Ambranum

What Ambranum smells like

Fraterworks, which resells it and names Firmenich as the manufacturer, describes Ambranum as a rich, complex amber, warm and woody-ambery with sweet balsamic undertones — the sweet warmth of vanilla with the resinous character of Peru balsam — and recommends it for oriental, woody and amber compositions. It is a pale gold liquid. Firmenich's own listing describes a sensual, resinous, warm amber with vanilla and incense facets, slightly vanillic and balsamic with gourmand touches, and states that it contains no animalic compounds.

Leading note

Warm amber

Clear facets

Balsamic

Supporting facets

Woody, vanillic

Character

Warm, rich

• ambery
• woody
• balsamic
• sweet
• warm

What makes Ambranum distinctive

An amber built on vanilla sweetness and Peru-balsam resin, as Fraterworks describes it, rather than on labdanum alone.

How Ambranum is used

Used as an amber building block in oriental, woody and amber compositions.

Typical role: fixative (slow to evaporate; helps a blend last and holds lighter notes); modifier (used in small amounts to change the character of a blend).

How Ambranum differs from similar materials

Peru Balsam Resinoid

Peru balsam resinoid is one raw balsam, cinnamic and vanillic; Ambranum is a finished amber base that its maker describes as resinous with vanilla and incense facets, balsam being only one part of it.

Each difference compares the published descriptions of the two materials. Smell varies with grade, supplier and dilution; compare them side by side on blotters before substituting one for another.

Formulation considerations

A proprietary mixture: its maker does not publish what it contains.

Identity and classification

Type

Specialty base

Origin

Composition not published

Odour family

Amber / Woody

Note position

Base note

Physical form at room temperature

Liquid

Also known as

Ambranum 908685

No CAS number is shown: Ambranum is a proprietary blend, and a blend has no registry number of its own. Its maker does not publish its composition, so none is given here.

Safety and compliance

This page is general information, not a safety assessment or a specification. Confirm identity, composition, IFRA status and allergen content from your supplier's documents for the lot you hold.

Materials it works with

• Labdanum Absolute

  Absolute · Amber / Leather — amber, balsamic, leathery, animalic

• Vanillin

  Aroma chemical · Gourmand / Amber — vanilla, sweet, creamy

• Benzoin Resinoid (Siam)

  Resinoid · Amber / Gourmand — vanillic, balsamic, sweet, warm

Used in formulas and accords

Used in 1 published formula

Ambranum is an ingredient in 1 accord in the Formula & Accord Library.

• Jasmine Rice Accord

  Community Formula · Accord

Further reading

• Building an Amber Accord: Labdanum, Balsams and Vanilla

  What amber means in perfumery (not ambergris, not fossil amber), its building blocks, an illustrative accord, and practical issues of color and sweetness.

Questions about Ambranum

Sources

• Fraterworks — Ambranum (Firmenich 908685) — distributor's description.
• