Common name(s): Javanol ® Givaudan, Sandal cyclopropane

Chemical name: (1-Methyl-2-(1,2,2-trimethylbicyclo[3.1.0]-hex-3-ylmethyl)cyclopropyl)methanol

CAS #: 198404-98-7

Supplier: Perfumer’s Apprentice

Note: Base

Family: Woody

Diffusion: High

Dilution: 10%

Blends well with: ambroxan, kohinool, beeswax abs., castoreum abs., citronellol, clove bud eo, costus root, black currant bud abs., alpha and beta damascone, dihydrojasmone, eugenol, fir balsam abs., frankincense eo, hay abs., cistus landiferus resinoid, lavender abs., mimosa abs., nutmeg eo, patchouli eo, rose abs., tobacarol, tuberose abs, vetiver Haiti eo, etc. (TGSC)

Interesting bits: the Javanols are a group of fragrance ingredients which are mostly being used for sandalwood notes. Javanols are described as flowery, rosy, milky, lactonic and sandal-woody. The trade name Javanol® is registered for Givaudan. (Perfume.net)

The growing scarcity—and resulting increased price—of sandalwood oil explains the fragrance industry’s continuous search for synthetic substitutes. Javanol (Givaudan), prepared from naturally occurring α-pinene, represents a new tool in terms of performance and naturalness of scent. (Perfumer&Flavorist)  

This is a powerful material best used in combination with another sandalwood replacer or as a booster for the natural oil, use about one tenth as much as you would the natural oil. Javanol has a rosy, cologne like note in the background that makes it exceptionally good for use in fragrances of these types. (Hermitage Oils)

“Javanol is the only sandalwood chemical that smells of sandalwood alcohols and sandalwood aldehydes. It is therefore extremely natural since both contribute to the great and mythical smell of the south Indian oil”. He goes on to describe it as “perhaps the best of all” the sandalwood chemicals and “impossible to replace” and also mentions that it is used to very good effect in Truth for Men by Calvin Klein and Chic for Men by Carolina Herrera as well as being a vital component of Sandalwood Givco. (Arctander via Pell Wall)

“Javanol is my favorite fragrance. I wish that the whole world could smell Javanol. I can’t get enough of it and if the idea wasn’t already there, then I would think about creating a fragrance from just this one chemical. For me Javanol is the most indescribable and irresistible fragrance.” (Erik Kormann, perfumer via Fragrantica)

Javanol, Ebanol, Sandela, Santaliff (IFF sandal mysore core), and Santalore are extremely powerful and true to sandalwood synthetics. In fact this might explain the curious effect one experiences when handling them: it was enough to smell a 10% dilution to anesthetize my nose for several hours later, a state I was taken out of by squeezing fresh lemon juice. A perfumer must be cautious and restrained when using them in order not to end up making the wearer of the finished fragrance tired and anosmic to them. Extreme dilution (even lower than 0.5%) is recommended, as alongside Iso-E Super (woody cedar) and methyl ionone (violets) those notes cause rapid nose fatigue. (Fragrantica)

I found Elena Vosnaki’s article on the a selection of Sandalwood synthetics including Javanol to be very interesting but what resonated with me most was this truth about the masses not taking well to change found buried at the very end of the article: “More than allergy concerns or repletion of natural resources, consistency is the magical word here. A mass produced product, like fine fragrance inevitably is (unless you’re making your own or have the hip artisan across town compose one for you), cannot afford to smell different from batch to batch. Consumers do not respond well to change. The quest for sandalwood substitutes continues as we speak, with several patents from Japanese companies under way, and is only going to accelerate in the coming years despite the ethically sustained sandalwood farm in Australia (after all, it is but a single farm).” (Fragrantica)

Their nose: tropical woody fatty sandalwood herbal cologne floral (TGSC)

Sandalwood, Creamy, Rosy, Powerful (Givaudan via TGSC)

My nose: From the outset Javanol is a beautiful Sandalwood impression! It’s woody, with innuendos of creaminess, a bit thin, and not a all dominating but giving lift. As it begins to fill the air in the first 15min it’s so much warmer, very Sandalwood but with a dry mark and it is surprisingly delicate. As the note begins to enter the first 30min it brings to my mind a creamy, tawny colour. There are intimations of Cashmeran revealed in the unfolding. It’s a very relaxing scent, in a way highlighting the calming and reassuring expression of Sandalwood. 45min into the evaluation and now this note is a hush as it hovers intimately throughout the space in my studio. I sense it more as a Sandalwood memory with a minimalistic quality that really I only find with the aroma chemicals. At 1hr Javanol is woody, like a grouping of dense woods and very linear. It’s also dusty and hot. My impression is of a sanctuary somewhere far away, like high upon some unspeakable Tibetan mountain, hidden by mist and clouds. Unreachable. Unnameable. Impenetrable. After 2hrs my main reaction is more that of a sheath at the moment, a note that could wrap itself around you. And yet…and yet, there is something piercing about it, almost metallic but not quite. 3hrs and this material is sharp, dry, woody, velvety and warm. It’s becoming quite one dimensional in the dry down, however and I note that this is neither good nor bad, just an aspect of its character. 7hrs sees this evolve into a sleek and tailored smell very much like watching someone walk gracefully, with beauty and rhythm. This note is unfolding into a creamy delight. The textural quality after 10hrs is velvety soft, deeply warm now, draped in rich, creamy layers; it’s a captivating precipitation of Sandalwood. The 24hr evaluation leaves me stumped! I don’t know how but this material seems to have evolved, matured somehow, it’s much more interesting, revealing greater depth and character. Can an aroma chemical even do that?! Well I guess if it’s prepared from naturally sourced components it is quite possible. Javanol has an absolutely stunning drydown!

MC