Helional®

Heart note
CAS# 1205-17-0
Manufacturer: IFF

Odor description: fresh, ozonic, floral, melon, marine

A legendary aroma molecule from the IFF portfolio, discovered in 1958 by IFF chemists Muus G.J. Beets and Harm van Essen and brought to market in the late 1960s — since then it has become one of the most important and most frequently used "modern" building blocks in perfumery. It is hard to name a marine, muguet or modern cologne composition in which Helional has not played some role.

Its olfactive profile is complex, fresh, watery and ozonic, with a distinctly green-floral character of lily of the valley and cyclamen. IFF's official description speaks of "green, floral (cyclamen) top notes with accents of ozone and new-mown hay" — but in practice, most perfumers perceive Helional above all as watery-ozonic and lightly melon-like, with a characteristic impression of freshly cut watermelon or honeydew. It is one of the first truly "aquatic" molecules in the history of perfumery — softer, more subtle and more versatile than the trickier-to-use Calone.