The Renowned Fragrance Triangle
AKA: fragrance pyramid, olfactory pyramid— I like to stick with the good ol’ “fragrance triangle”, personally. The fragrance triangle refers to the hierarchy of the notes (ingredient) composition in a fragrance. The triangle comprises of top, middle (AKA: heart), and base (AKA: the dry-down) notes. Understanding the fragrance triangle is a key tool to help one’s description of fragrance turn from elementary to pro, as well as understanding why some ingredients may come across more pronounced than others, and vice versa, as well as to help understand why a fragrance may change over wear. Some fragrances may have an even amount of top, heart, and base compositions, while others can be formulated with primarily two of the categories, say, top and heart notes. A fragrance can even be formulated of one category, such as Lilac Path eau de parfum by AERIN — a floral green scent my mother adores that offers the florals of lilac, jasmine, and orange flower with herbaceous angelica root (no heavy citrus emphasis or depths of vanilla, amber, or resinous flair here, minus a very faint musk component). Let’s start from the top.
Top notes are at the — you’ve guessed it — top of the triangle. These notes are the first to strike the nose when spritzing a fragrance. Top notes are typically light, fresh, and volatile. Although these notes are vital as a first impression to a consumer, the top notes do not last as long compared to its counterparts due to their low molecular weight and small size. This is why top notes evaporate more quickly and the middle and bottom notes become noticeable after some time. A typical top note can be the fresh, clean aroma of Bergamot — a citrus note. Other typical top notes in addition to citrus can include herbs and aromatic notes, such as lavender, lemongrass, and anise — a spicy, sweet, green note (check out the Glossary on top of this page for definitions of ingredients and terminology). Now welcoming the next…
Heart notes have a molecular weight in between that of top and base notes. They are the “body” of the fragrance and are crucial since their placement determines which notes before and after their arrival should be selected in formulation. Heart notes can often mingle with top notes before they garner full attention of a fragrance. Examples of middle notes include florals like narcissus, green notes like tea leaves, fruits, and spices such as cinnamon. It is important to clarify that depending on the notes of a fragrance, these tiers are not “locked in” permanently to the triangle hierarchy. Often, flowers and fruits can lead as top or middle notes in a fragrance. Burberry’s Goddess — a rich gourmand — contains a trio of different forms and concentrations of vanilla (typically a base note) in each layer. It all depends on the volatility of each note in comparison to its fellow counterparts. An easy way to tell if a heart note is indeed a heart note is if it arrives a couple of minutes after an initial spritz and lasts for a solid amount of time, half an hour to a couple of hours, before the arrival of a base. Depending on the notes in a fragrance, the “arrival times” for each layer of the pyramid can vary.
Finally, the finale — base notes. These notes include woods such as cedar, sandalwood, patchouli, balsam scents like tonka bean, musk, and resin notes like frankincense. The bottom notes are the heaviest in molecular weight, thus, lingering longer than heart and top notes. Base notes are often called the "dry-down” notes. The base notes are thought to “ground” a fragrance, meaning, they are the foundation to a fragrance. The last impression of a fragrance is just equally as important as the introduction and body of a fragrance.
The different blends of notes are what creates such unique and varied creations. Understanding where notes “sit” in a fragrance will help one understand what a scent can potentially smell like — particularly helpful when shopping online. Of course, sampling a scent and noticing how it interacts on your skin and changes over time is the truest way to dictate if it appeases, as each scent lies on everyone’s skin differently, but that’s another piece for another time.
MAKE IT MAKE SCENTS:
Take note of the image below to become familiar of where each note family typically resides in the fragrance hierarchy.
THE FRAGRANCE TRIANGLE:
artwork by Dane Roberts.