Perfumery notes are descriptions of perfumes that might be sensed preceding the application of a cologne. Notes are divideded into three parts; top, middle and base. Each refer to groups of smells that can be sensed with regard to the moment in time after the application of the scent. These remarks are created with the knowledge of the vanishing period of the elements in addition to the function for which the fragrance is intended. That said, each class of note can effect the rest. Thus it is not as easy to be aware of a particular note as they continually vary over a period of time. For instance, the presence of a individual root or heart note will compliment the fragrance perceived when the head notes are strongest, and likewise the smell linked with the base notes will often vary based on the aroma of the middle notes.
The concept of notes is used predominantly to explain a fragrance for advertising and marketing reasons. Occasionally they are referred to by perfumers to portray the numerous stages of a scents aroma to the layman.
Top notes.
These are the aromas sensed instantly upon the application of a fragrance. They comprise of miniature, light molecules that vanish rapidly. Top notes are vital to the selling of a perfume as it is these that shape a person's opening opinion of a scent. They are usually described as fresh, sharp or assertive. The compounds that lead to top notes are volatile, strong in aroma, and disperse promptly. Citrus along with ginger are usual elements for top notes. Top notes are occasionally referred to as the head notes.
Middle notes.
Sometimes known as the heart or main body of a scent, they emerge in the central point of the fragrance's diffusion process. It is the smell of a cologne that appears immediately ahead of the ending of the top notes. Their purpose is to mask the often unpleasant first impression of the base notes, that become more appealing with time. Compunds used for a scent's middles notes are generally more soft and rounded. The middle notes can begin anywhere from two minutes to 1 hour after the first application of the scent. Rose along with lavender are usual ingredients used to create the middle notes.
Base notes.
The middle and base notes jointly fashion the core theme of a scent with the base notes appearing just prior to the end of the middle notes. Base notes generate the strength and depth of a fragrance. Bass note ingredients are often the fixatives used to embrace and enhance the depth of the lighter middle and top notes. The molecules contained in these ingredients are large and heavy which mean they evapourate gradually. These compounds are commonly deep and rich and are not as a rule noticed until at least 30 minutes after the fragrance has been applied. This period of time is often referred to as perfume dry-down. A few of the longer lasting base note ingredients can still be sensed in excess of twenty four hours after use. This particularly applies to the animalic notes.
Author Resource:
Elizabeth Rogriguez has over 20 years experience in the perfume industry specialising in the promotion and marketing of Men's Fragrances .