- Latin name
- Cocos nucifera
- Family
- Palm family (Arecaceae)
- Origin
- an accord composed by the perfumer
- Parts used
- the flesh of the nut (as the reference for the scent)
- Raw materials
- lactones, milky and coconut accords
- Extraction
- synthesis
- Olfactory group
- gourmand (milky)
- Position in the pyramid
- heart and base
- Synthetic substitutes
- gamma-nonalactone, delta-lactones, vanillin
Coconut milk is not the juice of a coconut but a thick white liquid obtained by pressing grated coconut flesh. In perfumery it sounds like a separate, creamy facet of coconut and is recreated with a milky accord.
How it smells: soft, creamy and sweetish: thick cream, warm coconut flesh, a light nutty and vanilla note. Coconut milk sounds gentler and more skin-like than desiccated coconut — without its tropical brightness.
The creamy character of the note comes from lactones — molecules smelling of coconut, peach and milk. By combining them in different proportions, the perfumer gets either a “beach” coconut or a soft, warm coconut milk.
What it pairs with: with vanilla and tonka — cosy gourmand fragrances, with tiare and jasmine — “tropical skin”, with sandalwood — a creamy woody base, with rice and milk — soft milky compositions, with musk — tender “second skin” fragrances.
Good to know: coconut water and coconut milk are different products: the water is the clear juice of a young nut, while the milk is made from the flesh of a ripe one.
