What does Rosa Alba smell like?

Rosa alba (Rosa × alba) is the white rose of York, a hybrid rose of unknown parentage. It has been cultivated in Europe since ancient times, possibly first for the sweet scent of its flowers.

Rosa Alba

Scent

The flowers of Rosa × alba have a sweet scent.

In PREMIEREPEAU

DISCOVERY SET7 × 2 ml →ROSE PERFUME→

Terroir & Origins

The Full Story

Rosa × alba, the white rose of York, has been cultivated in Europe since ancient times. It may have originally been grown mainly for the sweet scent of the flowers, but is now also used as a winter-hardy garden shrub. Cultivated forms have white or pink flowers, and most have many petals. Hybrid cultivars have also been produced with red or yellow flowers.

The plants are tall shrubs with arching stems and bluish-green leaves, and they bloom only in mid summer. They are extremely cold hardy and disease resistant, which is why they serve to breed new varieties for subarctic climates such as northern Scandinavia and Canada.

Rosa alba shares some nuclear DNA sequences with R. canina and may be derived from hybridization between that species and R. gallica. Maskew and Primavesi concluded in 2005 that a 1993 suggestion of derivation by chromosome duplication from a triploid offspring of R. arvensis and R. gallica had been mistaken.

In a comparison of the essential oils of three oil-bearing rose genotypes, Rosa damascena, Rosa alba and Rosa No 836/61, a cross of Rosa damascena and Rosa gallica, 60 components were identified. The oils were of the same quality but differed in quantitative composition.

The registry entry CAS 93334-48-6 (EC 297-122-1) covers extractives obtained from Rosa alba, Rosaceae, including their physically modified derivatives such as tinctures, concretes, absolutes and essential oils.

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Extraction & Chemistry

Extraction method

Rosa alba is processed by distillation, and the temperature at the outlet of the cooler influences the yield and quality of the oil. A rise of the extraction temperature increases the yield by 10%, but losses of essential oil components of up to 33% are detected. For rose oils in general, ottos are extracted through steam distillation, while absolutes are obtained through solvent extraction.

CAS: 93334-48-6
Botanical: Rosa × alba
Appearance: Pale gold liquid (absolute)
Synonyms: White rose of York

IFRA status

See note

No IFRA Standard for the material itself (51st Amendment)

Physical properties

Specific gravity: approx. 0.868

In Perfumery

For rose oils in general, the absolute is used more commonly in perfumery than the otto. Even with their high price and the advent of organic synthesis, rose oils as a group remain perhaps the most heavily used essential oil in perfumery.

Role in the formula

01modifier

02signature note

03lifting agent

04blender

05volume builder

06freshness

Available as

essential oil