Enfleurage
Enfleurage captures flower scent in fat before further processing. Learn the difference between cold and warm methods, pomade and an enfleurage absolute.
Updated
Enfleurage captures aromatic material from flowers in a prepared fat. In the traditional cold method, flowers are placed against fat spread on framed glass, then replaced with fresh flowers as the fat takes up their scent.
The scented fat is called a pomade. It can undergo further alcohol extraction and separation to obtain an aromatic material for perfumery. The fat stage and the resulting concentrated extract are different preparations.
Enfleurage is associated with the history of floral extraction and continues in specialist practice. It requires repeated handling of flowers; modern extraction methods offer other ways to obtain floral materials. The method alone does not establish that a finished perfume will smell more natural or last longer.
- Cold enfleurage
- Capturing scent in prepared fat without heating the flower-and-fat arrangement.
- Warm enfleurage
- Extracting aromatic material through contact with warmed fat; also described as hot maceration.
- Chassis
- The frame holding the glass and fat in the traditional cold method.
- Pomade
- The scented fat produced by enfleurage.
- Flower replacement
- Removing spent flowers and adding fresh ones to build the aromatic content of the fat.
- Alcohol extraction
- Further treatment that transfers aromatic material from the scented fat into alcohol.
- Enfleurage absolute
- A concentrated aromatic material obtained after processing the pomade and removing the extraction alcohol.
- Solvent extraction
- Another route to floral extracts. Both methods involve separation choices rather than capturing every aspect of a flower unchanged.