Hay

Hay in perfume is a warm, sweet note that evokes dried grasses and summer meadows, with facets of tobacco, honey and almond. Its signature smell comes largely from coumarin, the same molecule found in tonka beans, and it is used to add a soft, sunny, countryside warmth to fougère, tobacco and ambery fragrances.

What does Hay smell like?

Hay smells like a sun-dried field: sweet, dry and slightly herbal, with a nutty almond and tonka-like warmth, hints of tobacco leaf and honey, and a faint green note of cut grass drying in the sun. It is warmer and sweeter than green grass notes and more rustic and herbal than tonka on its own. Natural hay absolute has a dark, rich, almost leathery depth, while hay accords can be lighter and more powdery.

Where Hay comes from

Hay absolute is obtained by solvent extraction of dried grasses, often including sweet vernal grass and other coumarin-rich meadow plants. It is produced in limited quantities, mainly in Europe, and many perfumers instead reconstruct hay using coumarin and other materials.

  • Also known as: Hay absolute, foin (French), new-mown hay
  • Fragrance family: Aromatic / ambery
  • Type: Natural and synthetic
  • Main origins: Mainly European meadows
  • How it's obtained: Solvent extraction of dried grasses; also recreated with coumarin
  • Key aroma molecules: Coumarin, dihydrocoumarin

Hay in perfume history

The smell of new-mown hay was one of perfumery's first fashionable themes in the 19th century. Once coumarin could be synthesised, from 1868, perfumers could reproduce it reliably, and hay notes became part of the foundation of the fougère family that began with Houbigant's Fougère Royale (1882).

Hay in modern perfumery

Hay appears today in tobacco, fougère and ambery fragrances, and in niche compositions inspired by the countryside, harvest time and dried flowers. Hay absolute is prized for its naturalistic depth but used sparingly because of cost and colour.

How Hay wears and what it pairs with

Hay is a heart-to-base note with good longevity. It pairs with tobacco, tonka, lavender, honey, immortelle, chamomile, vetiver and leather.

Safety and regulation

Hay absolute is rich in coumarin, which must be listed on EU cosmetic labels above set thresholds and is restricted by IFRA.

Fragrances with Hay