Introduction

If you are a new perfumer, or a perfumer who has not made a gourmand before, the process is deceptively complicated. Many will tell you that vanillin, the principle aroma molecule in vanilla beans, is the scent of vanilla. However, if you've smelled it, you might notice that the scent is lacking quite a bit of character.

One of the number one questions I see in perfumery forums is "How can I make my vanilla richer/creamier/cakier?", in this article I will take you through some chemicals and techniques for achieving that rich, creamy, caramelly, baked, or even sugary vanilla. 

Aroma Chemicals

I will go over various kinds of aroma chemicals that can bring different qualities to your vanilla. Of course, the base to all of this is Vanillin. This article will take note of which chemicals can be sourced naturally, but not all of them will be. Vanillin is one chemical that can be sourced either naturally or synthetically.

Natural versions of aroma chemicals are typically similar to synthetic versions, however, sometimes there will be variations of aroma chemicals with edited isomer ratios which might make the scent different. These can be natural but are often synthetic. I won't dive too much into that, but it's good to note that vanillin in particular has quite a few of these specialty formulations. 

Barnyard/Phenolic Chemicals

The first thing you'll want to look into are what I call "Barnyard chemicals". I call them this because they really do smell like a horse's ass. However, most people call these "phenolic", which doesn't really have a standard definition. Phenols can smell like a lot of stuff! In this case, it means "smells like smokey leather". As you'll learn later in your perfume journey, words mean nothing and stinky is good! 

This class of chemical will add the smokey, animallic characteristic that natural vanilla bean has. It will also highlight the creaminess of the vanillin and other gourmand aroma chemicals. Depending on your ultimate goal, you can use extra to make it an overtly animallic vanilla.

Examples of these chemicals are:

• Valspice
  • Valspice is often referred to as "creosol". I find this chemical to be a little more on the smokey side of this class of material. Great for blending your vanilla with leather! Also, would be my go to for anything "wood fired" like a marshmallow! Can be natural.
• Guaiacol
  • I would describe Guaiacol as the "neutral" form of this class. Not super smokey or creamy, smells like the inside of a barn with a bit of a vanilla nuance on the back end. Can be natural.
• Ultravanil
  • Ultravanil is also known as "Vanilla cresol". Not a lot of places carry this one. I got mine from Harrison Joseph. This is a more creamy vanilla forward version of this class. I would use this for a cleaner, more "bakery" type gourmand. It still has some of that rustic barnyard smell, but not as much as the others! Careful dosing because it will fry your nose!

How to use them:

All of these chemicals should be used in moderation! Not only are they all pretty heavily restricted by the IFRA, but they're very strong and easy to overdose! Ultravanil is deceptively strong. I once made a blend with way too much in it and smelling it was like smelling straight capsaicin. 

I would recommend starting out with 0.005% of the total formula. We're talking a very light touch and them build up if necessary! You'll ruin your nose for the rest of the day if you huff too much of this stuff.

"Butyl" Chemicals

Typically, chemicals with "butyl" in the name somewhere have one of two scents to them. One is a stinky moldy cheese smell, and the other is a pungent vomit-like odor. Both of these can be useful in a gourmand vanilla. However, I'l discuss the "vomit" type in the "fruity" section.

For now, let's talk about moldy cheese. Like I said in the last section, the weirdest, stinkiest chemicals are often the most versatile in perfumery. Butyls can be used in many applications, but in this case, they're used to bring out that distinctive "dairy" note. Dairy, when you break it down, is made up of many odors that are unpleasent to most. These chemicals are going to help you a lot if your goal is to make a cream, cake, pudding, or custard accord! Anything with dairy in it, really. 

