Labdanum absolute

Say itLAB-duh-num absolute

Dark, sweet amber with leather, dried fruit, honey and a salty animal edge.

What it is: Natural absolute from sticky gum of rockrose (Cistus ladanifer).
Where it comes from: Spain, Morocco
When you smell it: Dry-down: what stays.
What perfumers do with it: Backbone of classic amber and chypre accords; adds warmth, leathery depth and ambergris-like richness.
Worth knowing: Cretan shepherds once combed it from goats' beards, which picked up the sticky resin while grazing among rockrose bushes.
Also called: Ciste labdanum absolute; rockrose gum absolute

Named by the house, not on the label, in 84