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image vial estragon
image estragon
image vial estragon

Estragon Oil

€12.00
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Premium Natural Ingredient for Perfumery

Estragon Oil, also known as Tarragon Oil or Artemisia dracunculus essential oil, is a natural anisic material with a fresh, green character and sweet-spicy undertones. Extracted by steam distillation of the flowering tops and leaves, it delivers a fennel-anise aroma with leafy and celery-like nuances. Unlike other Artemisia oils, Estragon stands out for its soft, spicy-sweet profile, and is a key trace material in chypre, fougère, and green floral compositions. Its high estragole content (~65%) contributes to its distinctive olfactive identity, though also raises questions about authenticity and adulteration in commercial supply chains.

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Premium Natural Ingredient for Perfumery

Estragon Oil, also known as Tarragon Oil or Artemisia dracunculus essential oil, is a natural anisic material with a fresh, green character and sweet-spicy undertones. Extracted by steam distillation of the flowering tops and leaves, it delivers a fennel-anise aroma with leafy and celery-like nuances. Unlike other Artemisia oils, Estragon stands out for its soft, spicy-sweet profile, and is a key trace material in chypre, fougère, and green floral compositions. Its high estragole content (~65%) contributes to its distinctive olfactive identity, though also raises questions about authenticity and adulteration in commercial supply chains.

Natural Ingredient Overview

  • 🏭 Supplier — Firmenich

  • 🔎 Botanical Name — Artemisia dracunculus

  • 🧪 Synonyms — Tarragon Oil, French Tarragon Essential Oil

  • 🧬 Chemical Formula — Complex mixture (main component: estragole ~65%)

  • 📂 CAS N° — 8016-88-4

  • 📘 FEMA — 3045

  • ⚖️ MW — Not applicable (mixture)

  • 📝 Odor type — Anisic / Green

  • 📈 Odor Strength — Medium

  • 👃🏼 Odor Profile — Leafy, green, sweet-anise, fennel-like, spicy, celery nuance

  • ⚗️ Uses — Used in trace amounts in chypre, fougère, green floral, and lilac accords; flavor use in vinegars and herbal liqueurs

  • 🧴 Appearance — Colorless to pale yellow or greenish-yellow liquid

What is Estragon Oil?

Estragon Oil is a natural essential oil obtained via steam distillation of Artemisia dracunculus, a small aromatic herb in the Asteraceae family. Native to Eurasia and cultivated globally as a culinary herb, tarragon is especially known for its sweet-aniseed flavor and aromatic potency.

The essential oil contains a high proportion (~65%) of estragole (methyl chavicol), responsible for its signature green-anisic note. Unlike harsher artemisia oils (e.g., Artemisia absinthium), Estragon offers a softer, more elegant profile, suited for refined perfumery work in trace amounts.

Its olfactory character is rich in green spice and anise notes, with delicate celery-like facets, making it a flexible yet complex material for use in creative compositions.

Olfactory Profile and Perfumery Applications

Estragon Oil provides a leafy, aniseed-fennel scent, softened by a sweet, green spice nuance and a celery-like freshness. It behaves as a top-to-heart note modifier, able to brighten or contrast deeper notes in classic structures.

It is especially effective in:

  • Chypre accords (e.g., L’Origan type structures)

  • Fougères and green floral blends

  • Lilac and herbal fantasy notes

  • Layering with galbanum, lavender, vanillin, isoeugenol, methyllonone

Typical dosage is trace to 0.1% in fragrance concentrate.

Adulteration and Authenticity

Due to its limited annual production (just over 1 ton globally), Estragon Oil is often adulterated—primarily with synthetic estragole, pine terpenes, or minor artemisia fractions.

Adulterated oils exhibit:

  • Shorter life on paper

  • Excessively clean drydown

  • Lack of herbaceous undertones

Authentic Estragon should display complexity, lasting sweetness, and a balance between green and spicy notes. Only thorough olfactory and GC analysis can confirm authenticity.

Flavor Applications

In flavoring, Estragon Oil is used as:

  • A substitute for fresh tarragon in vinegars and pickles

  • A herbal flavoring in liqueurs, sauces, and meat seasonings

Sweet-spicy taste reminiscent of anise, basil, and celery.
Recommended usage: 0.2–0.5 mg%
Minimum perceptible threshold: 0.06–0.12 mg%

Regulatory and Safety Overview

  • IFRA: Restricted due to estragole content. Must comply with specific limits based on application category (see IFRA Standards Amendment 51).

  • EU Allergen Listing: Contains estragole, a listed allergen and suspected carcinogen. Labeling required in cosmetics above 0.01% (leave-on).

  • FEMA GRAS: Listed under FEMA 3045 with limitations.

  • ECHA: Estragole is flagged for potential carcinogenicity. Estragon Oil must be assessed as a whole in formulations.

  • Toxicology: Estragole has shown genotoxicity and hepatocarcinogenicity in animal models. Usage must respect concentration thresholds and safety limits.

⚠️ Use with caution, especially in leave-on products and flavor applications. Consult up-to-date IFRA and EU regulations.

Sources

  • Arctander, S. Perfume and Flavor Chemicals (1969)

  • IFRA Standards Documentation

  • FEMA GRAS Database – FEMA 3045

  • ECHA Substance Information – Estragole

  • PubChem CID 8815 – Estragole

  • Fulvio Ciccolo, Scentspiracy Technical Archive

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