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Black Currant Blossom

Q: Is Black Currant Blossom natural or synthetic?

. Extraction: No commercial extraction exists for the blossom. Blackcurrant bud absolute (from dormant buds) is the closest available natural material, produced primarily in Burgundy, France..

FLOWERS / floral · fruity · fresh

Category	FLOWERS
Subcategory	floral · fruity · fresh
Origin
Volatility	Heart Note
Botanical	Ribes nigrum
Appearance	Dark green to brownish viscous liquid
Odor Strength	Medium
Producing Countries	Europe, North America
Pyramid	Heart

Green-fruity, catty, sulfurous. The blossom shares the leaf's particular blackcurrant 'funk' but lighter, with a floral sweetness struggling against the sulfur.

Scent
The Full Story
Fun Fact
Extraction & Chemistry
In Perfumery

Scent

Green-fruity with a restrained sulfurous-catty edge. Less aggressive than blackcurrant bud absolute, more floral, with a delicate sweetness. The characteristic blackcurrant 'funk' is present but veiled — like the fruit note heard through a floral filter.

Evolution over time

Immediately

Green-fruity, restrained catty-sulfur, faint floral

After a few hours

Fruity sweetness emerges, sulfur recedes, soft green

After a few days

Clean fruity-green trace, faint musty-catty memory

The Full Story

Black currant blossom (Ribes nigrum) is a fantasy note in perfumery — no commercial extraction of the flowers exists. The concept draws on the plant's well-known aromatic personality: the particular 'catty,' sulfurous, green-fruity character that defines both blackcurrant bud and leaf.

The reconstructed blossom accord aims to soften this sulfurous edge with floral sweetness — a lighter, more delicate version of the blackcurrant bud absolute that is already commercially available. Think of the bud absolute but veiled in a thin floral gauze: the catty note remains but is muted.

Key molecules in the blackcurrant scent family include 4-methoxy-2-methyl-2-butanethiol (the primary 'catty' compound), along with green-fruity esters and terpenoids. The blossom concept dials back the thiol and amplifies floral-fruity esters.

Blackcurrant bud absolute (from Ribes nigrum buds, produced in Burgundy) is the established perfumery material in this family. The blossom note extends the concept into lighter, more floral territory.

This note in Première Peau. Nuit Elastique · Rose Monotone. Sample all seven extraits in the Discovery Set.

Did You Know?

Did you know?

The particular 'cat pee' smell of blackcurrant comes from 4-methoxy-2-methyl-2-butanethiol, a sulfur compound detectable by the human nose at concentrations as low as 1 part per billion — one of the lowest odor thresholds of any natural plant compound.

Extraction & Chemistry

Extraction method: No commercial extraction exists for the blossom. Blackcurrant bud absolute (from dormant buds) is the closest available natural material, produced primarily in Burgundy, France.

Molecular Formula	N/A — complex absolute (key: 4-methoxy-2-methyl-2-butanethiol, cat ketone)
CAS Number	68606-81-5 (Ribes nigrum bud absolute)
Botanical Name	Ribes nigrum
IFRA Status	No known restrictions
Synonyms	RIBES NIGRUM FLOWER · BLACKCURRANT FLOWER
Physical Properties
Odor Strength	Medium
Appearance	Dark green to brownish viscous liquid

In Perfumery

Fantasy floral concept extending the blackcurrant family into lighter territory. No natural extraction exists for the blossom specifically. Built from attenuated catty-sulfur compounds, green-fruity esters, and light floral elements. Functions in fruity-floral and chypre compositions where blackcurrant character is desired without the full intensity of bud absolute.