Examples of chemicals:

• Butyl Lactate
  • This chemical is on the more neutral side of stinky cheese chemicals. I find it to be more buttery than cheesy. It's very versatile in that it can be a fruity butyl or a gourmand butyl depending on how it's used. Can be natural but is rarely sold as natural.
• Isobutavan
  • Often considered a "must have", isobutavan is a creamy vanilla chemical. It's sometimes described as smelling like "white chocolate". It also has a sharp dairy note that is similar to the "vomit" class of butyls but not nearly as strong as something like Amyl Butyrate has. This chemical would also fit into the "lactate" or "generally creamy" category. 
• Butyl Butro Lactate
  
  • The stinkiest moldy cheese-type butyl I have smelled. If you really want a strong dairy note in whatever you're making, this will get it there. Can be natural, but hard to find sold as natural.

How to use them:

I would advise the readers of this article to use these with a light touch. Depending on what you're going for, of course. Isobutavan can typically be used at higher levels as it doesn't have what many would consider to be an unpleasant smell, but because of that, it's also very easy to overdose! Be careful not to ruin the balance of your gourmand by adding too much. 

I typically use isobutavan at around 1% or less and for something like Butyl Butro Lactate I would start at 0.5% or less. Butyl Lactate is not as outwardly strong as isobutavan and butyl butro lactate in my opinion, but it can be easily overdosed as well. I would start at the lower end, closer to 0.5% and build up if needed.

Lactates and Creamy Chemicals

Much like butyls, these are chemicals with the word "lactate" in the name. They typically smell milky, as the name implies. We've already discussed a couple of lactates in the "butyls" section, but this section is more about lactates that lean creamy rather than cheesy. Typically, these are lactates that are not also in the "butyl" category.

This class of chemical will be great for adding more of clean creamy nuance to the perfume. While using a light touch of "butyls" adds the sharp dairy note that real cream typically has, these will add the softer buttery nuance. 

Examples of chemicals:

• Methyl Laitone
  • This chemical adds a very clean creamy nuance. There's very little funk to this material at all. Probably the most bare-bones creamy chemical you can get.
• Cremefleur 
  • This is a lesser-known chemical with more of a buttery nuance than Methyl Laitone. It's also known for blending well in lactonic jasmine and gardenia accords. I personally prefer it for richer accords.
• Bicyclononalactone
  • This chemical is often used in coconut accords because it does have a teensy bit of a coconut vibe. However, it's not enough to change the vibe of your cream accord into a coconut accord when used intentionally. This is a more powdery lactonic note. Good for marshmallow!
• Gamma and Delta Lactones
  • There are a lot of gamma and delta lactones, some of them smell very different from each other. However, what's important to know is that they often come with stronger leans towards fruity and coconut notes. This is great if you're making a vanilla that could benefit from a little fruitiness like a pina colada accord or something with a beachy vibe. Otherwise, I would stick to the others on the list! Some of these can be natural.

How to use them:

Once again, lactones are typically used sparingly. However, gamma and delta lactones are often used in much higher amounts. This is because they're usually used to make peach and coconut accords. In the case of a vanilla gourmand, however, I would use less. For methyl laitone, which can easily be extremely overpowering, I would start at 0.02%. For the rest, I would start at 0.1%.

Pyrazines

Pyrazines are typically described as "nutty" smelling. However, when used at certain doses in certain applications, they can smell very rich and buttery. If you have the opportunity, try smelling the difference between a raw stick of butter and the butter from a freshly baked croissant. Pyrazines add the "maillard effect" to vanillin and can be perfect for literally anything baked!

If you want your gourmand vanilla to lean cakey, you'll need some pyrazines.

Examples of chemicals:

• Almond Pyrazine
  • This is the best pyrazine for a cakey nuance in my opinion. It's far more buttery than peanutty. It provides the perfect buttery aroma for most baked goods and it's impossible to make a cake accord without it! Can be natural but can be difficult to source naturally.
• Tetramethyl Pyrazine
  • This chemical is more peanutty but, if you can imagine this, the roasted peanut nuance blends into the roasted aroma of a coffee bean on the back end. This is a great pyrazine for a coffee accord. You could also use it to add depth to a vanilla accord. Can be natural but can be difficult to source naturally.
• Trimethyl Pyrazine
  • This is another peanutty pyrazine that I don't reach for as much simply because the others are usually a better fit for what I'm doing. It leans more cocoa than coffee on the dry down. Would be a good addition to a chocolate cake accord, as would the others on this list. Can be natural but can be difficult to source naturally.

