Natural Isolates in Perfumery: What They Are and How They Are Used

Photo Credit: Photo taken by Wit & West perfumer and co-founder, Wit

As a natural perfumer, my perfumer’s palette (i.e., the ingredients I use to create my perfumes) is shaped not only by the botanicals themselves, but also by the unique olfactory qualities found with different ingredient extraction methods. A single raw material can reveal different aromatic facets depending on whether it’s distilled, CO₂ extracted, or solvent extracted (see the Wit & West blog post What is Natural Perfume? to learn more about the different types of natural perfumery ingredients and their extraction methods). For example, distilled rose oil is fresh and citrusy-green, while rose concrete and rose CO₂ extracts deliver a truer-to-life, dense rose. Understanding these varied qualities is an important part of the perfume creation process, as it allows the perfumer the ability to leverage different ingredients based on their olfactory characteristics.

Beyond these traditional methods lies another tool used in natural perfumery: natural isolates, or individual molecules that are naturally occurring in plants.

What Are Natural Isolates?

Natural isolates are defined as single aromatic molecules that are derived or “isolated” from natural raw materials (plants, flowers, resins). They are also sometimes referred to as natural single odor molecules or natural aroma molecules.

Some common examples include:

• Geraniol – a rosy, sweet molecule found in roses and geraniums
• Vanillin – the primary aroma molecule found in vanilla beans
• Coumarin – a sweet, hay-like molecule found in tonka beans and cloves

These aroma molecules occur naturally within botanical materials; natural isolates simply allow perfumers to access them in a purified form.

How are Natural Isolates Different from Essential Oils?

Natural isolates are different from essential oils because they focus on one chemical constituent or molecule found in a particular essential oil, rather than a whole or complete essential oil. For example, rose oil contains dozens of aroma molecules, including geraniol, citronellol, phenyl ethyl alcohol, eugenol, linalool, geranyl acetate, and others. A natural isolate that is obtained from rose oil would be just one of those compounds, such as phenyl ethyl alcohol or geraniol.

Think of it like this:

• Essential oil = full-spectrum botanical
• Natural isolate = one singular naturally occurring molecule

Both are natural, but their purpose and how they are used in perfumery can be very different.

How are Natural Isolates Obtained?

Natural isolates can be obtained via fractional distillation or by enzymatic fermentation.

• Fractional distillation is a process that separates or isolates an individual naturally occurring molecule from other components found within the essential oil.
• Enzymatic fermentation is a biotechnological process where microorganisms or enzymes break down organic substances, like sugars, into simpler products. This “biotech” process has been gaining popularity over the last 20-30 years in the fragrance industry as the cost and sustainability of natural ingredients have become of greater importance.

Why are Natural Isolates used in Natural Perfumery?

Natural isolates are used in both the flavor and fragrance industries. Originally, they were used almost exclusively for the flavor industry for flavorings in food and beverages. However, as consumer demand for natural products has increased, so has the interest in the fragrance industry. For natural perfumers like myself, they provide meaningful, creative, and functional benefits.

How Natural Isolates Are Used in Natural Perfumery

• Expanded Perfumer’s Palette – Natural isolates are derived from plant-based sources and essential oils; thus, they expand the palette of ingredients for the natural perfumer while staying true to botanical sourcing. 
• Improved Longevity – Some natural isolates can help to extend a perfume’s longevity. Examples include the natural musk ambrettolide, as well as nerolidol, a natural isolate extracted from neroli essential oil. 
• Flexibility – Because isolates are individual or single scent molecules, they give perfumers more control and flexibility than whole essential oils or absolute oils. This flexibility allows for unique blends, fine-tuning specific notes, and creating entirely new olfactory experiences. 
• Managing Allergen Risk – Unlike complex essential oils that are comprised of dozens of aroma molecules, isolates are single molecules. This allows the perfumer greater control over their formula while ensuring that they stay within recommended safety limits for ingredients that are designated as potential allergens. 
• Improving Cost & Sourcing Issues – Rare essential oils and absolute oils can be both costly and sometimes subject to scarcity, making them difficult to source regularly. In some cases, natural isolates can help bridge this gap. Similar effects can be achieved via a combination of essential oils, absolutes, CO₂ extractions, and natural isolates.

