Orange Zest

Note Profile

Botanical 1 perfume

About

Orange zest is the cold-pressed oil of the outer coloured peel of the sweet orange. It is the brightest and roundest of the common citrus peel oils, sweet rather than acid, with a small aldehyde fraction that gives it lift. In perfumery it is the same material sold as sweet orange oil, named for the organ it comes from.

Scent Profile

Bright, sweet, juicy citrus of grated orange peel, warmer and less acid than lemon. Fruity juiciness sits right behind the citrus, and an aldehydic peel lift from octanal and decanal gives it its snap. A faint floral trace from linalool and a light sweetness round it off, with only a slight sour edge and a slightly waxy peel finish. The tail is almost nothing - a clean, transparent citrus ghost.

ScentWheel

Breadthfocused

EnvelopeTop · ~1h lasting

Family Fresh & Citrus, Fruity

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

Origin

Citrus sinensis, the flavedo of the ripe fruit. The peel is mechanically ruptured and the oil expressed cold, with no heat applied, at a yield of about 0.3 to 0.5 per cent of fruit weight. Brazil, Florida, Spain and Italy are the main producers. The oil runs 90 to 97 per cent d-limonene; the sweet-orange identity comes from octanal, decanal, linalool and esters below that.

Usage in Perfumery

A top note and a workhorse. It opens eaux de cologne, citrus-floral structures, gourmands and chypres, and it masks harshness in functional bases. Perfumers use it in volume rather than sparingly, because it is cheap and it fades fast. It pairs with cinnamon and clove, with neroli and orange blossom from the same tree, and with vanilla and amber.