Fragrance Note Glossary

deepen your understanding of scent with our fragrance note glossary. discover the origins, nuances, and profiles of the notes that describe fragrances. get ready to elevate your candle scent game and impress your friends (maybe?) with your newfound knowledge!

A B C D E F G H I J K L M

N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

B

BALSAM

Description:
sweet, rich, warm, balsamic, fresh, woody, resinous
Olfactive Profile:
From crushed fir needles, balsam sap has a resinous, fresh, fruity aroma reminiscent of spruce. It's slightly sweet with a grounding, woody character.
Facts:
The Balsam fir is one of the most fragrant conifer trees, making it the most popular Christmas tree variety.

BAMBOO 

Description:
sweet, clean, green, fresh, watery, subtle
Olfactive Profile:
A subtle, clean and green leafy scent. It is fresh and watery with a hint of citrus.
Facts:
The species of bamboo that we know today evolved from prehistoric grasses between thirty and forty million years ago, long after the extinction of the dinosaurs. It then became an important food source for herbivorous animals, eventually becoming a food source for modern humans as well.

BANANA

Description:
fruity, sweet, mellow
Olfactive Profile:
Banana has a deliciously fruity and sweet aroma. The creaminess brings a touch of softness and vanilla-like characteristics.
Facts:
Most people in the US are familiar with the Cavendish banana, which has only existed since 1836.

BASIL

Description:
aromatic, green, herbaceous, warm, fresh, sweet
Olfactive Profile:
Basil's scent is aromatic and refreshing, with slightly spicy and sweet tones. It's a combination of anise, green, and licorice notes.
Facts:
Basil has a long history of use dating back more than 5,000 years. In modern times, its essential oil is extracted from the leaves and used to flavor foods, dental and oral products, in fragrances, and in traditional rituals and medicines. Native to Iran or India, Basil requires a hot and sunny climate. Basil is an annual herbaceous plant.

BAYBERRY

Description:
fir, balsam, spicy, nutmeg, ginger, peppery, berry
Olfactive Profile:
Spicy, fresh, sharp, pungent, metallic note with a clove-like aspect.
Facts:
If you boil bayberries, they give off a waxy substance that can be turned into naturally scented candles. To colonial settlers in North America, who usually burned animal tallow candles, it was a treasure to burn precious bayberry tapers on Christmas Eve.

BENZOIN

Description:
vanilla, cinnamon, sweet, smooth
Olfactive Profile:
Benzoin has warm, balsamic, and vanilla facets. It is sweet and delicate, with a slightly cinnamic profile.
Facts:
Benzoin is mainly sourced from South-East Asia. This balsamic resin is extracted from the sap of the Styrax benzoin, a tree that grows wild in tropical forests. Locally viewed as having powerful healing properties, it is used to treat skin disorders and conditions.

BERGAMOT

Description:
citrus, floral, spicy, dry, aldehydic, fruity
Olfactive Profile:
With its citrus, green, floral, and solar notes, Bergamot is reminiscent of the warm Mediterranean sun. Aromatic floral tones enrich the energizing citrus freshness of bergamot and brings a sweet freshness to a fragrance.
Facts:
The fruit is a cross between the pear lemon and the Seville orange or grapefruit. While bergamot is a key ingredient in modern perfumery, growers still respect ancestral methods, and harvesting is done by hand. The name is derived from the city of Bergamo in Lombardy, Italy, where the oil was first sold.

BERRY

Description:
fresh, sweet, red fruits, berry, strawberry, raspberry, blueberry, blackberry, musky, powdery
Olfactive Profile:
A delicious combination of berries brings a gourmand effect and texture. It is sweet, fruity, and cheerful. The common fruits represented by berries are raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, red currants, blackcurrants, and strawberries.
Facts:
There are over 400 different species of berries in existence. That's a lot of berries!

Black Cardamom 

Description:
smoky, earthy, soft, spicy, bold, aromatic
Olfactive Profile:
Black cardamom is bold, earthy, and aromatic. It has a smokey and vaguely camphor-like flavor. This variety of aroma is typically used for more exotic blends.
Facts:
Native to the slopes of the Himalayas in Sikkim, India, and Nepal, black cardamom is one of the oldest and most widely used spices in the world, often referred to as the “Queen of Spices.”

BLACK CHERRY

Description:
fruity, red fruit, juicy, sweet
Olfactive Profile:
A rich, juicy, and plump black cherry. Black cherry explores the luscious sensuality of the fruit—a bold and irresistible temptation.
Facts:
Black cherry (Prunus Serotine), also known as wild black cherry, is found throughout most of the Eastern United States.  The inner bark was used to make a concoction to treat colds, headaches, bronchitis, chest pain, and common cough among some indigenous groups.

