Trending notes: sandalwood
A precious wood known and used for thousands of years, appreciated for its aromatic properties that have made it one of the most important base notes in perfumery. Sandalwood is an evergreen tree native to tropical Asia that grows in India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Malaysia and Taiwan. A fine essential oil is extracted from its wood, characterized by a full-bodied and persistent scent capable of promoting meditation, giving serenity and evoking spirituality.
Always widely used both in cosmetics and as incense, sandalwood is at the center of ancient myths and beliefs: particularly leathery and fragrant, in India sandalwood has always been considered a protective tree, whose scent is said to have the ability to ward off evil spirits. It is no coincidence that its wood, sacred to Shiva, was used as a building material for temples and statues of the gods. Furthermore, according to Hindu beliefs, sandalwood would promote a better rebirth; for this reason, deceased rulers were embalmed using ointments scented with its essence.
The essential oil is obtained through steam distillation of the roots and heart of pulverized and dried sandalwood. This produces the raw material also used in perfumery, characterized by an intense olfactory yeld: a fragrance of great richness and body, with enveloping woody-resinous notes and warm, balsamic, oriental tones. An aroma that emphasizes and intensifies every other essence, which is why sandalwood has become one of the most important base notes in perfumery.
The largest production of essential oil has developed in India, but today the most beloved and distinctive sandalwood, the Mysore's one, is on the verge of extinction. Although there are sandalwood cultivations in Australia that can make up for the reduced production, the essential oil that is made from it has a slightly different aroma profile that cannot replicate the same olfactory quality as Mysore sandalwood. For this reason, synthesis is often used today to recreate the fragrance molecules that have made history.
Among the Aquaflor fragrances made with the precious sandalwood there is a perfume which, as the name suggests, evokes the irrational part of the soul. Pathos opens with fresh, spicy notes of citron, bergamot, and pink pepper that enhance an intense heart of lavender, ylang-ylang, and patchouli. The base is a harmony of sandalwood with refined notes of tonka bean, oakmoss and vibrant ambergris. A modern classic for the man who never goes unnoticed.