Mimosa Absolute

#### Mimosa Absolute from Concrète. Like many other perfume plants, **Acacia Decurrens**, a native of Australia, was brought to Europe as an ornamental plant in the early part of the 19th century. The tree is known in Australia under the name of **Sidney**** ****Black**** ****Wattle**** **and is used as a tanning material. Other mimosa species were introduced at about the same time, but these have found more application in the florists' business. **Mimosa Concrète **is produced from the flowers and the twig-ends of the above species by extraction with petroleum ether. It is worth noting that material other than just the flowers is used, but at the same time it must be emphasized that extracts obtained from flowers exclusively are available also. They obviously command a higher price, but they also yield a richer, more floral-sweet, true-to-the-flower odor. Ultrasonic extracts of mimosa flowers and twigs are available. Extractions are made almost exclusively in the south of France where the trees grow most abundantly. Small quantities are treated in Italy. The harvest takes place in the very early spring, and the entire production is often sold out before the end of the year. The heavy frost in January- February 1956 killed all the mimosa trees in certain areas of southern France, and mimosa absolute was practically unavailable for a year or two. **Mimosa Concrète **is a hard and wax-like, pale yellow or whitish yellow-opaque material of a sweet-woody, fatty and deep-floral odor. The author does not agree with the recent statements of authors who claim that the odor of mimosa concrète "is in no way reminiscent of that of the flower". This is, of course, a matter of opinion, but the author of the present work finds that good and true mimosa concrètes, produced exclusively from flowers, do smell suggestively of the flowers of mimosa (acacia decurrens). It is agreed that the concrète has a pronounced waxy-sweet, almost honeylike undertone, but its sweetness is certainly of a true-to-nature floral character. The author is inclined to believe that the statement quoted above is based upon studies of so-called mimosa-replacements which were flourishing in the perfume industry during 1956 and 1957. **Mimosa**** ****Concrète**, as such, finds application in perfumery primarily in soap perfumes where its outstanding fixative value accompanies its delicate, woody-floral, slightly green notes. For lilac, muguet, new mown hay, violet and similar floral and herbaceous-coumarinic types, a small addition of mimosa concrète can do wonders. In amounts of 0.5 percent up to 2.0 percent in a soap perfume, this material can make all the difference between a flat, common or nondescript odor, and a radiant, natural, deep-rich and intriguingly interesting fragrance of unusual tenacity and stability in soap. **Mimosa Absolute **is prepared from the concrète as described in Part One of this book. The absolute is a very viscous, ambercolored or yellowish liquid, similar in appearance to fresh honey. Its odor is very rich, floral-woody, slightly green and resembling cassie absolute to a certain degree. It is sweeter and more natural flower-like, but less spicy-complex than cassie. Mimose absolute blends perfectly with ionones, methylionones, isoeugenol, cassione (!), heliotropine, anisyl alcohol and esters, alpha terpineol, phenylethyl alcohol, di- methyl benzyl carbinol, dimethyl phenylethyl carbinol, michelia leaf oil, terpeneless lavandin oil, amyl salicylate, ylang-ylang oil or absolute, tri-methyl undecylic aldehyde (traces), hydroxycitronellal, anisyl acetone, cinnamic alcohol or styrax products (styrene-free), linalool, bucinal (para-tertiary butyl alpha methyl hydrocinnamic aldehyde), methyl para-toluate, benzyl acetate, indole (traces for lilac), etc. The absolute is used in numerous lilac bases, violet, muguet, high-class new mown hay, colognes, ambres, etc. Actually. mimosa absolute will generally act to round off the "rough notes" from synthetic materials, and "lift" the natural materials in a perfume composition. The radiance deriving from the mimosa absolute alone is amazing, and taking this fact into consideration, the material is very economical. Its normal price level is slightly above that of true cardamom oil. The annual production of Mimosa Concrète fluctuates (according to demand and to frosts!) between 200 kilos and about l ton. The amount of absolute produced is in the neighborhood of 100 to 300 kilos. The author has seen thousands of Acacia Decurrens' and other Acacias useful for perfume extraction growing wild or semi-wild in all parts of northern, northeastern and central- eastern Africa. Unfortunately, these trees are often located far from inhabited areas. The botanical material for an increased production of Mimosa Concrète and Mimosa Absolute is abundantly available.