Nirvanolide®

Note Profile

Molecule

About

Nirvanolide is a Givaudan macrocyclic musk, clean and skin-like with a milky softness under it. It is one of the lowest-threshold musks on the market. It is quiet at the strength it is used, not loud.

Scent Profile

Clean_musk is the material. ScenTree's own descriptor hierarchy opens 'Musky' and Première Peau opens 'clean, musky-creamy', so both independent sources put it first and nothing competes with it. Lactonic is the second thing both sources reach for: Première Peau's 'soft, almost milky quality', and the Basenotes poster's 'lactonic/shave-cream element'. It is a macrocyclic lactone, so the milkiness is structural rather than an added effect. White_floral is ScenTree's second and third rungs, 'White Flowers > Jasmine', which is the supplier's own ranking and not an inference. Powdery is the soft, diffuse quality that both descriptions circle, and it is where most macrocyclic musks in this vocabulary sit. Below that, fruity comes from the IFRA transparency list, which gives this CAS the descriptors 'Musk like, Fruity, Amber'; amber_resinous is the third of those and is kept low because no prose source names it. Mineral is ScenTree's fourth and weakest rung, 'Metallic', and its position in that list is the reason it is a trace and not a lead. Floral, creamy_woody, animalic and sweet_vanillic all sit with wide spreads. Animalic in particular is low because 'skin-like' here is used inside a clean description, not against it.

ScentWheel

Breadthbroad

EnvelopeBase · ~30h lasting

Family Amber · Musk · Leather, Sweet & Gourmand

Read off the wheel, not a label applied to the note.

Origin

A fully synthetic macrocyclic musk lactone, (10Z)-13-methyl-1-oxacyclopentadec-10-en-2-one, CAS 329925-33-9, discovered by Givaudan in 1997. ScenTree states it 'is not available as natural' and that the (R)-enantiomer 'is responsible for the major part of the odor'. It is a captive of Givaudan. A working perfumer on Basenotes says it was brought in 'more than anything to replace the MUSK KETONE', that is, as a substitute for a nitro-musk that regulation pushed out. It is named as a component of Chanel Bleu de Chanel (2010) and of Prada Amber Pour Homme.

Usage in Perfumery

A base musk, used where the musk should read soft and skin-close. ScenTree: 'based on detection threshold comparison, Nirvanolide is part of the most powerful musk in the market', so it works at very low dose. Première Peau describes the effect as 'quiet, intimate, modern'. It replaces musk ketone in the same slot in a formula. One 2023 forum post claims Givaudan has stopped producing it. No manufacturer source confirms or denies that, so current market status is unresolved.