Gourmand

Shea

Note Profile

Botanical 2 perfumes

Also Known As

Shea butter, Shea Nut

About

Shea has a soft, creamy, and slightly nutty aroma with hints of sweetness. In fragrances, it brings a comforting, buttery facet that can evoke the scent of rich body creams, warm pastries, or subtle edible notes, adding smoothness and depth to gourmand compositions.

Scent Profile

Shea is a low-strength base material led by roasted nuttiness, with an earthy weight and a mild smokiness that comes from the open-fire heating of the kernels in traditional processing. Under those sits the butter fat itself: a warm, waxy, skin-like richness, faintly sweet and lightly musky rather than sharp. Refined shea has been deodorised and smells of almost nothing.

ScentWheel

Breadthfocused

EnvelopeHeart · ~8h lasting

Family Sweet & Gourmand, Woody & Earthy, Waxy & Fatty

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

What this is made of

Shea names no single substance

Reconstructed

Shea butter is a fixed fat used as an emollient - no perfumery odour.

How the layers join

Origin

Shea is derived from the nuts of the Vitellaria paradoxa tree, native to West and Central Africa. The nuts are harvested, dried, and cold-pressed or solvent-extracted to yield shea butter, which is then refined for use in perfumery. The aromatic fraction is typically obtained during the butter's processing or as a natural isolate.

Usage in Perfumery

In perfumery, shea is used primarily as a gourmand heart or base note to impart creaminess and roundness. It blends well with vanilla, tonka bean, praline, and soft woods, enhancing edible accords and lending a plush texture to compositions. Shea can also soften sharper notes and add depth to both sweet and floral fragrances.