Phoebe Zhennan
Note Profile
About
Golden sandalwood-like wood with a faint camphor edge
Scent Profile
Phoebe zhennan smells of warm, golden wood, rich like aged sandalwood and slightly sweet. A faint, cool camphor edge shows at first and then fades. The drydown is a deep, resinous, old-wood warmth.
ScentWheel
Read off the wheel, not a label applied to the note.
ScentArt
Origin
Phoebe zhennan is nanmu, a laurel-family tree of south-west China known as the imperial wood of China. Its golden-grained heartwood is prized for high-grade furniture. A 2024 study finds that sesquiterpenoids and monoterpenoids give the wood its fragrance, and that older wood smells stronger. No essential oil is produced commercially.
Usage in Perfumery
In perfume it is a fantasy accord, not an extract. Perfumers rebuild it from sandalwood, traces of camphor, warm amber and aged-wood notes, and use it as a warm woody base.
Similar Notes
Perfumes featuring Phoebe Zhennan
A selection of reviewed perfumes where Phoebe Zhennan appears prominently.
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