Aromatic Woody is subfamily E5 of the Woody family in the SFP table. Wood remains the theme: cedar, vetiver, patchouli, sandalwood. Herbs such as lavender, rosemary, sage, wormwood, juniper and thyme take the top and heart, giving a dry, green, slightly bitter feel.
The branch is close to C5 Aromatic Fougère. The difference lies in the base: Fougère rests on coumarin and oakmoss, E5 on woods. When a scent has lavender but lacks coumarin, and woods make up most of the base, it is usually placed in E5.
The woody part usually uses Atlas or Virginia cedar (cedrol, thujopsene), vetiver (nootkatone, khusimol), patchouli, and today many synthetic woody molecules such as Iso E Super. The herbal part uses lavender and lavandin (linalool, linalyl acetate), rosemary (1,8-cineole, camphor), sage (linalyl acetate, sclareol), wormwood (thujone), juniper (alpha-pinene) and thyme.
Wormwood and Dalmatian sage contain thujone, which is restricted under many rules. Camphor, linalyl acetate, Atlas cedarwood oil, Virginia cedarwood oil, patchouli oil, acetyl cedrene and Iso E Super are named on the expanded allergen list of Regulation (EU) 2023/1545; new products placed on the EU market after 31 July 2026 must be labelled according to it.
Terre d'Hermès (2006, Jean-Claude Ellena) and Guerlain's Vetiver (1959) are often described as woods with citrus and herbs; whether they belong to E5 or another woody branch has not been published by the SFP online.
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.
| Layer | Materials |
|---|---|
| Top | Bergamot, Lavender, Rosemary, Juniper |
| Middle | Clary sage, Wormwood, Thyme linalool, Atlas cedarwood |
| Base | Vetiver, Cedarwood (Virginian), Patchouli, Sandalwood, alpha-Cedrol |
This branch is easy to build with natural materials: cedar, vetiver and patchouli for the base; lavender, rosemary, clary sage and juniper for the herbs; FCF bergamot for brightness. Guaiacwood or rectified cade at very low dose adds smoke.
The transparent diffusion of Iso E Super has no natural equivalent. Choose low-thujone wormwood and sage, and check IFRA limits and the EU allergen list. This page gives no formula percentages.
| Woody and herbal materials · Cedrol alpha · Nootkatone · Thujone · Camphor · Linalyl acetate | Cedrol, nootkatone, thujone, camphor. |
| Woods · Cedarwood atlas · Cedarwood virginian · Vetiver · Patchouli | The base of E5. |
| Aromatic · Lavender · Rosemary · Clary sage · Juniperberry · Wormwood | Top and middle. |
Updated 09/2026. Figures follow the year stated in each source.
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