What is a Perfume Accord?

Introduction

In this article, we explain what a perfume accord is and introduce the four main perfume accords known in perfumery and the key features of their formulas.

An Analogy

When speaking about a Perfume Accord, it is important to distinguish it from a single ingredient.

The best analogy to explain this is Music:

• an ingredient is like an individual musical note
• a perfume accord is like the signature section of a melody, or the chorus or refrain of the music.
• olfactive classification is like grouping music by genre: Jazz, Blues, Classical, Hip Hop, …

We all instantly recognise certain songs when we hear the signature section of a melody. It is not the individual note but the unique combination of notes which we instantly recognise as familiar because of its distinctiveness: it becomes more than the sum of its parts.

Think of your National Anthem, a famous song by the Beatles or your favourite musician, you don’t need to hear much to instantly know what is playing.

Another analogy would be signature recipes in food:

• pizza: must have a base, tomato sauce, some toppings and cheese
• pasta: you need noodles, a sauce and parmesan cheese

You instantly recognise a pizza or pasta. Once you have the backbone of a recipe, you can vary it to become innovative and creative.

It is similar in perfumery: A perfume accord is a signature combination of several ingredients that is recognisable, distinctive and becomes more than its parts.

Below we introduce the four main perfume accords used in perfumery:

• Chypre
• Cologne
• Fougere
• Amber

It becomes a little confusing because these accords are also used as classes within olfactive classification. The explanation is, however, is quite simple: it is historical.

In other words, these accords become so popular that they created effectively created their own olfactive class or category.