Note Profile
Argan is a cold-pressed oil from the kernels of Argania spinosa, a tree native to southwestern Morocco. It is close to odourless. What is there reads oily and waxy, with a dry trace of raw hazelnut. It does not develop, so it sits quietly in the heart or base as a supporting earthy note.
Argan is close to odourless, and that absence is its defining quality. What little is there reads oily and waxy, the faint blankness of a cold-pressed kernel oil. Under it lies a dry nutty trace of raw hazelnut with a slight sourness beneath. It does not evolve. Any opening nuttiness fades to a neutral skin-oil character, which makes it a quiet background presence rather than a note in its own right.
Read off the wheel, not a label applied to the note.
Tap a perfume to see where Argan sits in it. The rest of the picture goes grey
CAS 223747-87-3
Argan is the cold-pressed oil of the Argania spinosa kernel. We hold it as argania-spinosa-oil-fixed. It is a carrier oil. Raw oil smells faintly of roasted hazelnut and cosmetic grades are deodorised to near silence. The link says what the note is made from. It does not say the oil has a strong perfumery odour.
Argan oil is extracted from the kernels of the Argania spinosa tree, native to southwestern Morocco. The oil is obtained through cold pressing of the seeds after the fruit pulp is removed and the nuts are cracked open, often by hand. While primarily used in cosmetics and culinary applications, limited quantities are refined for perfumery use.
In perfumery, argan is used as a supporting earthy note, often in the heart or base of compositions to add subtle depth and a natural, woody nuance. It blends well with other woody, nutty, and green notes, and can help smooth transitions between floral and woody accords. Its understated character makes it suitable for grounding more volatile ingredients.
A selection of reviewed perfumes where Argan appears prominently.
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