Is Saman natural or synthetic?

A fantasy or concept note, not a single material.

Saman

AccordWOODS & MOSSESwoody · earthy · warm

BasePyramid

3/5Strength

>200hTenacity

1Origins

Specimen

Samanea saman

Fantasy/Concept

Definition

Tropical hardwood, warm and slightly sweet, with a resinous-earthy undertone. Saman (rain tree) smells like a freshly cut timber yard in Central America -- woody, balsamic, green.

WOODY GREEN EARTHY SWEET WARM FRESH

Rain Tree, Monkey Pod

Type: Ingredient
Olfactive family: Woods
Subfamily: Earthy woods
Cluster: Earthy woods
Source: wood
Chemical class: olfactory concept (tropical wood)

Instruments

Pyramid

TTop

HHeart

BBase

3/5Strength

Medium

odour strength

Tenacity on blotter

>200hours · 8 days

1 h6 h24 h3 d7 d400 h

Producing countries

South America

Scent

Warm, sweet-woody, with a gentle balsamic undertone and a faint coumarinic hay-sweetness. Softer than teak, less dry than cedar, less creamy than sandalwood. The tropical-legume character gives it a warmth that reads as outdoor air rather than indoor wood. Like standing in the shade of a massive tree with sawdust at your feet.

In PREMIEREPEAU

DISCOVERY SET7 × 2 ml →EXTRAIT DE PARFUMThe seven extraits →

The Full Story

Saman refers to Samanea saman (syn. Albizia saman), the rain tree or monkey pod -- a massive tropical legume native to Central and South America. The wood is prized in furniture-making for its warm, golden-brown colour and interlocked grain. Its olfactory profile is woody, warm, faintly sweet, and mildly balsamic.

No commercial essential oil of saman wood is produced for perfumery. The note is reconstructed as a tropical-wood accord: warmer and sweeter than teak, less resinous than cedar, with a vaguely leguminous (coumarinic) sweetness from the tree's Fabaceae lineage. Construction may use coumarin (for the sweet-hay edge), cedryl acetate (for woody warmth), and vetiver (for earthy depth).

Functionally, saman works as a warm-woody base note with tropical associations. It provides a gentler, sweeter alternative to standard cedar or sandalwood. The note works in tropical-woody, warm-balsamic, and naturalistic compositions.

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Related: Alder · Alpha Humulene · Amaranth · Amberever · Amburana Bark · Antillone · Apple Tree

Extraction & Chemistry

Extraction method

No commercial essential oil or absolute of Samanea saman is produced for perfumery. The wood note is reconstructed synthetically.

Formula: N/A — complex natural wood
CAS: N/A — natural wood (no standard essential oil)
Botanical: Samanea saman
Appearance: N/A — olfactory note (woody, earthy)
Odour strength: Medium
Lasting power: > 200 hours
Synonyms: Rain Tree, Monkey Pod

IFRA status

See note

Not applicable: accord or concept, not a single material

Physical properties

Note: Saman (Albizia saman, rain tree) wood note in perfumery; no standard commercial essential oil.

In Perfumery

Saman is a warm-woody base note providing a tropical hardwood character. Softer and sweeter than teak, less creamy than sandalwood. Built from coumarin (sweet-hay edge), cedryl acetate (woody warmth), and vetiver (earthy depth). The note works in tropical-woody, warm-balsamic, and naturalistic compositions as a gentle, accessible wood alternative.

Role in the formula

01modifier

02signature note

03naturalizer

04volume builder

05freshness

Available as

fantasy note