BLACK CURRANT

Description:
fruity, tart, red fruit, juicy, sweet, berry
Olfactive Profile:
Fruity and tart, the aroma of black currant is similar to juicy dark berries.
Facts:
Black currant's distinctive dark purple color is due to a type of flavonoid called anthocyanins, which has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.

Black PEPPER 

Description:
spicy, pungent, fresh, woody, dry
Olfactive Profile:
Black Pepper is fresh, woody, and dry. It brings fresh, delicate, and spicy notes to 'masculine' and floral fragrance compositions.
Facts:
Pepper was used widely throughout human history. Black peppercorns were found in the nostrils of Ramesses II, believed to be part of the mummification ritual after his death in 1213 BCE. After the fall of the Roman Empire, pepper was so valuable it was often used as collateral and currency.

BLACK TEA

Description:
dry, leafy, earthy, floral, sweet, smoky, spiced
Olfactive Profile:
Black tea has dry leafy and smoky notes. It brings freshness and long-lasting spicy notes to a fragrance and adds a woody dimension.
Facts:
China is known as the birthplace of black tea. Until the 17th century, the only teas consumed were green and oolong. It is believed that black tea was discovered when the Chinese started fermenting tea leaves to extend the storage life of tea.

BLACKberry

Description:
fruity, red fruit, musky
Olfactive Profile:
A velvety blend of red fruity notes and musky undertones. Raspberry and musk notes are perfectly balanced.
Facts:
Probably originating from the mountains of the Caucasus in Asia Minor, the blackberry was very likely part of the diet of early hunter-gatherers during the Neolithic era. Blackberries were discovered to be part of the last meal of the Haraldskær Woman, the preserved bog body of a Danish woman dating back 2,500 years ago.

BlUEBERRY 

Description:
fresh, fruity, sweet, berry, tangy, juicy
Olfactive Profile:
Wonderfully fruity, tangy, and sweet with the perfect combination of jam-like and forest nuances.
Facts:
Blueberries are one of the only foods in existence that are naturally blue in color. The pigment that gives blueberries their distinctive color is called anthocyanin.

BOURBON

Description:
vanilla, caramel, honey, sweet, citrus, rose, peppery, dark, amber, oak, rich
Olfactive Profile:
Bourbon is a combination of honeyed vanilla, caramel, and butterscotch. A sweet gourmand with nuanced dark fruits, citrus, and delicate floral aroma.
Facts:
Bourbon is a strictly American spirit that can only be produced in America. All bourbon is whiskey, but not all whiskey is bourbon. Bourbon must be aged in a charred white oak barrel.

BRANDY

Description:
gourmand, bitter, citrus, liquorous, zesty
Olfactive Profile:
A rich elixir of cognac. Brandy provides a sweet liquor infused with woody oak tones that intoxicates the senses.
Facts:
The brandy must be twice distilled in copper pot stills and aged at least two years in French oak barrels from Limousin or Tronçais. Cognac matures like whiskies and wine when aged in barrels, and most cognacs are aged considerably longer than the minimum legal requirement.

BROWN SUGAR

Description:
gourmand, sugary, buttery, balsamic
Olfactive Profile:
Brown Sugar is warm and balsamic, intensified by roasted tones reminiscent of maple syrup.
Facts:
Brown sugar is made from sugar cane or sugar beets. Cane stalks or beets are cut and squeezed for their juice, which is boiled until it thickens to molasses. Sugar crystals settle out of this mixture and are stripped of the molasses through centrifuging and drying. It is grown worldwide and peaked in popularity in the 1700s with the rise of sugar plantations in the Americas.

BUTTER

Description:
sweet, creamy, milky, fatty
Olfactive Profile:
Delicious, dairy, and creamy with a sweet, cultured, waxy, and milky undertone
Facts:
Who doesn't love butter? People have been making butter for at least 9,000 years. It was considered precious to ancient Norsemen, so much so that they were often buried with tubs of butter to accompany them in the afterlife.

BUTTERCREAM

Description:
butter, vanilla, creamy, sugary
Olfactive Profile:
Nostalgic and delicious, whipped buttercream icing with notes of vanilla and sugar
Facts:
Buttercream is a combination of butter and sugar most often used as frosting for cakes.

BUTTERSCOTCH

Description:
rich, warm, sweet, caramel
Olfactive Profile:
Sweet, rich, and delicious with notes of butter and caramel.
Facts:
Butterscotch is a candy made from brown sugar and butter. It differs from caramel in that it is made with brown sugar versus white sugar, lending the flavor of deep, rich molasses.