Top, Heart and Base Notes in Perfumery

Have you ever wondered why, after smelling a perfume, that so-enticing bergamot note let you down after a few minutes? How is it that, over the hours, a fragrance can take such an olfactory turn? This is linked to the way the different notes of a composition coexist within what is called the olfactory pyramid—a pyramid into whose heart Master Parfums takes you today.

The Olfactory Pyramid: The Key to a Balanced Perfume

We owe the concept of the olfactory pyramid to Jean Carles, a renowned perfumer, a great teacher, and founder of the Roure perfumery school, which became Givaudan, the world leader in the manufacture of fragrances and aromas. This pyramid is a way of breaking down a perfume by distributing its ingredients into three different levels according to their persistence over time and their intensity: the top notes at the summit, the heart notes at its centre and the base notes at its base.

The olfactory pyramid corresponds, in fact, to the order in which the notes of a composition are revealed. A fragrance can bring together hundreds of ingredients! Fortunately for us, each raw material has its own rate of evaporation.

The lighter the molecules of a raw material, the more fleeting its scent will be—which does not, however, mean that it is discreet (e.g. citruses are very lively and bursting but, in return, very fleeting). Conversely, materials with heavier molecules will be present from the very moment you smell the perfume and will settle in durably, for several hours, or even several days. They will, moreover, help to ensure the longevity of the fragrance on the skin. One could use the allegory of the feather and the stone: the feather, very light, will fly off at the slightest gust of wind, while the heavier stone will stay anchored.

Let’s take a closer look at the different levels of the olfactory pyramid.

Top Notes: First Impressions

After spraying a perfume, the top notes are the first to come and tickle our nostrils. In referring to them, we often speak of the “opening” of the fragrance. The more a composition gives pride of place to its top notes, the fresher and livelier the fragrance will be… but also the more fleeting. It is thanks to these top notes that we will be drawn to the perfume.

The following facets are generally favoured as top notes:

• The hesperidic facet: neroli, bergamot, lemon, mandarin… Citruses jostle for an energising introduction: sparkling, joyful, tangy, refreshing;
• The aromatic facet, with notes such as rosemary, lavender, basil or anise: clean, energising, toning. This facet is often favoured in men’s perfumes, because these notes were used in the composition of aftershaves for their antiseptic and soothing properties.
• The aquatic facet (also called marine or iodised): here we find synthetic molecules such as calone and helional, but also natural notes derived, for example, from certain algae: invigorating, tonic, “salty,” sometimes even relaxing (fresh water);
• The clean facet, offering airy notes evoking pure air and freshly washed laundry (dihydromyrcenol, aldehydes…);
• The green facet, with, for example, the verdant character of blackcurrant bud or violet leaf: natural, vegetal, springlike;
• The cold spicy facet and the zing of ginger, cardamom or juniper berry: lively, exotic, biting.

If the top notes are intense, they take their leave after 15 to 30 minutes. No sooner arrived than eclipsed! Hence the importance of giving a fragrance time to express itself… which it does with the heart notes.

Heart Notes: The Main Theme

With the heart notes, the perfume tells us who it really is. It is these notes that define the sillage of a fragrance… so it is on them that the olfactory identity of a composition rests.

When recalling a perfume that made an impression on us, it is often its heart and base notes that come to mind.

Generally present in the heart notes…

• The cold spicy facet, halfway between the top notes and the heart notes, with the zing of ginger, cardamom or juniper berry: lively, exotic, biting;
• The spicy facet, this time showcasing warm spices such as pepper, saffron or nutmeg and cinnamon: warm, pungent, enveloping;
• The floral facet offers a bouquet of options: tender and romantic (rose, peony, neroli), springlike and innocent (lily of the valley, hyacinth, violet), heady and beguiling (white flowers such as jasmine, tuberose, orange blossom, narcissus…), spicy and exuberant (lily, carnation), solar and luminous (ylang-ylang, tiaré, frangipani…). It is very common to place floral notes at the centre of fragrances intended for a female audience; even though flowers such as rose or jasmine are, in the Middle East, much prized by the male audience.
• The fruity facet: colourful and gourmand, its notes can evoke distant lands or not… A whole host of fruits can bring the heart notes to life: orchard fruits (apple, pear, peach, fig, plum, quince…), tropical fruits (passion fruit, mango, pineapple, coconut…), water fruits (watermelon, melon…). One can also find a few flowers with fruity aromas, such as osmanthus, a small flower from China with apricot accents.
• The woody facet, on the border between the heart notes and the base notes, depending on the type of raw material. Here again, we distinguish different typicities: so-called “dry” woods (cedar, vetiver, pine), so-called “warm” woods (sandalwood, Cashmeran®…), smoky/leathery woods (guaiac, Lebanon cedar, oud…), powdery wood notes (iris, which by its olfactory richness can also be found in the floral or powdery facets), and undergrowth notes (patchouli, oakmoss…).

We can often already discern the contours of the heart notes a few minutes after spraying a perfume, but it is only after the top notes have flown off that we will fully appreciate them, and this for 3 to 6 hours, progressively rolling out the red carpet for the base notes.

Base Notes: An Olfactory Anchor

The base notes, the last to reveal themselves fully, form the base of the perfume, a foundation that will support all the fine company that came before them. Indeed, their role is not only to prolong the olfactory pleasure; it is also to reinforce the preceding notes. In short, the base notes are the guarantors of a fragrance’s depth. They can persist for days on the skin, the hair or the clothes… or even weeks! They are the soul of the perfume…

The facets that usually lend themselves to the game of base notes are…

• The mystical facet with its balsamic (resinous) notes of incense, myrrh or benzoin;
• The ambery facet and its warm notes of patchouli, amber, labdanum…
• The gourmand, sweet facet with, of course, the timeless vanilla, but also tonka bean, caramel, honey, and almond…
• The animalic facet: musk, civet, castoreum, as well as notes with leathery accents (birch, saffron…) or oud, are present here; note that most animalic notes today are, for the most part (those requiring the animal to be killed), synthetic reproductions.
• The powdery facet: make way for iris, violet, sometimes mimosa, padded with white musks.

In the same way that top notes in abundance confer lightness on a fragrance, when the base notes are dominant, the perfume will be all the more opulent.

The Olfactory Pyramid and You

As you will have understood, the olfactory pyramid makes it possible to ensure the balance of a fragrance by mastering its evolution over time. The best way to discover a perfume is to let it reveal itself on your skin: you will only better appreciate the story that the perfumer wanted to write.

Feel the urge to create your own olfactory pyramid? It’s possible with the Master Parfums game. It will allow you not only to learn all about the process of composing a perfume, but also to sketch out your own creation yourself thanks to its scented pencils. The ideal game for better understanding how this symphony of notes works!

Collaborative article written by Hélène Sanchez & Anne-Laure Hennequin