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Pink Pepper

SPICES / spicy · fresh · citrus

Pink Pepper

Category	SPICES
Subcategory	spicy · fresh · citrus
Origin
Volatility	Top Note
Botanical	Schinus terebinthifolia · Schinus molle
Appearance	Yellow to amber liquid
Odor Strength	High
Producing Countries	Brazil, Réunion (France), Madagascar, Peru
Pyramid	Top

Crushed dried berry between thumb and finger — a bright, metallic flash, part fruit, part static electricity. Pink pepper is the scent of something that looks red but tastes cold.

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

Scent

First contact: a sharp, metallic, almost electric snap — closer to biting aluminium foil than to grinding peppercorns. Brighter than juniper, less green than elemi, less sweet than cardamom. No heat. Where black pepper is warm and dry, pink pepper is cold and bright, with a faintly fruity transparency.

After ten minutes, the metallic edge lifts and a rosy, berry-like quality emerges — dried cranberry skin, not fresh fruit. On blotter, a faint woody-resinous undertone appears within thirty minutes as the monoterpenes volatilise and heavier sesquiterpenes surface. The Peruvian species (S. molle) stays lighter and more transparently fruity throughout; the Brazilian (S. terebinthifoli a) resolves into something woodier, almost similar to of pink mastic.

Evolution over time

Immediately

Sharp metallic snap — electric, bright, almost cold. Fruity-terpenic burst dominated by alpha-phellandrene and delta-3-carene. No heat.

After a few hours

Metallic brightness dissipates. A rosy, dried-berry facet emerges briefly, then yields to a quiet woody-resinous base as sesquiterpenes (delta-cadinene, caryophyllene) surface.

After a few days

Near-silent. Faint woody-smoky trace on fabric only. The SFE extract persists longer than steam-distilled oil due to retained triterpenic acids.

Terroir & Chemotypes

Indicative 2025 wholesale prices.

The Full Story

Pink pepper is the dried berry of Schinus terebinthifolia (Brazilian peppertree) and Schinus molle (Peruvian peppertree) — neither is botanically a true pepper. They belong to the Anacardiaceae (cashew / mango / sumac family), not the Piperaceae of black or white pepper. The shared name comes only from the small, dried, peppery berry shape and the slight pungency.

Chemistry

The cold-pressed or distilled berry oil (CAS 68917-52-2) is monoterpene-rich — α-phellandrene, β-phellandrene, limonene and α-pinene dominate, with a small fraction of terpinen-4-ol and bornyl acetate [A]. The pungency is not from piperine (the true-pepper compound) but from urushiol-adjacent phenolic compounds in the pericarp — which is also why people allergic to mango or cashew can react to pink pepper.

In a fragrance

Pink pepper has become one of the most ubiquitous top notes of modern perfumery — sharp, fruity, slightly metallic, with a green-rosy edge. It lifts citrus openings, sharpens rose accords, and pairs naturally with iris, magnolia, and the modern transparent woody-amber base.

Sources & Notes

[A] PubChem CID 7460 — α-phellandrene, CAS 99-83-2. The principal monoterpene of Schinus berry oil. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/7460.

Did You Know?

Did you know?

A 2019 study in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology found that 76.2% of cashew- and pistachio-allergic individuals showed cross-sensitization to pink peppercorn on skin prick testing — because Schinus, cashew, and pistachio all belong to the Anacardiaceae family. Despite this, pink peppercorn is not classified among the FDA's major food allergens and carries no mandatory labelling requirement in the US or EU.

Extraction & Chemistry

Extraction method: Steam distillation of dried fruits. Oil yield from S. terebinthifoli a fruits is approximately 5–7.6%, unusually high for a natural raw material (cf. rose at 0.02%, jasmine absolute at 0.1%). The Peruvian species (S. molle) yields 3–5%. The high yield keeps pink pepper oil relatively affordable despite its ubiquity in contemporary use. CO2 supercritical fluid extraction (SFE) — typically at 300 bar, 60°C — produces a fuller extract that preserves non-volatile triterpenic compounds (moronic acid, masticadienoic acid) destroyed or left behind by steam distillation. The SFE extract is softer, rounder, less aggressively terpenic — preferred by perfumers seeking body over brightness. Première Peau uses the SFE versi on in Albâtre Sépia.

↑ See Terroir & Origins for origin-specific methods.

Molecular Formula	Complex mixture (α-pinene, β-pinene, myrcene, limonene, α-phellandrene)
CAS Number	68917-52-2
Botanical Name	Schinus terebinthifolia · Schinus molle
IFRA Status	No known restrictions
Synonyms	BAIES ROSES · BRAZILIAN PEPPER · PERUVIAN PEPPER · FALSE PEPPER · FAUX POIVRE
Physical Properties
Odor Strength	High
Lasting Power	24 hours
Appearance	Yellow to amber liquid
Flash Point	130 °F (54 °C)
Specific Gravity	0.830–0.870 @ 25 °C
Refractive Index	1.470–1.485 @ 20 °C

In Perfumery

Pink pepper is a top-note lifter and diffusion agent. Its high monoterpene content (80%+) creates an immediate sparkling effect that projects ahead of the rest of the formula. Functionally, it accelerates perceived sillage without adding weight — a metallic brightness that registers as 'modern' and 'clean' in consumer testing. It pairs with citrus materials (bergamot, grapefruit, yuzu) for enhanced diffusion, with rose and violet for spiced-floral effects, and with iris and musk for sharp skin-scent contrasts. In chypre and neo-cologne structures, it replaces traditional galbanum as a green-sharp opener with less polarising vegetal character. The oil's high terpene load can cause turbidity in alcoholic solution. Chilling, filtration, or using the CO2 extract avoids this. The SFE version, extracted at ~300 bar and 60°C, retains triterpenic acids (moronic acid, masticadienoic acid) that contribute body and tenacity absent from the steam-distilled oil. Première Peau uses pink pepper in four fragrances: Doppel Dancers (/products/doppel-dancers-iris-skin-perfume) as a spiced iris opener; Rose Monotone (/products/rose-monotone-crystalline-lychee-perfume) organic Brazilian origin, sharpening crystalline rose; Nuit Élastique cutting through jasmine indole; and Albâtre Sépia (/products/albatre-sepia-white-truffle-ink-perfume) as SFE extract, contributing body and non-volatile depth.