Olfactory Groups in Natural Botanical Perfumery
The Olfactory Groups give an overview of scent. It gets a bit complicated since different perfumers use different systems. These groups include Fresh (Citrus, Water, Green, and Fruity), Floral, Oriental, Chypre, Woody, Aromatic, Fougere, Leather, and Animalic (aka Musk). (Ambrette Seed from the Animalic category is shown above.) Another way of arranging scent is via The Fragrance Wheel. It was developed in 1983 by Michael Edwards. Edwards said the idea was to show the relationships between individual fragrance families. Edward's Fragrance Wheel includes four main categories: Floral, Oriental, Woody, and Fresh. It then divides into several subsets. By creating spokes of families, you can see close relationships from one family to another and how they relate. The fragrance wheel has been shown to be highly consistent with studies on odor descriptors and profile representations. Biophysicist and perfume critic Luca Turin also referred to Edward’s categorization as the the Linnaeus of perfume. Reading Turin’s book, The Secret of Scent, you will also get a glimpse into the landscape of scent. Most of Edward's categories fall easily within the Olfactory Groups.
Aftelier Perfumes makes an excellent Natural Perfume Wheel. It divides the groups into: Floral, Marine, Animalic, Herbal, Citrus, Fruity, Gourmand, Balsamic, Woody, and Spicy. It covers a lot of natural perfume oils that will not be covered in another wheel that focuses on synthetics, and it is useful for a quick essential oil, absolute, and CO2 reference.
Much of the structuring information below is a combination of Fragrantica, Edward's Perfume Wheel, Turin, and various texts and books. Edward's Fragrance Wheel is italicized for easy distinction. If the structure seems confusing, that is because it is. I will give you a super brief overview of Turin’s landscape of scent to give you an idea of how scents are linked chemically. Think of them as cousins, overlapping, with slight changes in chemistry creating a new chemical makeup: Cresols and Phenolics (Birch, Leather, Smoke) -> Vanilla and Phenolics -> Vanilla -> Aldehydes -> Rose -> Flowers -> Rose to Fruits -> Coumarin and Lactones -> Musk -> Wood and Amber.
Lastly, please bear in mind, this isn’t an end-all-be-all guide. I am trying to provide some clarity on the buzzwords often used in perfume and some idea of why things fall where they do in terms of descriptions.
The Fresh group encompasses the Citrus, Water, and Green notes. It also partially covers the Fruity category which is one-half Fresh and one-half Floral. The Fresh category includes varied fragrances that are Masculine, Feminine, and Unisex.
1. Citrus is a ancient Main Olfactory Group for perfume that includes rinds from citrus fruits and the leaves from citrus plants. It is an excellent top note and ends up used for many fragrance blends. The Citrus category gives an overall feeling of being zesty, fresh, and clean.
List of Natural Citrus Oils:
Orange: Blood Orange, Sweet Orange, Bitter Orange, Mandarin, Tangerine, and Petitgrain.
Lemon: Lemonbalm, Litsea Cubeba, Lemon, Lemon Verbena, and Lemongrass.
Other: Lime, Bergamot, Grapefruit, and Yuzu.
Citrus Aromatic includes Citrus combined with aromatic herbs such as Mint, Lavender, and Rosemary.
Citrus Gourmand includes Citrus, Vanilla, and sweet flowers and scents. You can use additions of Sugar, Cognac, Almond, Beeswax, Tonka Bean, Butter, Massoia Bark, Black Tea, Green Tea, Rooibas, Black Currant, Sea Buckthorn, Chocolate, and/or Coffee.
Citrus is incredibly versatile and will combine with all Olfactory Groups.
2. Water is a group that is utilized by other Olfactory Groups. Water itself is generally not used as one note, though Lotus could be used as a single scent. It is blended with various other oils for different effects.
