Lesson 5 of 8 · 8 min

Materials & molecules

How ingredients are captured

Steam distillation

Steam carries the volatile oils out of the plant; once cooled, the oil separates from the water. That oil is the 'essential oil', and the scented water left behind is a hydrosol: rosewater is exactly that. Used for rose, lavender, vetiver and patchouli.

Expression (cold-press)

Citrus peels are simply pressed, with no heat, so the fresh, zesty smell stays intact. That is why bergamot, lemon and orange smell so true, and also why they fly off so fast.

Solvent extraction → absolute

Delicate flowers that heat would ruin (jasmine, tuberose) are washed with a solvent. That gives a waxy 'concrete', which is then washed with alcohol to give the 'absolute': richer and closer to the living flower than any distillation.

CO₂ extraction

Pressurised carbon dioxide pulls out the oils at low temperature and then simply evaporates, leaving no residue. A clean, modern method that gives very lifelike extracts of spices, ginger and pink pepper.

Enfleurage (historical)

Petals were laid on trays of cold fat for days, again and again, until the fat was saturated with scent. Slow and costly, it has almost disappeared, but it is how Grasse captured jasmine and tuberose for centuries.

Headspace capture

A glass dome traps the air around a living flower (or anything: sea air, a fig tree). The molecules are analysed and rebuilt in the lab. That is how perfumers 'smell' things that can't be extracted, like lily of the valley or lilac.

Molecules that shaped perfumery

Iso E SuperA soft, velvety cedar-woody molecule with an ambery glow. It adds radiance and volume; some people barely smell it on its own.Smell it in:

AmbroxanDry, warm, mineral and salty-woody: the lab version of the smell of ambergris. The engine behind many modern 'skin' scents and blue fragrances.Smell it in:

HedioneA luminous, airy jasmine-and-tea molecule. It barely smells on its own but makes everything around it glow and blend; Eau Sauvage (1966) was one of the first to use it.Smell it in:

CaloneA 'melon and sea breeze' molecule discovered in 1966. In the 1990s it became one of the signatures of the aquatic wave, from L'Eau d'Issey onwards.Smell it in:

Ethyl maltolPure cotton-candy, caramelised-sugar sweetness. Angel (1992) used it in a big dose and opened the door to gourmand perfumery.Smell it in:

AldehydesSparkling, soapy, waxy molecules with a 'champagne fizz'. Chanel N°5 (1921) used a daring overdose and made them famous.Smell it in:

Quick checkQuestion 1 of 3

How are rosewater and lavender oil usually obtained?