Castoreum

What it brings

A warm leathery depth that gives body to leather accords.

Origins and uses

Castoreum was originally a yellowish secretion produced by the beaver in two sacs located under the skin, between the pelvis and the base of the tail; the animal uses it to mark its territory. In the past, a tincture or resinoid was drawn from these dried sacs, often aged for several years. Classical perfumery valued it for its note suggesting leather, and it featured in great perfumes of the past. It was also used to flavour certain food preparations.

Today, the castoreum note is almost always recreated by the perfumer, without using the animal. It brings leathery, smoky, slightly fruity facets, and is used in small doses in the base of chypres, leathers and dark florals, to which it gives warmth.

In our catalogue, castoreum appears in the base of Memoir Woman by Amouage and Rose Tonnerre by Frédéric Malle, and in the heart of Alone in Babylon by Stéphane Humbert Lucas 777, with sandalwood.