List of Natural Water Oils:
One trick to note here is that many natural ocean scents are actually a blend flowers and herbs. One recipe suggests Sea Buckthorn, Ylang Ylang, and Bergamot with Seaweed and Lotus. Another suggests Cedarwood, Frankincense, Orange, and Rosemary. Yet another recipe suggests using flowers like Geranium, Ylang Ylang, and Rose with Cedarwood. One less obvious choice is to use the Animalic substance of Roasted Seashell.
See also common compositions: Floral Aquatic, Woody Aquatic, and Aromatic Fougere Aquatic.
3. Green is a grouping of plants that is utilized by Olfactory Groups. Green is generally not used as a single scent, though it could be. It has the intoxicating aroma of cut grass or fresh herbs.
List of Natural Green Oils:
Anisic: Fennel, Anise, Star Anise, Basil, and Tarragon.
Camphorous: Eucalyptus, Thyme, Myrtle, Niaouli, and Rosalina.
Tea-like: Clary Sage, Rosemary, Green Tea, Blue Yarrow, Sage, White Sage, and you could also possibly include the flower Chamomile.
Sharp Green: Blue Tansy, Perilla, Galbanum, Galangal, Tea Tree, and Palmarosa.
Minty: Peppermint, Spearmint, and Wintergreen (toxic).
See also common compositions: Green Floral and Aromatic compositions.
4. Fruity is a category that is utilized by other Olfactory Groups. In natural botanical perfumery, non-citrus fruits are hard to find and the fruits list is limited. The water content in natural fruit flesh makes it unable to be used. The Floral Fruity is a group of distinct flowers that can have a fruity undertone, it may range from slight to strong, depending on the crop. So, Fruits fall onto the Fresh part of the wheel, while Floral Fruity falls into Floral.
List of Natural Fruit Oils:
Fruits: Coconut, Rooibos, Black Currant, and Sea Buckthorn.
Floral Fruity: Blue Chamomile (apple), Roman Chamomile (apple), Tagetes (citrus), and Champaca (peach/apricot), Boronia, and Osmanthus (peach/apricot). Note that these flowers just have a hint of the fruit scent within the flowers themselves. Osmanthus is a unique floral with a heavy peachy, apricot scent.
See also common compositions: Floral Fruity, Citrus, Chypre Fruity, Oriental Gourmand, and Aromatic Fougere. Oriental scents can enhance Fruit scents, see also the Oriental category.
Floral is a main Olfactory Group encompassing many versions of compositions with a floral heart or middle note. These are intensely popular in women's fragrances and cover a large group of blends. The Floral category gives an overall feeling of being feminine, pretty, powdery, fresh, and classic. It can range from elegant florals like Rose to field flowers such as Calendula. Many fragrant flowers are not able to be distilled into a fragrant essential oil. For example, Sweet Pea oil does not exist in any sort of natural pure form. If you see Sweet Pea in a formula it is synthetic or a blend of various oils. This is a common trait among certain popular flowers such as orchid or lily. White flowers are sticky, sweet, heavy and typically exist in their own subcategory. This group is distinctly Feminine.
List of Natural Floral Oils:
Aldehyde (Powdery) Floral: Immortelle, Orris Root, Cassie, Rose, Mimosa, Lotus, Frangipani, Helichrysum, and Rose de Mai.
Green Floral: Hyssop, Chamomile, Violet Leaf, Linden Blossom, Lavender, Geranium, Rose Geranium, and Calendula.
Sharp Floral: Carnation, Tagetes, Marigold, Kewda, Osmanthus, Davana aka Artemisia, and Ginger Lily.
Sweet Floral: Tuberose, Ylang Ylang, Champaca, Gardenia, Jasmine, Neroli, and Orange Flower or Blossom.
Floral Fruity: Blue Chamomile (apple), Roman Chamomile (apple), Tagetes (citrus), and Champaca (dense peachy/apricot), Boronia, and Osmanthus (apricot). Note that these flowers just have a hint of the fruit scent within the flowers themselves. Osmanthus is a unique floral with a heavy peachy, apricot scent.