How to use them:

Yet another category where less is more! I promise they won't all be so restrictive. However, all of these pyrazines are so incredibly strong that adding too much could easily cover up everything else in your blend. I would start at 0.05%. For most of you, your goal with adding these will be to add a cakey note to your vanilla, which requires very little of this material. If your goal is to make your vanilla smell like peanut toffee, however, you can add a smidge more!

Sugary Chemicals

This is where we finally get into chemicals you can use in more than just trace amounts. These materials are not really defined by name, but by smell. Adding these chemicals to a blend will create a crumbly sugar texture and aroma. Used in combination with everything else on the list, you'd get something rich and sugary like a butter cake. Used with vanillin on their own, they typically make the scent sweeter and caramelly, while diffusing the creamier nuances. 

Examples of chemicals:

• Ethyl Maltol/ Maltol
  • Ethyl maltol and maltol have a similar difference to ethyl vanillin and vanillin. Ethyl maltol is sharper and stronger but more synthetic. Maltol is softer and weaker but more natural. Used in conjunction they create a fuller and stronger effect. Both chemicals smell as plainly like sugar as possible and are often used as the principle aroma of cotton candy fragrances. Can be natural.
• Furaneol
  • Furaneol has many uses. I like to add some to my strawberry accords because it has a slightly fruity nuance. Furaneol is also very sugary but it's more like a toasted sugar or caramel than ethyl maltol. It's a bit richer and more easily overdosed. Can be natural but can be difficult to source naturally.
• Coumarin
  • Coumarin is a famous aroma chemical, traditionally used in chypre accords. It's also the principle aroma of tonka bean. Coumarin reminds me of brown sugar most of all. When added to vanillin it makes me think of sugar cookies. Adding more coumarin will make your vanilla smell more like tonka bean or even cookies depending on how you use it. Can be natural.

How to use them:

Both coumarin and furaneol are restricted by the IFRA. Please consult the IFRA standards library for current restriction information. I typically use them between 0.5% and 1% in my formulas. However, as long as the restrictions have not increased by the time you're reading this, you can use a bit more safely if you really want to.

• Ethyl maltol is unrestricted and people sometimes use quite a bit of it. Especially when it comes to cotton candy perfumes. The most I've personally ever used is 2% in the final formula. However, I've seen people using it at 15%!  Just be careful as it can be deceptively strong and weaken the rest of your blend. It also has a tendency to get stronger during maceration!

Fruity Chemicals

There are a couple fruity chemicals that can help bring out a richer gourmand quality to your vanilla. Mainly, I'm talking about benzaldehyde, which can be described as both fruity and gourmand. Though, because of the use of almond extract in maraschino cherries, many associate benzaldehyde purely with the smell of cherries.

However, many butyls can also be described as fruity. If you are planning on adding a fruit note to your perfume, which I almost always do, using a fruity butyl alongside or instead of a cheesy butyl can help bring the fruity vibe! Generally though, I think benzaldehyde is really the only necessary one and the others are just playful ideas!

Examples of chemicals:

• Benzaldehyde
  • If you've ever baked, you know that almond extract is the secret to many recipes. Adding it to perfumes works just as well. Benzaldehyde is the main aroma chemical in almonds but it more often associated with cherries. Can be natural.
• Ethyl Isobutyrate
  • A more sheer fruity butyl with a honey like characteristic. Known for being long lasting (not many butyls can say that!).
• Maltol Isobutyrate
  • This smells like sour strawberry candy, but when diluted does give a more characteristic butyl odor. Pairs really well with dessert notes in small amounts.

