Caramel Perfumes

Ethyl maltol and maltol: the molecules in caramel

In perfumery, caramel does not exist as a natural material: no usable extract can be obtained from caramelised sugar. The scent is built as an accord from aroma molecules, some of which come from food flavouring. Its core is usually ethyl maltol (C₇H₈O₃): it smells of candyfloss and burnt sugar, hardly occurs in nature and is made synthetically. Its parent compound, maltol (C₆H₆O₃), is found in larch bark and forms when malt is roasted; ethyl maltol is considerably stronger. HDMF, a furanone, smells of caramel when concentrated and of strawberry when diluted, building a bridge to fruit. In traces, sotolon lends a dark depth reminiscent of maple syrup.

In a fragrance, caramel is sweet and warm and recalls burnt sugar; it lasts a very long time. On its own the accord quickly feels flat, so it needs counterparts. With vanilla and tonka it feels soft and creamy, with coffee or cocoa bitter and roasted, with salty accents more balanced and less sweet.

In this selection, caramel sits in the fragrance pyramid – mostly in the base note.