Cayenne Pepper
Note Profile
About
Dried red chilli, ground. A dry pungent spice with a dusty, hay-like body under the heat, closer to a spice drawer than to a fresh vegetable. It is the powder and the oleoresin extracted from it, not the living fruit on the plant.
Scent Profile
Cayenne Pepper smells hot and pungent, a dry peppery spice rather than a fresh vegetable. Underneath sits a warm, dried spice character, closer to a spice drawer than a living pod. A musty, earthy note runs through it, and a dusty, hay-like dryness keeps it from feeling sharp. A faint sweetness shows through the heat.
ScentWheel
Read off the wheel, not a label applied to the note.
ScentArt
Origin
Cayenne is a cultivar group of Capsicum annuum, dried and milled. The perfumery material behind the note is capsicum oleoresin, CAS 8023-77-6. Suppliers describe it as a reddish-brown to dark-red viscous liquid with a pungent odour and 'an extremely strong bite'. Parfumo files the note under Chili, its own spicy-notes category, separate from Pepper.
Usage in Perfumery
It is a heat accent used in small amounts, mostly to make a woody, leather or amber base feel scorched. Perfumers reach for it the way a cook reaches for the jar: a pinch changes the whole dish and a spoonful ruins it. Expect it near tobacco, leather, cacao and dry woods rather than near florals.
Similar Notes
Perfumes featuring Cayenne Pepper
A selection of reviewed perfumes where Cayenne Pepper appears prominently.
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