Mandarin Orange Zest
Note Profile
About
Mandarin orange zest is the cold-pressed oil of mandarin peel. It is the softest and sweetest citrus in the perfumer's palette, low in acid and free of bitterness, and it carries a honeyed, faintly floral warmth that no other citrus peel has. That warmth comes from one minor constituent, methyl N-methylanthranilate.
Scent Profile
Soft, rounded, sweet citrus with no bitter edge. Fruity juiciness and a honeyed warmth sit under it, and the honey reads as almost floral - the grape-candy, neroli-adjacent signature of methyl N-methylanthranilate. A waxy peel richness fills the heart. A light sweetness and a small tart-aldehyde lift finish the top. Faint green and sour edges only, and a warm citrus-honey trace that lasts longer than lemon or lime.
ScentWheel
Read off the wheel, not a label applied to the note.
Origin
Citrus reticulata, the peel of the fruit, cold pressed. Sicily, Calabria, Brazil, Spain and China are the main producers. The oil is limonene-dominant at 65 to 75 per cent, with gamma-terpinene at 15 to 20 per cent that sweet orange peel does not have, about a dozen tart citrus aldehydes at low level, and a small percentage of methyl N-methylanthranilate. Three harvest grades are sold: green, yellow and red.
Usage in Perfumery
A top note with better hang than lemon or lime, used as a modifier rather than a volume material. Arctander records it in colognes to soften other citrus oils, in neroli bases and in fantasy moss accords. It opens citrus-florals and chypres gently, and its honeyed side makes it useful in gourmands alongside vanilla and warm spice.
Similar Notes
Perfumes featuring Mandarin Orange Zest
A selection of reviewed perfumes where Mandarin Orange Zest appears prominently.
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