- Latin name
- Laurus nobilis
- Family
- Laurel family (Lauraceae)
- Origin
- the Mediterranean (Turkey, the Balkans)
- Parts used
- leaves
- Raw materials
- bay leaf essential oil
- Extraction
- steam distillation of the leaves
- Olfactory group
- aromatic, spicy
- Position in the pyramid
- top note and heart
- Synthetic substitutes
- eucalyptol (1,8-cineole), eugenol, linalool
Bay laurel is an evergreen Mediterranean tree with glossy dark-green leaves, familiar to everyone as the bay leaf in the kitchen. Perfumery uses the oil obtained by steam-distilling the leaves.
How it smells: fresh, spicy and herbal: a cool eucalyptus shade, a light clove spice, the green of leaves and a faintly woody dryness. Bay sounds noble, restrained and Mediterranean.
The main aroma substances of bay oil are eucalyptol, which gives coolness, and eugenol — the very one that smells of clove. So bay sounds fresh and warm at once, combining herbs with spices.
What it pairs with: with lemon and bergamot — fresh Mediterranean fragrances, with rosemary and thyme — herbal compositions, with pepper and clove — spicy accords, with cedar and vetiver — dry woody fragrances, with incense — solemn resinous compositions.
Good to know: in ancient Greece laurel wreaths were awarded to the winners of the Pythian Games and to poets — hence the words “laureate” and “laurels”.