Floral Aldehydes or Soft Floral is a combination of Floral and Aldehydes. Aldehydic compositions are generally known as synthetic and are lab created. Chanel No. 5 is a famous example of synthetic aldehydic composition. Natural aldehydes are present in many substances, just in lower amounts. The actual scent of the aldehyde depends on chemical composition, but for Floral Aldehydes we are only interested in the powdery notes that you get from certain florals. According to the Fragrance Wheel it is called Soft Floral (Floral Notes). Main notes include aldehydes and powdery notes.
Floral Aquatic is a combination of Floral and Aquatic flowers and greens. It has a fresh feel. According to the Fragrance Wheel it is called Water (Fresh + Floral Notes). Main notes include marine and aquatic notes.
Floral Fruity is a combination of Floral and fruit. Synthetic Floral Fruity perfumes became popular in the 1990's. The water content in natural fruit flesh makes it unable to be used. Floral Fruity could include both berries, coconut, or flowers that smell like fruit. According to the Fragrance Wheel it is called Fruity (Fresh + Floral Notes). Main notes include berries and other non-citrus fruits. It should have a fresh, clean, playful, and youthful aroma.
Floral Fruity Gourmand is a combination of Floral Fruity and edibles. You will see additions of Sugar, Cognac, Almond, Beeswax, Tonka Bean, Butter, Massoia Bark, Black Tea, Green Tea, Rooibas, Black Currant, Sea Buckthorn, Chocolate, and/or Coffee. See above information for Floral Fruity.
Floral Spicy is a combination of Floral and spices. The florals are supported by a caress of spice such as Clove, Caraway, Ginger, Coriander, Tumeric, Celery Seed, Cumin, Fenugreek, Juniper Berry, Pink Pepper, Black Pepper, Ravensara, Pimento Berry, Cardamom, Nutmeg, Cinnamon, Fennel, Anise, Star Anise, and Nutmeg.
Floral Green or Floral is a combination of Floral and the green notes of grass and leaves. It adds freshness and tartness that leaves an impression of freshly picked or freshly cut flowers. According to the Fragrance Wheel it is called Floral (Floral + Fresh Notes).
Floral Woody is a combination of Floral enhanced with woody and or musky accords. It adds a sense of depth and warmth, as well as powdered nuance.
Floral Oriental contains sweet, warm, powdery bases that harmonize with flowers like gardenia, tuberose, or carnation. It is also part of the Oriental category and can be called Floriental. According to the Fragrance Wheel it is called Floral Oriental (Floral + Oriental Notes). Main notes include orange blossom and sweet spices.
A point of note: there is one class of Aromatic Green that borders floral, but it considered in the Aromatic category. It is the only Aromatic that is distinctly feminine. According to the Fragrance Wheel it is called Green (Fresh + Floral Notes). Main notes include galbanum and green notes, grass, leaves, etc. It should feel distinctly fresh.
Oriental is a main Olfactory Group that includes a bouquet of scents such as musk, balsams, Amber, Vanilla, exotic resins, sweet woods, spices, and exotic flowers. Also, Citrus, Flowers, and Fruit categories can be enhanced by oriental scents. The Oriental category gives an overall feeling of being warm, spicy, sensual, exotic, and deep. Includes varied fragrances that are Masculine, Feminine, Unisex.
List of Natural Oriental Oils:
Sweet Woody: Blue Cypress, Cypress Leaf, Amyris, Sandalwood, Fir, Agarwood, and Cedarwood.
Balsams and Resins: Spikenard, Tolu Balsam, Benzoin, Peru Balsam, Opopanax, Palo Santo, Cistus, Labdanum, Amber, Myrrh, Frankincense, Styrax, and Elemi.
Gourmand: Almond, Cocoa, Vanilla, Tonka Bean, Black Tea, Massoia Bark, Coffee, Rooibas, and Coconut.
Musk: Plant oils include Ambrette Seed, Africa Stone, Black Currant Bud, and Angelica. Animal products include Hyrax, Goat Hair Tincture, Roasted Seashells, and Beeswax. For Cruelty-Free animal products, these must come from a reliable source.
