Is Sweat natural or synthetic?

A fantasy or concept note, not a single material.

Sweat

AccordPOPULAR & WEIRDmusky · earthy · warm

BasePyramid

3/5Strength

>200hTenacity

1Origins

Editorial noteWe own no rights to this material, its name or its trademark. This entry is independent editorial journalism, published under freedom of expression.

Specimen

N/A — olfactory concept

Fantasy/Concept

Definition

Sharp, sour, distinctly human. Fresh sweat is faintly saline and nearly odorless. Stale sweat is acrid with isovaleric acid and androstenone. Between repulsion and attraction lies the most intimate smell.

EARTHY MUSKY WARM SALTY ANIMALIC

perspiration, human scent

Type: Accord
Olfactive family: Animalic
Subfamily: Earthy woods
Cluster: Earthy woods
Source: Synthetic reconstruction (e.g. isovaleric acid, cumin aldehyde blends)

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

N/A — olfactory concept

Scent

Sour, salty, acidic, distinctly biological. At trace levels: intimate, human, erotic. At higher levels: repellent. The most polarizing olfactory concept.

In PREMIEREPEAU

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

The Full Story

Fresh eccrine sweat is almost odorless: 99% water. Body-odor smell comes from apocrine sweat metabolized by skin bacteria into volatile fatty acids and steroids.

Key odorants: isovaleric acid (cheesy), trans-3-methyl-2-hexenoic acid (axillary odor), androstenone (musky or urinous depending on genetics), androstadienone (potentially pheromonal).

In perfumery, cuminaldehyde and certain musks suggest sweat at subliminal levels. The line between attractive and repulsive is entirely concentration.

Explore all seven extraits in the Discovery Set.

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

Extraction & Chemistry

Extraction method

No extraction. The sweat impression is created from cuminaldehyde, costus-type synthetics, and musks.

Formula: N/A — olfactory concept
CAS: N/A — olfactory concept (key component: isovaleric acid CAS 503-74-2)
Botanical: N/A — olfactory concept
Appearance: N/A — conceptual accord (no standard physical form)
Odour strength: Medium
Lasting power: > 200 hours
Synonyms: perspiration, human scent

IFRA status

See note

Not subject to an IFRA Standard (51st Amendment)

Physical properties

Note: Sweat as a perfumery note is an animalic concept. Key molecules: isovaleric acid, cumin aldehyde, and various short-chain fatty acids.

In Perfumery

Subliminal animalic modifier. Cuminaldehyde provides sweat-adjacent warmth. Costus-type synthetics suggest skin intimacy. Dosage is everything.

Role in the formula

01volume builder

Available as

fragrance accord