The Odorare Circle

Musk in perfumery: from animal to molecule

The musk we smell in perfumes today is no longer animal at all: it comes from a laboratory. This article traces how a secretion from a deer, hunted until it was banned, was replaced by synthetic mo...

Natural or synthetic oud: what sets them apart

Natural oud comes from the resin of an infected wood, harvested in Southeast Asia and distilled in very small quantities. Synthetic oud, on the other hand, recreates this scent using stable aromati...

What is oud? The most expensive wood in perfumery

Oud is not a wood: it is a resin that certain trees produce to protect themselves from an infected wound. Fewer than one in ten wild trees contain it. What you need to know before buying your first...

Why is oud so expensive?

The price of oud is driven by three measurable factors: only a minority of trees become naturally infected and produce resin, distillation requires dozens of kilos of wood for just a few milliliter...