Growing up in the Scottish Borders, one of our great treats was a day trip to Edinburgh. And every trip into town, without so much as a quibble, included a visit to Jenners Department Store* on Princes Street.

To a twelve-year-old, Jenners represented the very height of glamour, sophistication and refinement. It was a magical place, and one that seemed to be loved by everyone. Yet, amongst all the treasures that could be found there, there was one thing my mother was always guaranteed to leave with: a bottle of Wiberg’s Pine Essence.

I’m always surprised when people ask me about it. To me, it has simply always been there. It feels as though it has been part of British bathing culture for generations.

And perhaps it has.

There was a time when no grand country house or hunting lodge seemed complete without it. It would be bought in large two-litre bottles, ready to decant into elegant cut-glass bottles by the bath. Guests could then enjoy a long, luxurious soak after a day spent shooting, riding, walking or simply enjoying the great outdoors.

From Old Bond Street to the Bathroom

The story of Wiberg’s Pine Bath Essence begins in London in the late 19th century.

A small chiropody practice in Old Bond Street developed its own special recipe for a therapeutic foot soak. The name Wiberg has Swedish origins and, although history doesn’t tell us much about the man behind the name, I rather like to imagine that, as a boy, Mr Wiberg spent his childhood amongst pine and birch forests of his homeland.

Perhaps a wise grandparent told him about the remarkable qualities of pine needle oil. Maybe that childhood memory stayed with him and found its way into his famous recipe.

Whatever the inspiration, the foot soak became popular. Customers began asking if they could buy small bottles to take home, enjoying the distinctive scent and the soothing sensation it brought to tired feet.

Before long, it had made the leap from the chiropodist’s treatment room to the bathroom.

By the 1930s, Wiberg’s Pine Bath Essence was appearing on shop shelves. Its popularity may have waxed and waned over the decades, as fashions inevitably do, but somehow it survived. And with each passing generation, another group of bathers discovered this wonderfully old-fashioned concoction of pine needle oil, capsicum and other essential oils.

Never Judge a Bottle by Its Colour

There is an old saying about never judging a book by its cover.

With Wiberg’s, I would say: never judge a bottle by its colour.

The green is, rather alarming, and if you’ve never encountered it before, you could be forgiven for wondering what on earth you are about to pour into your bath.

But don’t be put off. before you ask, no it does not stain the bath.

Once you unscrew the lid and take that first breath, something quite magical happens.

Suddenly, you are transported.

Imagine a pine forest, the air scented with resin and fresh needles. Dappled sunlight gently rests on the forest floor. Everything is quiet. The world seems very far away.

That is the magic of Wiberg’s.

A capful or two is all you need. Personally, I find one capful is quite enough — unless I’m feeling particularly coldy, when I may indulge in a little more.

Pour it into a warm bath, climb in and let the stresses of the day dissolve around you.

For a little while, you can leave the big, bad wolf of the modern world outside the bathroom door.

Instead, you are enveloped in warmth, relaxation and that unmistakable scent of pine.

A New Chapter: Lavender

And now Wiberg has introduced something new: Lavender Bath Essence.

It feels like an interesting new chapter for a product whose roots stretch back more than a century. Pine may always have my heart — perhaps because of those childhood trips to Edinburgh and the familiar bottle brought home from Jenners — but lavender brings its own kind of calm.

There is something rather lovely about a product being passed from one generation to the next. In a world where fashions change almost overnight and so many things are designed to be disposable, Wiberg’s Pine Bath Essence has quietly endured.

For me, it is more than just something to add to a bath.

It is a memory.

It is Edinburgh, Jenners, a twelve-year-old discovering a little bottle of luxury, and the comforting scent of pine that somehow makes an ordinary bath feel rather special.

And perhaps that is the real secret of Wiberg’s: sometimes the simplest pleasures are the ones that stay with us the longest.

*Jenners Department Store on Princes Street was the much-loved Edinburgh department store that became such an institution for generations of shoppers.