Sandalwood perfumes

A wood that smells creamy

Sandalwood notes come from the heartwood of Santalum trees. Indian sandalwood, often called Mysore, and Australian sandalwood are the two sources perfumers name most. Both give a smooth, milky, lightly sweet wood; the Indian kind is usually described as rounder, the Australian as a little drier. Many modern bases rebuild the effect with synthetic molecules, which is why a pyramid may simply say sandalwood or cashmere wood.

Why it works as a foundation

Sandalwood leaves the skin slowly, so perfumers use it as a floor for everything above. It is also a bridge: it softens spice and incense, carries rose and violet, and keeps sweet notes such as vanilla from turning sticky. Cedar gives it a drier frame, musks give it a skin effect and amber adds warmth.

Ways the houses here use it

• Le Labo Santal 33 has no pyramid: Le Labo lists cardamom, iris, violet, Australian sandalwood and cedarwood.
• Les Eaux Primordiales Santal Superfluide is filed by Les Eaux Primordiales as creamy, powdery sandalwood. Australian sandalwood meets saffron, cistus labdanum, ambroxan, cedar and musks in the base, below rose oxide and violet.
• Ex Nihilo Santal Calling from Ex Nihilo pairs sandalwood with vanilla and musk, after a milky accord and nutmeg and a heart of iris, rose and cashmeran.
• Argos Adonis Awakens uses Mysore sandalwood with cashmere wood and rose absolute in the base, under a heart of Bulgarian rose, sambac jasmine, vanilla, raspberry and chestnut. Argos calls it floral, woody and sweet.
• Fragrance Du Bois Santal Complet from Fragrance Du Bois opens on lemon and coconut and rests on musk, sandalwood, amber and vanilla; the house files it as gourmand woody.
• Sospiro Basso counts sandalwood among vetiver, celery seeds, pepper, galbanum, nutmeg, guaiac wood, oakmoss and cedar in a long base. Sospiro calls it woody.
• Maison Crivelli Papyrus Moléculaire lists sandalwood essential oil beside coriander, papyrus, black pepper, tonka bean absolute, tobacco absolute and a leather accord, again without tiers. Maison Crivelli files it as woody, powdery and spicy.

Reading the neighbours

The notes around sandalwood decide its mood. With milk, vanilla and musk it turns soft and comforting. With cedar, vetiver and pepper it becomes dry and structured. With rose and violet it takes on a powdery finish. When a pyramid names a source, such as Mysore or Australian, that is a clue to the house's idea. Sandalwood alone in the heart behaves differently from sandalwood buried in a long base.