Cocobolo
Note Profile
About
Cocobolo is the heartwood of Dalbergia retusa, a Central American rosewood. Every source that describes its smell puts floral first, ahead of the timber character. In perfumery the term is a fantasy note. No distillation of the wood is sold, so the note is built to match the smell of the worked board.
Scent Profile
Cocobolo smells strongly floral before it smells like wood, a rose-like scent that sits ahead of the timber character. Underneath is the dry wood of a dense, oily hardwood board. Working the wood brings out a warm spice note, a hint of cinnamon rather than plain sawdust. A creamy, oily richness in the grain keeps the wood from turning dry, and the scent lingers with an amber-like persistence once seasoned.
ScentWheel
Read off the wheel, not a label applied to the note.
Origin
Dalbergia retusa, from the dry Pacific forests of Panama, Costa Rica and Nicaragua. The heartwood holds an oil that keeps a strong smell in seasoned timber for years and can stain the hands. Wikipedia calls that oil the source of a 'strong, unmistakable floral odor'. Woodworkers meet the smell at the saw, not in a bottle. No supplier data sheet for a cocobolo oil or absolute could be found, and Fragrantica files the perfume note as a fantasy note inspired by the wood rather than made from it. The species is CITES Appendix II, which is a second reason no extraction trade exists.
Usage in Perfumery
Attested on 7 Fragrantica entries and on no Parfumo entry. Fragrantica files it under Woods and mosses. It is used as a woody base with a rose-floral top edge, so it sits between a plain timber note and a rose. Nothing was found on dose rate, because there is no material to dose.
Similar Notes
Perfumes featuring Cocobolo
A selection of reviewed perfumes where Cocobolo appears prominently.
No perfumes featuring this note have been reviewed yet. Check back soon.