Musk is a major or minor ingredient in over half the most popular perfumes. Whether as a base to support other scents or acting as the prominent odor, musk has unique properties that are hard for most people to resist. It accentuates and boosts the endurance of perfume’s other properties whether they are floral, plant-based or wood. This makes it a very valuable asset to perfumers. Muscone, the oily liquid that is the active component of musk, actually has a very unpleasant smell of ammonia and fatty tissues but once it is diluted the scent becomes very pleasant.

But where is musk found and how is it harvested? Originally, it came from the musk deer, a creature distantly related to deer but weighing only 20-40 pound with no antlers and large tusks. In order to get the musk glands, the animal had to be killed and this resulted in their population dwindling so drastically that they are now protected by laws in the countries they live. Other sources of musk include the American beaver and other animals, the musk flower, wood and seeds. It can also be made synthetically; most of the musk used in this generation of perfume is synthetic as companies become increasingly interested in preserving wildlife.

But why has musk always been in such demand, even as far back as ancient Egypt? Simply put, musk is a sexual attractant and aphrodisiac! Secreted only by male vertebrates, it is a natural pheromone specifically meant to attract a mate. Because of this, musk is the most expensive ingredient used in perfumes and other products, costing up to $45,000 per kilogram!

Alfred Dunhill manufactures Desire Blue for men, using synthetic musk to support and bolster the elements of bergamot, orange flower water, amber and tonka bean. While orange flower water may seem an odd ingredient for a man’s cologne, it gives it a sparkle that adds a bit of mystery to the impression of strength. Azzaro makes a more serious creation in Onyx, combining apple, lemon, coriander and other spices, cedar wood and bergamot with musk for a defined statement of being in charge, decisive and adventurous.

When the process of synthesizing musk was discovered, it began to be used more liberally in perfume and other products in which scent was an important marketing concept. Today it is used in household products, bath soaps and shampoo as well as fine perfumes.

Tim Walt

Rarely does perfume come to mind when one thinks about leaves, but plant leaves have played an important role in perfumery since people began to enjoy wearing scents. While the flowers of most plants used in perfumes are essential so, too, are the leaves of those plants. Leaves normally hold more oil than flowers since they are the life-support of the blossoms. While petals and other parts of the flower are used for their aroma, leaves provide many of the oils used to mix perfumes to the correct scent and consistency.

In the middle ages, leaves were a very important source for the perfumers of the royal courts, for the flowers were often allowed to be harvested only at the pleasure of the ruling monarch. The flowers would grace the tables and halls of nobility until they wilted, rendering them useless for scents, while the leaves still retained much of the essential oils that perfumers needed to make their creations.

Leaves have continued to be used in perfumes, particularly the leaves of herbal plants. Basil leaves are not just for cooking, but is included in many perfumes including Dune by Christian Dior. Dune combines the leaves of basil, mandarin and sage with moss and cedarwood for a truly unique and delicious scent that definitely doesn’t smell like a kitchen!

The leaves of herbal plants are very aromatic due to the oil that the plant manufactures. They are very easy to cultivate and quite inexpensive, making them a favorite ingredient of many perfumers. Oil from the leaves is usually recovered by crushing or grinding, strained for impurities and decanted for later use. The process is very simple and had been done by hand for hundreds of years before the age of machines.

Many people are surprised when they learn how many varieties of leaves are used in the scents that they love. Coriander, for instance, isn’t just a prominent ingredient in your favorite salsa but when Moschino perfumers mix it with rose, gardenia, carnation and vanilla it becomes the popular perfume Moschino. If you think you aren’t familiar with coriander, that’s because it’s more commonly called cilantro.

Wormwood has also been used, particularly in France where the plant thrives. Its aromatic leaves have been used as a base for many years, imparting a fresh herbal scent and pleasing consistency to both liquid and solid perfumes. In the Middle East, jasmine and myrtle leaves as well as cinnamon leaves were and still are used in perfumes. Other leaves used in prominent perfumes on the market today include lavender, rosemary, sage, caraway and thyme.

Tim Walt