a stronger, truer scent than jar candles.

SO WHICH CANDLE SMELLS THE STRONGEST?

Okay, so all you really wanted to know was which Yankee Candle will fill your whole house up with scent? Below is a list of the Yankee Candles, that, in my opionion, have a strong scent. Please note: there are a lot of Yankee Candles that I have NOT smelled, so if you would like me to add a candle to this list, or if you disagree with anything, please fee free to e-mail me.

YANKEE'S STRONGEST (IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER)

White Chocolate Mint, Chocolate Cappuccino, Roasted Coffee, Home Sweet Home,

Many of the fruits (Lemon Zest, Juicy Orange, Sweet Strawberry, Apricot Nectar, Macintosh, Juicy Cherry, Juicy Grapefruit)

Camellia, Lavender, Lilac Blossoms, Fresh Cut Roses

Midsummer's Night, Christmas Wreath, Mistletoe, Eucalyptus, Fresh Comfort, Festival of Lights, Sandalwood