GREENS, HERBS AND FOUGERES / green · fresh · sweet
Tarragon
Category
GREENS, HERBS AND FOUGERES
Subcategory
green · fresh · sweet
Origin
Volatility
Top Note
Botanical
Artemisia dracunculus
Appearance
colorless to pale yellow clear liquid
Odor Strength
Medium
Producing Countries
France, Russia
Pyramid
Top
Green, anise-sweet, with a celery-like snap. Tarragon smells like the inside of a French kitchen—herbal, structured, faintly medicinal, with a liquorice undercurrent.
Green, herbal-anise with a crisp, almost celery-like snap. Less sweet than anise, less camphoraceous than fennel, more vegetal and stem-like than either. The estragole character is filtered through a distinctly herbal lens—crushing a fresh tarragon leaf: bright, green-anise burst with a faint medicinal edge.
On a blotter, the initial green sharpness softens into a warm, slightly spicy sweetness. The celery quality persists longer than expected, giving the dry-down an unusual savoury quality.
Evolution over time
Immediately
Immediately
Green, herbal-anise—bright estragole burst with a crisp celery-like snap
After a few hours
After a few hours
Softer, warmer; the green edge fades, leaving spicy-sweet anise and subtle herbs
After a few days
After a few days
Faint herbal-sweet trace; minimal persistence compared to anise or fennel
Terroir & Transformation
Indicative 2025 wholesale prices.
The Full Story
Tarragon (Artemisia dracunculus, Asteraceae) produces one of perfumery's most underused herbal oils. Steam-distilled from the fresh or dried aerial parts, the oil is dominated by estragole (methyl chavicol, CAS 140-67-0), typically comprising 60–81% of French tarragon oil. This is the same molecule found in basil and anise, but in tarragon it presents with a distinctly greener, more herbal character.
The name 'tarragon' derives from the French estragon, itself from the Latin dracunculus ('little dragon'), possibly referring to the plant's serpentine root system. French tarragon (the culinary variety) is propagated exclusively by cuttings—it rarely sets viable seed.
Sabinene, limonene, bet a-ocimene, and methyl eugenol are present as min or components. The oil has a characteristic green-spicy quality with particular celery-like undertones.
In perfumery, tarragon oil (labelled 'estragon') functions as a trace ingredient in chypre, fougère, and green floral compositions. IFRA restrictions on estragole limit dosage, but small amounts contribute significant aromatic complexity.
This note in Première Peau. Simili Mirage · Gravitas Capitale. Sample all seven extraits in the Discovery Set.
French tarragon is effectively a clone—the culinary variety almost never produces viable seeds and must be propagated vegetatively. Every sprig of French tarragon in the world descends from cuttings of the same genetic line.
Extraction & Chemistry
Extraction method: Steam distillation of fresh or dried aerial parts (leaves and flowering tops) of Artemisia dracunculus. Oil yield is approximately 0.3–1.0% from fresh herb. The oil is pale yellow to greenish.
Tarrag on oil (estrag on) is a trace-level modifier in green, chypre, and fougère compositions. At 0.1–0.5% of a concentrate, it adds herbal complexity difficult to achieve otherwise. Its estragole content provides anise-like sweetness while terpenic min or components contribute green lift. The celery-like quality pairs with galbanum and violet leaf in green constructions.
