Spicy Fougère is subfamily C4 (Fougère Épicée) of the Fougère family in the SFP table. It keeps the lavender, geranium, coumarin and oakmoss frame and adds warm spices: clove, cinnamon, nutmeg, black pepper, coriander seed. Carnation, whose scent is close to clove, often appears in the heart as well.
Spices make the heart of a Fougère denser and hotter, but the lavender must still be recognisable. When spices, vanilla and balsams outweigh the lavender, the structure leaves the Fougère family and moves towards the Amber or Woody families.
The spice in C4 comes mostly from eugenol, the main constituent of clove bud oil; eugenol also occurs in cinnamon leaf oil, pimento and carnation absolute. Cinnamaldehyde gives the hot sweetness of cinnamon bark. Nutmeg, black pepper and coriander seed give a drier, less sweet spice. Geranium in the heart links the rosy note to clove, and coumarin in the base rounds off the heat of the spices.
Yves Saint Laurent's Kouros (1981), composed by Pierre Bourdon, is often cited as a Fougère with clear spice: carnation, cinnamon and clove in the heart over oakmoss, honey, animalic notes and tonka. Persolaise calls it a woody, musky Fougère heavy with civet; Auparfum names coriander, cinnamon and clove in its description.
The spices of C4 carry many regulated constituents. Eugenol, isoeugenol, cinnamal and methyl eugenol each have an IFRA restriction Standard by product category. Eugenol, isoeugenol, cinnamal and coumarin were already on the EU list of labelled allergens. Regulation (EU) 2023/1545 adds clove oil, Ceylon cinnamon bark oil, cassia leaf oil, eugenyl acetate and beta-caryophyllene, as well as lavender oil and geranium oil.
The SFP website publishes only subfamily names; perfume lists per subfamily are in the printed Classification officielle des parfums. Perfumes named here are commonly cited examples, not official SFP placements.
C4 sits between C5 Aromatic Fougère and C3 Sweet Amber Fougère. Clary sage, tarragon and rosemary often travel with the spices, so the same perfume can be described as aromatic or spicy depending on the describer. As vanilla and balsams increase, the structure moves towards C3 and the Amber family.
| Layer | Materials |
|---|---|
| Top | Lavender, Bergamot, Coriander, Black pepper |
| Middle | Geranium, Carnation, Clove bud, Cinnamon bark, Nutmeg |
| Base | Oakmoss, Tonka bean, Patchouli, Vetiver, Coumarin, Eugenol |
A natural version has almost every role covered: lavender and FCF bergamot at the top; geranium, clove bud, cinnamon bark, nutmeg, coriander seed and black pepper in the heart; tonka, low-atranol oakmoss, patchouli and vetiver in the base. Carnation absolute adds a floral facet to the clove note.
Spices diffuse strongly and easily overpower lavender, so they usually stay in a supporting role. Eugenol, cinnamal and coumarin from all sources must be added up and checked against IFRA limits. This page gives no formula percentages.
| Name | House | Year | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kouros | Yves Saint Laurent | 1981 | Pierre Bourdon. Fougère with carnation, cinnamon and clove over oakmoss, honey and animalic notes. |
| Coumarin and spice molecules · Coumarin · Eugenol · Isoeugenol · Cinnamaldehyde · Methyleugenol · Eugenyl acetate · Caryophyllene beta | Substances that are restricted or must be labelled. |
| C4 spices · Clove bud · Cinnamon bark · Cinnamon leaf · Nutmeg east indian · Pimento berry · Pepper black · Coriander seed · Carnation | Middle layer. |
| Khung Fougère · Lavender · Bergamot fcf · Geranium · Tonka · Oakmoss | Top and base. |
Updated 09/2026. Figures follow the year stated in each source.
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