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Mace

Q: Is Mace natural or synthetic?

. Extraction: Steam distillation of dried mace (aril of Myristica fragrans). The essential oil is a pale yellow liquid. Yields are approximately 4-14% from dried mace. Major production in Indonesia (Banda Islands — the historical 'Spice Islands'), Grenada, and India. CO2 extraction is also used for a fuller product..

SPICES / spicy · warm · aromatic

Mace

Category	SPICES
Subcategory	spicy · warm · aromatic
Origin
Volatility	Heart Note
Botanical	Myristica fragrans
Appearance	Pale yellow clear liquid (essential oil)
Producing Countries	Grenada, India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka
Pyramid	Heart

Warm, nutmeg-adjacent, faintly sweet. The red aril wrapped around a nutmeg seed — sharper and more aromatic than nutmeg, with a pepper-citrus edge.

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

Scent

Warm-aromatic, sharper than nutmeg, with a peppery-citrus top note and a warm-spicy base. Less sweet and heavy than nutmeg, more terpenic and lifted. The sabinene and pinene content gives it a piney freshness absent from nutmeg. On skin, it resolves to a warm, dry spice note with less persistence than nutmeg.

Evolution over time

Immediately

Sharp, peppery-citrus spice burst

After a few hours

Warm aromatic spice, softer and rounder

After a few days

Faint warm-spicy residue, dry and quiet

Terroir & Chemotypes

Indicative 2025 wholesale prices.

The Full Story

Mace (Myristic a fragrans) is the crimson, lace-like aril surrounding the nutmeg seed. Both spices come from the same fru it, but their essential oils differ significantly. Mace oil is sharper, more aromatic, and less sweet than nutmeg oil, with a particular pepper-citrus edge.

The essential oil contains sabinene, alpha-pinene, myristicin, and eugenol — similar to nutmeg but in different proportions. Mace has more terpenic (pine-like) character and less myristicin-heavy warmth. The overall impression is brighter and more lifted than nutmeg, with a fresher, almost citrusy top note.

In perfumery, mace oil offers a more clean, less heavy spice character than nutmeg. It is used in compositions where nutmeg warmth is desired but the heaviness and potential nausea-inducing quality of high myristic in levels is not.

Explore all seven extraits in the Discovery Set.

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Related: Clove Leaf · Cloves · Nutmeg

Did You Know?

Did you know?

Mace and nutmeg were once among the most valuable commodities on earth. In the 17th century, the Dutch traded Manhattan Island to the British in exchange for Run Island in the Banda archipelago — a tiny island that was the world's sole source of nutmeg and mace. The deal was formalized in the 1667 Treaty of Breda.

Extraction & Chemistry

Extraction method: Steam distillation of dried mace (aril of Myristica fragrans). The essential oil is a pale yellow liquid. Yields are approximately 4-14% from dried mace. Major production in Indonesia (Banda Islands — the historical 'Spice Islands'), Grenada, and India. CO2 extraction is also used for a fuller product.

↑ See Terroir & Origins for origin-specific methods.

Molecular Formula	Complex mixture — chief constituents: myristicin C₁₁H₁₂O₃, sabinene C₁₀H₁₆
CAS Number	84082-68-8
Botanical Name	Myristica fragrans
IFRA Status	No known restrictions
Synonyms	MACE FLOWER · NUTMEG BLOSSOM
Physical Properties
Appearance	Pale yellow clear liquid (essential oil)
Flash Point	> 200.00 °F. TCC ( > 93.33 °C. )

In Perfumery

Mace is a top-to-heart spice note providing a sharper, more aromatic alternative to nutmeg. The essential oil's higher terpene content gives it a brighter character suitable for compositions where nutmeg would be too heavy. Used in amber, spicy-woody, and warm masculine compositions. Compatible with other warm spices (cardamom, cinnamon) and with woody bases. Less restricted than some spice oils due to lower myristicin content than nutmeg.