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Exaltolide®

Q: Is Exaltolide® natural or synthetic?

. Extraction: Synthetic macrocyclic lactone. 15-pentadecanolide (CAS 106-02-5). Produced via cyclization of 15-hydroxypentadecanoic acid. Various proprietary synthesis routes exist..

MUSK, AMBER, ANIMALIC SMELLS / powdery · musky · fruity

Exaltolide®

Category	MUSK, AMBER, ANIMALIC SMELLS
Subcategory	powdery · musky · fruity
Origin
Volatility	Base Note
Botanical	N/A — synthetic macrocyclic lactone (a Swiss fragrance house)
Appearance	White to off-white crystalline powder or liquid
Odor Strength	High
Producing Countries	Europe (Switzerland — a Swiss fragrance house)
Pyramid	Base

Clean, musky, faintly sweet. Exaltolide is a macrocyclic musk — the 'clean laundry' molecule. Transparent, skin-like, nearly invisible.

Scent
The Full Story
Fun Fact
Extraction & Chemistry
In Perfumery

Scent

Clean, sweet, transparent musk. Nearly invisible as a standalone scent — you sense warmth, cleanliness, skin-nearness rather than a specific smell. The 'fresh laundry' quality of modern musks distilled to its essence. Powdery-fatty undertone if you concentrate.

Evolution over time

Immediately

Clean musk, faintly sweet, transparent warmth

After a few hours

Skin-like persistence, warm, invisible

After a few days

Very long-lasting clean warmth — barely perceptible but present

The Full Story

Exaltolide (15-pentadecanolide) is a macrocyclic lactone musk, a important synthetic musk materials in contemporary use. Discovered by a Swiss fragrance house and introduced commercially, it provides a clean, sweet, skin-like musk character.

The molecule is a 15-membered ring lactone. Its scent is characteristic of the macrocyclic musk family: clean, slightly sweet, warm, with a subtle powdery-fatty undertone. Less aggressive than polycyclic musks (galaxolide), less animalic than nitro musks — Exaltolide is the definition of 'clean.'

In perfumery, it functions as a base-note fixative and skin-scent builder. It provides the invisible warmth that makes a fragrance feel like it belongs on skin rather than on a blotter. Used across all fragrance families, from fresh to Amber.

Macrocyclic musks like Exaltolide are considered the most 'noble' synthetic musks — closest to natural muscone in character, biodegradable, and with excellent safety profiles.

This note in Première Peau. Doppel Dänçers · Albâtre Sépia. Sample all seven extraits in the Discovery Set.

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Did You Know?

Did you know?

Macrocyclic musks were first discovered by Leopold Ruzicka in the 1920s, work that contributed to his 1939 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. The molecules are so large (15-17 carbon rings) that their synthesis was considered impossible until Ruzicka demonstrated it could be done.

Extraction & Chemistry

Extraction method: Synthetic macrocyclic lactone. 15-pentadecanolide (CAS 106-02-5). Produced via cyclization of 15-hydroxypentadecanoic acid. Various proprietary synthesis routes exist.

Molecular Formula	C15 H28 O2
CAS Number	106-02-5
Botanical Name	N/A — synthetic macrocyclic lactone (a Swiss fragrance house)
IFRA Status	No known restrictions
Synonyms	EXALTOLIDE
Physical Properties
Odor Strength	High
Lasting Power	400 hour(s) at 10.00 % in dipropylene glycol
Appearance	White to off-white crystalline powder or liquid
Boiling Point	137.00 °C. @ 2.00 mm Hg
Flash Point	> 220.00 °F. TCC ( > 104.44 °C. )
Melting Point	34.00 to 38.00 °C. @ 760.00 mm Hg

In Perfumery

Synthetic macrocyclic musk functioning as base-note fixative and skin-scent builder. Essential in virtually all modern fragrance families. Provides clean, transparent warmth and longevity. Biodegradable, good safety profile. Used at 2-15% in formulas. Related to muscone, habanolide, ambrettolide.