Aldehydes may be described as waxy or soapy clean in character. Likened to the sparkling effect of peeling back a citrus rind, aldehydes are naturally occurring, but most often synthesized in a lab. May be fresh, fruity, floral and even metallic in character based on the type of Aldehyde used. Powerful in practice, dosage can be light, unless you are Coco Chanel who launched this category of aldehydic perfumes with her aldehyde-drunk Channel No 5.

Commonly used together with floral notes to give them more depth.