The Fragrance Circle

Located in the outer circle are theabove-mentioned fragrance fami-lies, at the center only one largegroup – that of the floral notes,which can be combined from thefamilies in the outer circle. To acertain extent, the Fragrance Circlecorresponds to the structure of aperfume. A perfume consists of atop note, a heart note and a basenote, and thus lives from the dif-ferent ways in which its fragrancecompounds evaporate. And bothevaporation as well as the olfac-tory effect it triggers are governedby the perfume’s chemical struc-ture – thus, related chemical struc-tures also have related olfactoryeffects. Consequently, adjacentfragrance families are related toone another in terms of both theirchemical structure and their olfac-tory characteristics. Nor were thecolors in which the fragrance fami-lies are depicted selected merelyby chance. Consumers were askedto associate colors to their olfac-tory impressions. The left side ofthe Fragrance Circle tends to con-

tain feminine colors – as well as feminine

fragrance families– while the

right sidetends tobe mas-culine.

There is no doubt that olfactionis fundamentally a subjectivesensory impression. “I likelavender because it reminds meof my grandmother’s dresserdrawers. No, I don’t like laven-der because it always remindsme of having to stay afterschool.” Is it possible to ob-jectively assess scents at all? Is there an olfactory languagethat rises above subjectiveperceptions and memories?

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Fragrance Families

Fragrance Families...Fragrance Families...Just as we learn to give names to colors as children, we can alsoassign names to the various olfac-tory impressions. This producesan olfactory language with anextensive vocabulary that can alsobe scientifically underpinned.

As described above, moleculeswith differing structures only fiton their intended receptors, thusevoking a wide variety of stimuli.Molecules with similar structurescan be combined into olfactoryfamilies, as shown in the FragranceCircle.

The fragrance families that are ofimportance in perfumery are

grouped within the circle,while highly specific

and unpleasant odorsare located outside

it. Smokey warnsagainst fire, souragainst spoiledfoods. As wenear the centerof the circle,the fragrancenotes becomemore complexand are appa-rently perceived

as being increa-singly harmonious.

Light Green

Floral notes

Heavy

Herba

ceou

s

Herbal-spicy

Hexylacetateimparts the fragranceimpression ofripe pears.

Coniferous

Gre

en

Woody

AmberAnim

al

Leather

Toba

cco

Oak

mos

s

Aromatic-

spicy

Balsamic

Sweet-aromatic

Fruity-dark

Fruity-lightAldehyde

Citrus

The FragranceCircle

So what are these families allabout?

Top notes

CitrusFresh, invigorating scents of citrus fruit, like lemon, orange,bergamot or grapefruit.

AldehydeOlfactory chain of the long-chainfatty aldehydes. This is a typical,fatty-sweaty, somewhat pungentand soapy olfactory note. Thespectrum ranges from almondy-fruity green nuances to ironedlaundry fragrances and metallicnuances right through to ozone,ocean-like and waxy scents. Someof the aldehyde fragrances are

related to the smell of humanskin and perspiration.AldehydeC10 offers citrus aspects, whileAldehyde C11 undecylene produces an animalic effect andAldehyde C12 Lauric a cool,almost ozone-like note.

Fruity-lightLively, light fruit fragrances, especially those from fruits withgreen and yellow peels. This groupincludes apple, pear, melon andpineapple scents, for example. As we have already seen, citrusfruits do not belong to this group.Fragrance examples include hexylacetate, which has a pear-likescent, or melon bases.

GreenThis group characterizes typicalbotanical fragrance notes, likethose of leaves, stalks or freshlymown grass, as well as cucum-bery-violet-like green. Vertocitralis reminiscent of leafy green, cis-hexenol of green grass, whilenonadienol tends to be remini-scent of violet and cucumber.

HerbaceaousFragrance notes from the plantkingdom that are closely relatedto green. More complex than theactual green scents, herbaceousfragrances are more aromatic,generally with camphorous,minty, eucalyptus-like or earthynuances. They are usually foundon low-growing, unobtrusivelyblossoming plants, i.e. herbs.Typical examples include rosemaryor sage, as well as peppermintand lavender, a fragrance that is both herbaceous and floral atonce.

Herbal-spicyThe typical fragrance notes ofsuch herbaceous kitchen herbs asthyme or mugwort. In addition toits herbaceous underlying scent,there is also a pronouncedly unique-spicy element, which produces anaromatic impression.

ConiferousThe fragrance note of whole orcrushed conifer needles or resins,which can also display citrusy,herbaceous or aromatic-spicy elements, in addition to its typi-cally earthy note. Moreover, these fragrances are more or lesspronouncedly resinous and green.Pine needle oil is coniferous withcitrus-like accents, while fir balsamtends to be aromatic-resinouswith sweet aspects.

“Green” smellslike freshlymown grass.

� Top note:

Serves as the first impression of a fragrance, is intended to arousecuriosity and vanishes quickly. The families positioned in the upperthird of the circle are employed incomposing the top note.

� Heart note (bouquet):

Forms the actual fragrance characterof the perfume and lasts for hours. It usually consists of floral notes thatcan be accentuated with the adjacentfamilies.

