Prompt Cast
The Science and Art of Perfume Making
TLDR Perfume is a complex mixture of alcohol, water, and smell molecules that evaporate into the air. Creating a pleasing scent is challenging due to individual differences in odorant receptors, and perfume companies use detailed briefs to create the desired scent.
Timestamped Summary
00:00
This podcast episode is about how perfume works.
05:57
Perfume has a long history and was originally used to cover up the smell of animal sacrifices, but it quickly became associated with sexuality and is still used today to stimulate sexuality in some form or fashion.
11:31
Perfume is made up of a concoction of alcohol, water, and smell molecules that evaporate into the air, and while some perfumes use essential oils, most perfumed products on the market are synthetic.
17:04
Perfume can be challenging to create because some odorants are not smelled by all people, and about 30% of odorant receptors differ from person to person, making it difficult to create a scent that is pleasing to a wide audience.
22:31
Originally, there were no gender differences among perfumes, but the idea that certain scents are feminine or masculine is a new and social construct, and there are various categorizations of scents in the perfume industry such as floral, fruity, green, herbaceous, woody, amber, and animalic.
27:51
Perfumes are heavily diluted with alcohol in order to allow the different notes to evaporate at different times, creating a flowing transition of scents.
33:29
Our sense of smell is unique to each individual, and when combined with body chemistry and skin, perfumes will smell differently on different people.
38:45
Perfume companies use detailed briefs to describe the specific scents they want and what they want the scent to convey, and then send these briefs to fragrance houses to start a competition to create the desired scent.
44:09
Perfume houses create multiple fragrance options based on detailed briefs, which are then tested and refined until the desired scent is achieved and chosen by the brand.
49:27
People wear perfume for various reasons depending on their age and gender, such as attracting a partner, following trends, or simply because they like the scent.
54:51
The preferences for certain smells can vary between cultures and individuals due to associative learning and evolutionary factors.
01:00:27
There is no scientific proof that cologne acts as a sexual attractant, and wearing too much of it can actually be overpowering and unpleasant.
Categories:
Society & Culture