Exotic Floral: Gardenia, Ylang Ylang, Champaca, Jasmine, Neroli, Orange Blossom, Tuberose, Carnation, Lotus, Frangipani, and Osmanthus.
Spices: Fennel, Anise, Star Anise, Basil, Tarragon, Clove, Caraway, Ginger, Coriander, Tumeric, Celery Seed, Cumin, Fenugreek, Juniper Berry, Pink Pepper, Black Pepper, Ravensara, Pimento Berry, Cardamom, Nutmeg, and Cinnamon.
Oriental Fougere. Oriental components combines with warm, woody, spicy notes with aromatics like Lavender and Rosemary, Coumarin, and Oakmoss. It is typically a Masculine scent.
Oriental Spicy or Oriental. Oriental components such as woods or resins are added with warming spices such as Cinnamon, Nutmeg and Cloves. It is common in male, female, and unisex fragrances. According to the Fragrance Wheel it is called Oriental (Oriental Notes). Main notes include oriental resins such as Frankincense and Vanilla.
Oriental Vanilla. Oriental notes such as wood, flowers, spices, and resins combine with sweet components such as Vanilla, Almond, and Chocolate. It is typically a popular female fragrance.
Oriental Gourmand combines Oriental compositions with Gourmand. You will see additions of Sugar, Cognac, Almond, Beeswax, Tonka Bean, Butter, Massoia Bark, Black Tea, Green Tea, Rooibas, Black Currant, Sea Buckthorn, Chocolate, and Coffee. Licorice also may tend toward a gourmand feel.
Oriental Woody or Woody Oriental. Oriental notes are combined with woody accords of Sandalwood, Cedar, or Vetiver. It is common in both male and female fragrances. According to the Fragrance Wheel it is called Woody Oriental (Oriental + Woody Notes). Main notes include Sandalwood and Patchouli.
Oriental Floral or Soft Oriental contains sweet, warm, powdery bases that harmonize with flowers like Gardenia, Tuberose or Carnation. It tends more towards the warm Oriental as the main identifying note. According to the Fragrance Wheel it is called Soft Oriental (Oriental + Floral Notes). Main notes include incense and Amber.
Oriental Amber. Oriental fragrances with dominant Amber could be considered a separate group. Dominant Amber is intensely rich, warm, and sensual. The Amber will feel like the central element and subsequent aromas are submissive.
Chypre is a typically Feminine perfume that is characterized by an accord composed of Citrus top-notes, Cistus Labdanum middle notes, and a mossy-animalic base derived from Oakmoss and musk (definition noted from Microsoft Encarta Dictionary). As a class, Chypre falls between the Oriental and Woody categories. It is flexible and can vary from Mossy Woods to Floral Oriental depending on notes. Chypre is pronounced “sheep-ruh”. It is French for Cyprus and famously associated with the perfume Coty Chypre created in 1917. However, it has roots that date back to ancient times and evolved over the years. Modern Chypre perfumes have various connotations such as floral, fruity, green, woody-aromatic, leathery, and animalic notes, but recognized by their warm, mossy-woody base which contrasts the citrus.
There is not a consensus on whether Chypre and Fougere are main Olfactory Groups or if they are considered subgroups.
List of Natural Chypre Oils:
Citrus: Bergamot is the most common and other Sweet Citrus.
Musk: Plant oils include Ambrette Seed, Africa Stone, Black Currant Bud, and Angelica. Animal products include Hyrax, Goat Hair Tincture, Roasted Seashells, and Beeswax. For Cruelty-Free animal products, these must come from a reliable source.
Sweet Floral: Rose and Jasmine are the most common additions.
Other Common Modifiers: Clary Sage, Patchouli, Vetiver, Sandalwood.
Chypre Floral is a combination of Chypre and floral components. Rose or Jasmine are the most popular notes.
Chypre Fruity is a combination of Chypre and fruit notes. In natural botanical perfumery, non-citrus fruits are hard to find. The water content in natural fruit flesh makes it unable to be used. The only usable fruits are Citrus fruit peels, Black Currant Buds, Coconut, Sea Buckthorn, and certain flowers that smell of fruit. See also, the Fruity Category.