How to use them:

These are often used very sparingly. I like adding a bit more maltol isobutyrate when I want to add a gourmand strawberry note and ethyl isobutyrate would also do well to add a fruity nuance if you wanted to make a fruity pastry accord. However, for the purposes of enhancing a vanilla, all of these should be used at 0.1% or less. Benzaldehyde is very restricted by the IFRA, so make sure to take note on the current restrictions before blending!

Woody Chemicals

If you're a fan of my Introduction to Perfumery Guide, you may remember how vanilla and woody chemicals are on opposite ends of the fragrance wheel. Much like the color wheel, this makes them complimentary. One brings out the best in the other! Therefore, if you want your vanilla to be richer and more vanilla-y you'll want to add some woody chemicals!

Examples of chemicals:

• Javanol
  • A very popular synthetic sandalwood chemical. Of course, being a single molecule, it is not as complex as sandalwood itself. However, that's not necessarily what we need in order to compliment vanilla. Out of the vanilla accords I've seen, Javanol seems to be a favorite. It's known to be very creamy, natural smelling, and long lasting. It also has a slightly powdery floral character. Javanol is not restricted by the IFRA.
• Iso E Super
  • Iso e Super is also occationally used in conjunction with vanilla although it is more of a synthetic and less creamy woody material. Often times people use this chemical as a feature pairing rather than a blending chemical.Iso E super is limited to 20% in the final product by the IFRA.
• Hindinol
  • This chemical is more of a top note so depending on how long you want the woody nuance to last, this may be better than Javanol. It has a rich creamy woody characteristic, much like Sandalwood. Although, like javanol, it's not the same as sandalwood oil. Hindinol is not restricted by the IFRA.

How to use them:

Both Javanol and Hindinol are unrestricted chemicals (according to IFRA 51), which means you can technically use as much as you like. However, being synthetic woody chemicals, they're also very strong and a little goes a long way. Jeremy Frater has a great write-up of these sandalwood synthetics you can read if you're interested in seeing them in action: https://fraterworks.com/blogs/information/sandalwood-synthetics-a-primer. Most perfumers use these two in very small amounts (less than 0.1%), but some go farther than that!

Iso E super, while restricted, is often overdosed. It really depends on how much you like the smell. I'm not a huge fan of the Iso E Super family of aroma chemicals for these applications as they have a tendency to take over a blend. However, this is not a very popular opinion! I would start at 2% and if you really want it to stand out, add more until you get where you want!

Vanilla Chemicals

Many of these chemicals have characteristics of vanilla. A big chunk of perfumery is choosing which characteristics of your inspiration to exaggerate, which is really what we covered in this article. However, there are three chemicals which are widely regarded to be the base of a vanilla fragrance and I just wanted to go over what they are and how to use them.

Examples of chemicals:

• Vanillin
  • This is the most natural smelling vanilla chemical. Though it's not as punchy as ethyl vanillin. In modern perfumery, ethyl vanillin and vanillin are often used together. Can be natural.
• Ethyl Vanillin
  • The stronger version of vanillin. However, many describe ethyl vanillin as smelling more artificial and less like true vanilla, so it's often used with vanillin to give it the smoothness it lacks. Can be natural.
• Veratraldehyde
  • This is a chemical that's quite similar to vanillin, but it's a little bit more naturally creamy and rich. People typically use this at a lower dose than vanillin as well. Can be natural but can be difficult to source naturally.

How to use them:

People typically use Ethyl vanillin and vanillin in a 2:1 ratio. 2 parts ethyl vanillin for every 1 part vanillin. However, perfumery is an art. It's up to you to decide what's best. None of these chemicals are restricted (as of IFRA 51) and can be used as much as you like.

Veratraldehyde is typically used in much lower doses as a supplement to vanillin, less than 1%. It gives it a bit more of a creamy nuance, much like many of the methods discussed earlier. However, this effect is more subtle and natural. If you would like a little extra oomph to your vanilla but don't necessarily want it to be a gourmand, veratraldehyde can help! Along with those woody chemicals we just discussed!