Fragrance 101: Sandalwood

Want to know more about your favorite Creed scents? In our refreshed Fragrance 101 series, we’ll highlight a singular ingredient from the House of Creed fragrance library each month—discussing everything from its provenance to the various ways you can wear it. This month’s note: Sandalwood.

 

Of all the wood notes in fine perfumery, sandalwood is perhaps the most enchanting. A few of the reasons it’s beloved: It’s uniquely creamy, velvety-soft, warm, and lingers on skin long after it’s applied. In aromatherapy, it’s known for its grounding quality, which has made it an in-demand ingredient—whether in the form of incense or oil—for millennia. Sandalwood is precious, too. The trees, which are grown primarily in India and Australia, must age for at least 15 years before their wood can be harvested for its fragrant oil.

 

Sandalwood is most often used as a base note in fragrance for its longevity and ability to anchor and balance out a blend’s more immediate and volatile notes, but it’s also had a recent resurgence as the focal point. Discover three different iterations of the ingredient, below.

A Fresh Scent with a Rich Base: Silver Mountain Water

Silver Mountain Water is pure and cool. Wear it and you’re transported to snowy mountains, breathing in crisp, high-altitude air. But its sweet freshness, a mixture of citrus, green tea, and black currant buds, eventually opens up to a velvety backbone of sandalwood and musk that you won’t be able to stop smelling. Consider it entry-level sandalwood.

 

A Classic Woods Cologne: Bois du Portugal

The scent of choice of dapper men, this blend proves that the combination of herbal notes and woods creates a timeless mix. Here, you’ll find sandalwood matched with a cast of other forest-y elements—lavender, cedar, vetiver, and amber—for an ultra-masculine vibe.

A Bold, True Sandalwood Blend: Original Santal

This rich scent, a nod to India, revolves around smooth-smelling sandalwood from Mysore. All of the ingredients serve to add to its distinct warmth. Top notes of Jamaican ginger, orange tree absolute and Sicilian lemon add fiery zest, Lavender and rosemary bring a compelling herbal edge, and a cozy mix of vanilla, Tonka bean, cinnamon, and Tonkin musk round out the sandalwood base. Sandalwood devotees: This is your signature scent