Clove bud absolute

Warm sweet clove, dried fruit, a little wood and vanilla. Rounder and softer than the oil, with less of the metallic, dental edge.

Eugenol, the main constituent, is IFRA-restricted (2023) per product category and an EU-labelled allergen above threshold.

At high concentration eugenol irritates skin and mucous membranes. Tisserand and Young recommend low dermal levels for clove materials. Store dark, sealed and cool.

Cloves are the dried flower buds of Syzygium aromaticum, a tree native to the Maluku Islands (Indonesia). Buds are picked as they turn from green to pink, before opening, and dried to brown. Indonesia is the largest producer, much of it for kretek cigarettes; Madagascar and Zanzibar are key exporters.

An absolute is made in two steps. The raw material is extracted with a non-polar solvent such as hexane to give a waxy concrete. The concrete is then washed with ethanol, chilled to precipitate waxes, filtered and freed of alcohol. What remains is the absolute.

The absolute keeps heavier components and undergoes less heat change than the oil. It smells rounder, with dried-fruit and vanilla facets and less of the dental note. It is closer to the intact dried bud.

In perfumery clove bud absolute serves carnation, spicy, oriental and rose bases. It pairs with rose, ylang, vanilla, cinnamon and woods. Dosage is calculated from eugenol.

Clove was among the most valuable spices in the world. Control of Maluku supply was a goal of European trading companies in the 16th and 17th centuries.

Clove bud absolute is usually a viscous yellow-brown liquid. It works in soap, but eugenol can turn soap brown over time. In candles, dosage is also calculated from eugenol.