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Amyl Salicylate

Q: Is Amyl Salicylate natural or synthetic?

. Extraction: Fully synthetic. Produced via Fischer esterification: salicylic acid reacted with amyl alcohol (pentanol) under acid catalysis (typically sulfuric acid), with water removed to drive the equilibrium. Commercial product is a mixture of isomers — 60-73% n-pentyl salicylate and 27-38% isoamyl (3-methylbutyl) salicylate. Assay: 95-100% sum of isomers. The reaction is straightforward and high-yielding, making amyl salicylate one of the least expensive salicylate esters available to perfumers..

POPULAR AND WEIRD / herbaceous · floral · green

Amyl Salicylate

Category	POPULAR AND WEIRD
Subcategory	herbaceous · floral · green
Origin
Volatility	Heart Note
Botanical	N/A — synthetic aroma chemical
Appearance	colorless to pale yellow clear liquid
Odor Strength	Medium
Producing Countries	China, India, Europe
Pyramid	Heart

Dry clover, sun-warmed hay, a hint of chamomile tea left to cool. The smell of a meadow at two in the afternoon — herbaceous, faintly sweet, neither sharp nor soft.

Scent
The Full Story
Fun Fact
Extraction & Chemistry
In Perfumery

Scent

Opens with a clean, herbaceous-green brightness — dried clover and azalea, without sharpness. Mid-development reveals a solar warmth: the quality of sunlight on cut hay, not sweet like vanilla but warm like heated stone. A faint chamomile-camomile quality threads through. Drydown is woody-earthy and gently sweet, with surprising tenacity. Less medicinal than methyl salicylate, less invisible than benzyl salicylate, more herbaceous than hexyl salicylate.

Evolution over time

Immediately

Clean herbaceous-green brightness, dried clover, azalea. Solar opening with gentle sweetness.

After a few hours

Warm, settled hay-like character. Chamomile facet emerges. Solar warmth deepens without heaviness.

After a few days

Woody-earthy, faintly sweet drydown. Tenacious — still perceptible after 100+ hours on blotter.

The Full Story

Amyl salicylate (CAS 2050-08-0, C₁₂H₁₆O₃, MW 208.25) is a synthetic salicylate ester produced by acid-catalysed esterification of salicylic acid with pentanol. Commercial grades are a mixture of isomers: 60–73% n-amyl (pentyl) salicylate and 27–38% isoamyl salicylate (CAS 87-20-7). The two isomers differ subtly — isoamyl leans more metallic-fruity, n-amyl more clover-herbaceous — but the blend delivers the material’s characteristic solar warmth.

The odour is herbaceous-floral: dried clover, sun-baked hay, azalea petals, a trace of chamomile, finishing with a faint chocolate-sweet earthiness in the drydown. Arctander described it as “sweet herbaceous-green, slightly floral” with “very tenacious, somewhat woody-earthy, sweet dryout notes.” Substantivity is notable — 124 hours at 100% on a blotter, according to TGSC data.

Amyl salicylate belongs to perfumery’s salicylate family: methyl salicylate (wintergreen, sharp, medicinal), benzyl salicylate (near-invisible fixative), hexyl salicylate (green-floral, orchid-adjacent). Amyl sits between benzyl’s discretion and methyl’s loudness. It occurs in trace amounts in osmanthus absolute, one of its few natural appearances.

It is classified Xn (harmful if swallowed) and N (toxic to aquatic organisms) under EU regulations. IFRA restricts it to a maximum of 2.98% in fine fragrance applications. Oral LD50 in rats: 2,000 mg/kg.

Explore all seven extraits in the Discovery Set.

Did You Know?

Did you know?

When Paul Parquet created Fougere Royale in 1882 for Houbigant, he used amyl salicylate alongside coumarin — making it one of the first synthetic aroma chemicals ever employed in a commercial fine fragrance. The perfume defined the entire fougere family, and amyl salicylate has remained a near-obligatory component of the genre for over 140 years.

Extraction & Chemistry

Extraction method: Fully synthetic. Produced via Fischer esterification: salicylic acid reacted with amyl alcohol (pentanol) under acid catalysis (typically sulfuric acid), with water removed to drive the equilibrium. Commercial product is a mixture of isomers — 60-73% n-pentyl salicylate and 27-38% isoamyl (3-methylbutyl) salicylate. Assay: 95-100% sum of isomers. The reaction is straightforward and high-yielding, making amyl salicylate one of the least expensive salicylate esters available to perfumers.

Molecular Formula	C₁₂H₁₆O₃
CAS Number	2050-08-0
Botanical Name	N/A — synthetic aroma chemical
IFRA Status	Restricted — max 2.98% in fine fragrance (Category 4). EU classified Xn N. IFRA 51st Amendment compliant.
Synonyms	salicylate amyl ester, amyl salicylate, amyl 2-hydroxybenzoate
Physical Properties
Odor Strength	Medium
Lasting Power	124 hours at 100.00%
Appearance	colorless to pale yellow clear liquid
Boiling Point	268.00 °C. @ 760.00 mm Hg
Flash Point	> 212.00 °F. TCC ( > 100.00 °C. )
Specific Gravity	1.05000 to 1.05600 @ 20.00 °C.
Refractive Index	1.50700 to 1.50900 @ 20.00 °C.

In Perfumery

Amyl salicylate functions as a heart-to-base modifier and blender, known for ability to add solar herbaceous warmth without imposing a distinct character. It is a workhorse of fougere compositions, where it partners with coumarin and lavender to create the green-herbaceous backbone. Equally important in clover, orchid, carnation, hyacinth, and azalea accords — it is the molecule perfumers historically associated with the smell of orchids, which produce no significant scent in nature. Its role in Fougere Royale (1882) — alongside coumarin, one of the first synthetics used in fine perfumery — established it as a foundational fougere material. It smooths transitions between citrus tops and mossy-ambery bases, adding a lived-in, outdoor quality. IFRA restricts amyl salicylate to 2.98% maximum in fine fragrance (Category 4). Within that budget, typical use levels run 2-8% in fragrance concentrate. It works with linalool, benzyl acetate, ionones, coumarin, and floral aldehydes. Not a signature note — it works by lifting and rounding what surrounds it.