Lavender Absolute 10%

Absolute extracted using ethanol from the concrete produced by solvent extraction (using Hexane) of the flowering stems of Lavender angustifolia Miller produced in France by Payan Bertrand, supplied to Pell Wall through our collaboration with Zanos and diluted by us to 10% in ethanol to make it more affordable and easier to pipette. We also offer the undiluted material through this product.

This is a particularly fine example of one of the most useful natural materials in perfumery that gives a much more realistic lavender note than the essential oil, though it is less floral and more herbaceous it is also far longer lasting.

According to Arctander: “Lavender absolute is a dark green, liquid of very rich, sweet-herbaceous, somewhat floral odor; in dilution, it bears a close resemblance to the odor of the flowering lavender shrubs. Its woody-herby undertone and coumarin-like sweetness duplicate the odor of the botanical material far better than does the essential oil. The absolute is sweeter but less floral than the essential oil, and the two materials can form a very pleasant combination. However, one cannot replace the other in compounding. Chemically, the difference between the essential oil and the absolute seems surprisingly small in percentage. The absolute contains almost an equal amount of linalool and linalyl acetate (or other linalyl esters), these materials constituting about 90% of the oil. Typical notes in the absolute are probably derived from coumarin, umbeliiferone and their derivatives, most of which are non-distillable with steam. Also linalyl esters of non-volatile acids. Although most of the umbelliferone-ethers are odorless, they may play important roles as fixatives or stabilizers in the absolute.”

He goes on to talk about its uses: “Lavender absolute is used in citrus-colognes, chypres, fougeres, new-mown hay bases, forest notes etc. It blends well with Labdanum , oakmoss, vetiver, patchouli, pine needle oils, coumarin, heptalactone, terpinyl propionate, geraniol and esters, sage clary, dodecanal, flouve, nitromusks, salicylates, etc..”