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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.

This note in Première Peau. Nuit Elastique · Rose Monotone. Sample 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.