10 of the Most Commonly Used Natural Isolates

• Linalool – floral, lavender, fresh citrus; found in many flowers and herbs
• Benzyl Acetate – sweet, jasmine-like; found in jasmine and ylang ylang
• Geraniol – rosy, sweet, green; found in geraniums and roses
• Citronellol – fresh, citrus-rose; found in geraniums and roses
• Phenyl Ethyl Alcohol – fresh, tea-rose; found in roses
• Vanillin – creamy, sweet vanilla; found in vanilla beans and cloves
• Coumarin – sweet, warm, hay-like; found in tonka beans
• Ionones Alpha-ionone (raspberry/violet-like; produced via fermentation) Beta-ionone (violet/berry/wood; found in boronia, osmanthus, cassie, and isolated from litsea cubeba)
• Lactones – fruity, peachy, coconut-like molecules extracted from fruits such as coconut and peach: gamma octalactone, gamma nonalactone, gamma decalactone, gamma dodecalactone, gamma undecalactone
• Ambrettolide – a soft, diffusive, natural musk; extracted from ambrette seeds or produced via fermentation

Reasons Why Some Perfumers May Choose Not to Use Natural Isolates

Some natural perfumers and natural perfume brands prefer to work exclusively with whole essential oils, absolutes, and CO₂ extracts because they want to retain the full complexity of the original botanical.

In addition, some certifications can also influence ingredient choices:

• The International Perfume Foundation: The IPF does not allow natural isolates of any kind within its certified natural perfumery standards.
• COSMOS Natural and COSMOS Organic: COSMOS permits natural isolates only if they are derived from natural, non-GMO sources and produced without petrochemical solvents.

In addition to a perfumer’s personal preference as well as requirements for certifications with various institutions, there are also different definitions as defined by regions and/or countries (this is important if a brand plans to sell their products in certain countries and label their products as being “natural”). For example, in the United States, we have what is known as “US Natural” and in the European Union, there is a separate designation called “EU Natural”. Both the US and EU define natural flavor (which is where natural isolates fall into) as those derived from natural raw materials (botanical, microbiological, or animal sources) and containing no synthetic or petrochemical constituents.

However, the key distinction lies in the manufacturing processes allowed:

• US Natural definition: Permits isolation or transformation of natural flavors using chemical reactions, including those involving inorganic catalysts, as long as the source material is natural.
• EU Natural definition: Requires that natural flavors be produced only through traditional or physical processes (e.g., heating, distillation, extraction, fermentation, enzymatic reactions) and prohibits the use of synthetic or inorganic catalysts in their manufacture.

In short, both require natural sourcing, but the EU focuses more on traditional, non-synthetic processing. This distinction is important for brands selling internationally or making specific “natural” claims.

How We Use Natural Isolates at Wit & West Perfumes

At Wit & West Perfumes, we handcraft perfumes and colognes composed of 100% all-natural botanicals and naturally derived ingredients, including distilled essential oils, CO₂ extracts, absolutes, natural isolates, and in-house extractions such as tinctures and enfleurage extraits.

Natural isolates play a role when:

• Our goal is to achieve specific effects that are not possible with essential oils or absolutes alone
• We are looking for ways to enhance transparency or texture
• We need to manage allergen levels for certain botanical ingredients (e.g., rose oil, due to its eugenol content)

Our focus is always on creating opulent, multilayered botanical perfumes and colognes while staying true to 100% all-natural, plant-derived ingredients.

If you’re interested in trying out Wit & West and our line of 100% all-natural perfumes and colognes, check out individual samples as well as our sample sets on our website by visiting the Wit & West Samples page. If you're new to natural perfume, we also have a sample set that's perfect for anyone who isn't familiar with the genre of natural perfume. The sample set includes five (5) of our most popular perfumes and colognes curated by Wit & West perfumer, Wit: New to Natural Perfume Sample Set.

Conclusion

Natural isolates are valuable tools for natural perfumers, offering expanded creative possibilities, improved longevity, enhanced flexibility, better allergen control, and more sustainable sourcing options. With continued innovation in natural and fermentation-based processes, these aroma molecules allow modern natural perfumery to remain both creative and true to its botanical roots.

References:

Nez. (n.d.). The many facets of natural perfumery: Some useful definitions. Retrieved from https://mag.bynez.com/en/reports/natural-perfumers/the-many-facets-of-natural-perfumery-some-useful-definitions/

Posner, A. (2025, April 1). Rethinking naturals: How thoughtful formulation is changing fragrance development. Perfumer & Flavorist. Retrieved from https://www.perfumerflavorist.com/fragrance/ingredients/news/22934661/rethinking-naturals-how-thoughtful-formulation-is-changing-fragrance-development