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Clove Leaf

Q: Is Clove Leaf natural or synthetic?

. Extraction: Steam distillation of Syzygium aromaticum leaves. The oil is a dark brown liquid with 82-88% eugenol. Yields are approximately 2-3% from dried leaves. Major production in Indonesia, Madagascar, and Tanzania. Significantly cheaper than clove bud oil, which yields only 15-20% from dried buds..

SPICES / spicy · warm · aromatic

Clove Leaf

Category	SPICES
Subcategory	spicy · warm · aromatic
Origin
Volatility	Heart Note
Botanical	Syzygium aromaticum
Appearance	Pale yellow to dark brown liquid
Odor Strength	Medium
Producing Countries	Comoros, Indonesia, Madagascar, Sri Lanka, Tanzania
Pyramid	Heart

Harsh, eugenol-heavy, less clean than clove bud. The leaves of Syzygium aromaticum — cheaper, rougher, and more phenolic than the bud oil used in fine perfumery.

Scent
Terroir & Origins
The Full Story
Fun Fact
Extraction & Chemistry
In Perfumery

Scent

Raw, phenolic, eugenol-dominated. Harsher and less complex than clove bud oil. The eugenol character is hot, medicinal, and dental-office-like at full strength. Lacks the sweet eugenyl acetate note that gives bud oil its warmth and sweetness. At dilution, a recognizable clove warmth emerges, but without the finesse of bud oil.

Evolution over time

Immediately

Harsh eugenol blast, phenolic and raw

After a few hours

Warm clove character, still rough

After a few days

Persistent eugenol-phenolic residue

Terroir & Chemotypes

Indicative 2025 wholesale prices.

The Full Story

Clove leaf oil (Syzygium aromaticum) is steam-distilled from the leaves of the clove tree, as distinct from clove bud oil (from the flower buds) and clove stem oil (from the twigs). Leaf oil has the highest eugenol content of the three — typically 82-88% — but is considered the least clean olfactorily.

Where clove bud oil has a warm, sweet, spicy complexity (from eugenol plus eugenyl acetate, beta-caryophyllene, and other minor components), clove leaf oil is more one-dimensional: a raw, aggressive eugenol blast with a harsh phenolic edge. It is significantly cheaper than bud oil and is the primary industrial source of eugenol.

In perfumery, clove leaf oil is used as a cost-effective eugenol source rather than for its own character. It appears in functional perfumery and as a starting material for vanillin synthesis (eugenol can be chemically converted to vanillin).

Explore all seven extraits in the Discovery Set.

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Related: Cloves · Mace · Nutmeg

Did You Know?

Did you know?

Eugenol from clove leaf oil was once the starting material for most of the world's synthetic vanillin. The process, developed in the late 19th century, involves converting eugenol to isoeugenol and then oxidizing it to vanillin. Today, most synthetic vanillin comes from guaiacol or lignin instead, but the clove-to-vanilla pathway remains chemically restrained.

Extraction & Chemistry

Extraction method: Steam distillation of Syzygium aromaticum leaves. The oil is a dark brown liquid with 82-88% eugenol. Yields are approximately 2-3% from dried leaves. Major production in Indonesia, Madagascar, and Tanzania. Significantly cheaper than clove bud oil, which yields only 15-20% from dried buds.

↑ See Terroir & Origins for origin-specific methods.

Molecular Formula	Complex mixture (no single formula)
CAS Number	8015-97-2
Botanical Name	Syzygium aromaticum
IFRA Status	Restricted (IFRA — high eugenol content, sensitization potential)
Synonyms	CLOVE OIL · CLOVE BUD OIL · CLOVE LEAF OIL
Physical Properties
Odor Strength	Medium
Appearance	Pale yellow to dark brown liquid
Flash Point	225.00 °F. TCC ( 107.22 °C. )
Specific Gravity	1.03800 to 1.06000 @ 25.00 °C.
Refractive Index	1.52800 to 1.53800 @ 20.00 °C.

In Perfumery

Clove leaf oil is primarily an industrial eugenol source rather than a fine-fragrance ingredient. It provides raw clove-phenolic character at lower cost than bud oil. Used in functional perfumery, dental products, and as a feedstock for vanillin production. In fine fragrance, clove bud oil or synthetic eugenol are preferred for their greater refinement. Compatible with other phenolic spices and warm bases.