Laurel (Camphor)

Camphor Laurel is a bracing aromatic note known for its sharp, cooling intensity and medicinal clarity. Extracted from Cinnamomum camphora, an evergreen tree native to East Asia—especially Japan, Taiwan, and China—Camphor Laurel yields an essential oil rich in natural camphor, historically valued for its therapeutic, insect-repelling, and ritual uses. In perfumery, this note delivers a striking eucalyptol-laced freshness, with facets of crushed herbs, resin, and dry spice, reminiscent of clean smoke, medicinal vapor, and sunlit camphor chests. It is typically used in top or heart notes to impart a piercing green-cleanness, energizing a composition with an almost tactile chill.

History & Composition: Camphor was once extracted in crystalline form by distilling the heartwood of mature camphor laurel trees, a laborious process that made it prized in both traditional medicine and incense rituals. Today, perfumers often use fractional camphor oil or synthetic camphor molecules to control its power and blendability. In fragrance, it is frequently combined with pine, lavender, rosemary, eucalyptus, or leather to create fougère, woody-aromatic, or smoky compositions. Camphor Laurel brings a note of vintage apothecary realism, adding lift, dryness, and austere brilliance—a cooling wind from a dark forest.