Chypre Leather is a combination of Chypre and a Leathery scent such as Birch, Tobacco, or Smoke. It is Animalic and Sexy.
Chypre Green is a combination of Chypre and a Green scent such as Sage, Mint, or Rosemary.
Chypre Woody is a combination of Chypre and a Woody scent such as Sandalwood, Fir, or Cedarwood.
Chypre Citrus is a combination of Chypre and Citrus scents such as Bergamot, Orange, or Petitgrain.
Woody is an Olfactory Group that is composed of components made of wood, tree leaves, plants, roots, and resins that have a wood-like feel. It gives an overall feeling of being deep, woody, dry, smokey, and/or terpene. A perfume can consist of wood notes at the base of a composition or woody notes in the middle of a composition or both. These are often coupled with Aromatic and Citrus notes. It is an overall Masculine scent.
List of Natural Woody Oils:
Earthy Woody: Fir Needle, Patchouli, Vetiver, Carrot Seed, Calamus, Nargomotha, Oakmoss, Fir Balsam, Douglas Fir, Silver Fir, Juniper Leaf, Black Spruce, and Scotch Pine.
Agrestic Woody: Hay, Tobacco, and Lovage.
Floral Woody: Ho Wood, Guiacwood, Cabreuva, and Rosewood (Bois de Rose). Rosewood is currently an endangered species.
Sweet Woody: Blue Cypress, Cypress Leaf, Amyris, Sandalwood, Fir, Agarwood, and Cedarwood.
Woody Aquatic contains both Woody heart notes and a fresh, Aromatic accord and Aquatic top notes.
Woody Aromatic or Woods contains Woody and Aromatic notes as well as a base that opens with aromatic herbs. According to the Fragrance Wheel it is called Woods. Main notes include aromatic woods and Vetiver.
Woody Chypre contains both Woody scents and Oakmoss and Labdanum. Traditional for the Chypre group. The Woody notes are dominant and they have an opulent and intensive scent.
Woody Floral is dominantly Wood at the heart of the composition and opens with flowers and can have a musky base. It is more Masculine than Feminine, but some women wear it as well.
Woody Spicy or Mossy Woods is created with exotic Woods harmonizing the warm, bitter spices such as Cloves or Cinnamon. According to the Fragrance Wheel it is called Mossy Woods (Woody + Oriental Notes). Main notes include Oakmoss and Amber.
Woody Leather or Dry Woods (Woody + Leather Notes). Main notes include dry Woods and Leather.
Woody Citrus contains both Wood and Citrus notes. It should have a clean, fresh feeling. Main notes include Bergamot and other citrus oils.
Aromatic is a typically Masculine main Olfactory Group for perfume that is created from a combination of Sage, Rosemary, Lavender, and other aromatic plants which possess a very intensive grass-spicy scent. They are often combined with Citrus and Spicy notes. The Aromatic category gives an overall feeling of being clean, fresh, grassy, green, and herbaceous. It is located currently under the Woods category in Edward’s Wheel.
List of Natural Aromatic Oils:
Anisic: Fennel, Anise, Star Anise, Basil, and Tarragon.
Camphorous: Thyme, Eucalyptus, Myrtle, Niaouli, and Rosalina.
Minty: Peppermint, Spearmint, and Wintergreen (toxic).
Herbal: Chamomile, Clary Sage, Sage, Rosemary, Green Tea, and Blue Yarrow.
Sharp: Blue Tansy, Perillia, Galbanum, Galangal, Tea Tree, Palmarosa, and Lavender.
Aromatic Aquatic are compositions of the Aromatic group combined with fresh accords of the sea, such as Lotus or Seaweed.
