Rosy, linalool-drenched wood — sweet, airy, faintly peppery. Brazilian rosewood smells like a freshly planed plank in a warm workshop where someone has spilled rosewater.
Sweet, linalool-forward woodiness with a rosy floral top. Less dry than cedarwood, less resinous than sandalwood. A clean, airy, slightly peppery wood — like smelling a fresh rose through a layer of shaved pale timber. Softer and more complex than pure synthetic linalool.
Brazilian rosewood (Aniba rosaeodora, also known as pau-rosa or bois de rose) is a tropical hardwood from the Amazon basin whose essential oil is dominated by linalool — typically 80-97% of the volatile fraction. This makes it a linalool-rich natural materials in perfumery.
The wood has a particular rosy-floral, slightly spicy character that sits between true rose and Ho wood (Cinnamomum camphora ct. linalool), which has largely replaced it in commercial formulations. Brazilian rosewood oil is softer and more complex than synthetic linalool, with trace terpenes (alpha-terpineol, geraniol) that give it depth.
Aniba rosaeodora is native to the Brazilian Amazon, particularly the states of Amazonas and Pará. Decades of unregulated harvesting pushed the species toward extinction; it was listed under CITES Appendix II in 2010. Today, legal production comes from replanted groves, but volumes remain very small.
In perfumery, rosewood oil functions as a heart note with natural radiance. It bridges floral and woody accords, providing a sweet, clean, diffusive woodiness.
This note in Première Peau. Nuit Elastique · Albâtre Sépia. Sample all seven extraits in the Discovery Set.
Did You Know?
Did you know?
During the 20th century peak of rosewood oil production, an estimated 30,000 tonnes of rosewood trees were felled annually in the Amazon — each mature tree yielding only 10-15 kg of essential oil.
Extraction & Chemistry
Extraction method: Steam distillation of heartwood chips. Yield approximately 0.7-1.2% essential oil. The wood must be chipped and sometimes partially dried before distillation. CITES Appendix II since 2010 — legal sourcing requires certification from replanted groves in the Brazilian Amazon.
Brazilian rosewood is a heart note that bridges floral and woody families. Its high linalool content (80-97%) gives it natural radiance and excellent blending properties. Historically central to classic fougères and chypres as a floral-woody connector. Now largely replaced by Ho wood (Cinnamomum camphora ct. linalool) or synthetic linalool due to CITES restrictions. When available, it adds a complexity that pure linalool cannot replicate — the trace terpenes (alpha-terpineol, geraniol, cis-linalool oxide) create a richer, more layered wood-floral impression.