� Base note:

Serves as the foundation uponwhich the perfume is based, is inten-ded to pleasantly underscore thefading scent, and can last up to aday. It is composed from the fra-grance families positioned in thelower third of the circle.

“Citrus” – the fresh, invigoratingscent of citrusfruits.

Fragrance Families

Lilac is a floral note.

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Heart (bouquet) notes

Fruity-darkThis group includes the sweet,sultry fragrance notes that mainlyinfluence the heart and basenotes of perfume compositionsand have high substantivity.Examples include raspberry andpeach.

Floral notesFloral notes usually form theheart of a perfume. They, too,can be classified into light, green,floral and heavy. “Light” includestypical springtime flowers like lily of the valley (Muguet), lilac,freesia and light rose notes, oftenwith citrusy or fruity elements.“Green” includes violet, for ex-ample, as well as other blossomsin which a leafy note dominatesbut can often have herbaceous,earthy nuances. Narcotic floralfragrances that are more oftenfound in southern climates thanin more northerly regions are considered “heavy.” These include,first and foremost, jasmin, tube-rose, orange blossom and narcis-sus. In addition to the floral note,

this group often contains pro-nouncedly balsamic, spicy andanimalic notes. There are alsohybrid notes, like hyacinth, thattend to be floral-heavy, but alsohave clear green notes, as well as violet, which is very green butcan also be given a floral-woodyinterpretation.

Base notes

WoodyThis is a group of highly differingfragrances that are reminiscent of chipped wood. One of the differentiations that is made iscedar, which smells like a pencilwith a camphorous off-note. Sandalwood tends to smell sultry,warm and somewhat animalic.Vetiver has a pronouncedly earthyroot note. Patchouli also smellsearthy, but also sweet with fruitynuances.

AmberFragrance notes that are similarto natural amber. This olfactorynote is difficult to describe: Oily-woody with metallic elements,but also slightly nutty with a

Sandalwood – a representativeof the “Woody”fragrance category.

nuance of seawater. The scent ofamber is somewhat reminiscentof human hair. Natural amberconsists of pathological secretionsof the sperm whale. Since thiswhale population has unfortu-nately been decimated, true amberis a rarity today and very expen-sive. However there are imitationsthat come quite close to the na-tural note, such as amber Vites-sence, as well as amber notes of botanical origin, such as lab-danum. The Ambre 83 base has a very sweet amber note.

AnimalIn addition to amber, there arethree further notes of animal origin that are still employed inperfumery today – although theydisplay the typical note of excre-ment, they offer an incomparableerogenous rounding-off effect indiluted form and in compositions.

Musk was originally obtainedfrom the olfactory glands of themusk deer that is native to Asia.This tincture smells sweet andurine-like, as well as somewhatmedicinal. Genuine musk tinctureis priceless today and is very rarelyused. When speaking of musknotes today, what is generallymeant are aroma chemicals thatare largely reminiscent of thisnote, although they typically havea more powdery and significantlyless animalic scent. Civet absolueis obtained from the secretions ofthe olfactory glands of an Africancat, the civet. As these animals arecaptured to obtain the secretions,without causing them any harm,civet is still in very widespread use today as an animalic note. Itsscent is fecal-acidic with a slighthoney note.

LeatherThe fragrance notes of genuineleather and Russian leather. Thisterm is interpreted very broadly.The typical components of leathercompositions include birch tar oil, for example. Isobutyl chino-line often serves as an important leather element. The leather Vi-tessence offers a clearly leatherysmell.

OakmossThis fragrance class refers toextraction products of specificlichen – especially those that growon oak trees. The typical oakmossnote smells uniquely dry, algae-like, with a cheese-rind note anda tar-like, phenolic element, inaddition to green nuances. Lichenthat grow on other types of trees supply extraction products(tree moss) that smell woodierand more resinous.

Cinnamon is a typical representative of invigoratingaromatic Spicenotes.

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TobaccoFragrance notes that areinspired by all tobacco-like notes, ranging fromaromatically saucedpipe tobacco to cigartobacco rightthrough the smellof a stale ashtray.Tobacco absolueoffers a typicalscent.

Aromatic-spicyInvigorating aromatic spicenotes that can also containbitter and/or piquant ele-ments. Typical examples ofthese fragrances includecardamom, nutmeg,curry, clove and cinna-mon.

BalsamicHeavy, sweet, rich fragranceswith chocolate-vanilla-like, cinna-mon-like to resinous fragranceelements. These scents were al-ready popular “Oriental” notes inancient times, such as Peru balmor olibanum, i.e. frankincense.Nuances of this family can also be found in many orchid notes.The name is derived from theword “balsam,” which is used to denote certain kinds of resins.

Sweet-aromaticPronouncedly sweet fragrances that smell like honey, almond, marzipan, anise or woodruff, e.g. cou-marin, often with rich-fruity or spicy nuances.In Spite of the segmen-tation in the Fragrance Circle, it should be

remembered that the first im-pression of a perfume is producedby the interplay between all ofthe fragrance materials that areemployed in it – while leather, forexample, is a base note, it isresponsible producing the overallcharacter of the perfume, and isnot just present in the after-scent.

“Tobacco” in all of its facets is an interestingfragrance element.