Aromatic Fougere or Fougere Aromatic is a combination of Fougere that is also Aromatic. It contains additional notes of herbs, spice, and/or wood. According to the Fragrance Wheel it is called Aromatic Fougère (Fresh Notes). This universal fragrance family includes elements from different families: the freshness from the Citrus family, floral notes of Lavender, the spicy-sweetness of a Floral Oriental, the ambery depth of an Oriental and the Mossy Woods warmth of Sandalwood and Oakmoss.
Aromatic Fruity is a subclass of Aromatic, a recent group that is composed of fragrances for men or unisex. It uses aromatic components combined with fruits. It often gives a fresh and exotic impression.
Aromatic Spicy is a subclass of Aromatic that also includes spices and aromatic components. It feels fresh and cold.
There is one class of Aromatic Green that borders floral. It is the only Aromatic that is distinctly feminine. According to the Fragrance Wheel it is called Green (Fresh + Floral Notes). Main notes include galbanum and green notes, grass, leaves, etc. It might include more field type flowers, grassier, and fresh. It should feel distinctly fresh.
Fougere is a perfume that derives from the French word for fern. It is pronounced “foozh-air”. The origin of the group is from Fougere Royale House of Houbigant in the 1880s. Included are sweet top notes, Lavender flowers, Oakmoss, and Courmarin. Coumarin can be found at the center of the composition and is vital in Fougere; it has a fresh cut grass or hay scent. This scent should have a mossy green, forest-like aroma.
According to Edward’s Fragrance Wheel, Fougere was at the center of the perfume wheel for a long time. In 2010, he revised it renaming it Aromatic and moving it under the Woods category. Fragrantica lists Fougere as a subclass of Aromatic, Aromatic Fougere, and lists Aromatic as it’s own class. All that being said, Aromatic and Fougere do contain different ingredients, so I’m giving each a separate. There is not a consensus on whether Chypre and Fougere are main Olfactory Groups or if they are considered subgroups.
List of Natural Fougere Oils:
Sweet or Citrus Top Note: Blue Cypress, Bitter Almond, Peppermint, Spearmint, Lime, Bergamot, Grapefruit, Yuzu, Sweet Orange, Blood Orange, Mandarin, Tangerine, Anise, Fennel, and Ylang Ylang.
Coumarin: Tonka Bean, Tobacco, Lavender, and Cassia Cinnamon.
Other Common Modifiers: Geranium, Sandalwood, Citrus, Mosses, Vetiver, and Woody scents.
Fougere Oriental is a combination of the complexities of Fougere and Oriental aromas. One interesting combination is using Vanilla and the powdery elements that is included in the feminine scent range.
Fougere Aquatic is a combination of the complexities of Fougere and Aquatic grasses and flowers, such as Lotus and Seaweed.
Aromatic Fougere or Fougere Aromatic is a combination of Fougere that is also Aromatic. It contains additional notes of herbs, spice, and/or wood. According to the Fragrance Wheel it is called Aromatic Fougère (Fresh Notes). This universal fragrance family includes elements from different families: the freshness from the Citrus family, floral notes of Lavender, the spicy-sweetness of a Floral Oriental, the ambery depth of an Oriental and the Mossy Woods warmth of Sandalwood and Oakmoss.
Leather scents are a main Olfactory Group of aromas that vary greatly from floral to tart. Smokey scents are seen often, scents such as Birch, Tobacco, Cade, and smoke. It was common to scent leather products in order to mask the unpleasant scent of leather itself, since unpleasant components were used in it's production. The Leather category gives an overall feeling of being deep, dry, animalic, and/or smokey. Soft notes may be used to counteract the strong notes in leather.
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Animalic (aka Musk) scents are a category of aroma that gives a distinct animal feel to a perfume. Scents in botanical perfumery mimic the animal-derived ingredients such as Ambergris, Civet, Castoreum, Hyraceum, and Musk. They are meant to be used in small amounts to give a pheromone, aphrodisiac effect. In terms of plant substitutes, Ambrette Seed, Black Currant Bud, and Angelica are musky or animalic in nature. Also, in the case of animal products that do not directly harm the animals you can include Hyrax, Goat Hair Tincture, Roasted Seashells, and Beeswax.
