Carnation Absolute

#### Carnation Absolute. Known in France as "absolue d'eillet", **Carnation Absolute **is produced by extraction of the flowers of **Dianthus Caryophyllus**, the common garden carnation. The plant is grown for the purpose of cutting the flowers (for decorations, etc.), but at the end of the season, the flowers are extracted with petroleum ether to yield a hard, green concrète. Cultivation takes place in most European countries and in the U.S.A. Production of the concrète and absolute, however, is carried out only in France, Holland, Germany, and Italy. An absolute is produced by the usual alcohol washing method (see Part One in this book: **Absolute).** **Carnation **is an olive green to green or orange- brown, viscous liquid of very sweet, honeylike, somewhat herbaceous, heavy and tenacious fragrance, reminiscent of the odor of the live flowers only to a certain degree and only in high dilutions (5% or weaker). The yield of absolute from concrète is very small (about 10 to 25%), and since the yield of the concrète itself is also poor (0.2 to 0.3% of the weight of the flowers), the production of **Carnation Absolute **is a costly one. Consequently, adulteration occurs quite frequently, mainly in the form of "cutting", and it may be difficult to detect. Synthetic materials such as isoeugenol, methyl eugenol, benzyl benzoate, methyl salicylate, etc. or small amounts of everlasting absolute, flouve oil, clove bud absolute, etc. can be added, and these can make the odor of the "sophisticated" absolute even more similar to that of the flower. **Carnation Absolute **is used sparingly in certain modern perfumes, and it can add interesting notes to rose, lily, narcissus, etc. It blends well with lavender, ylang-ylang, sage clary, castoreum, etc. The annual production of carnation absolute has diminished considerably, and is now estimated at 20 to 30 kilos.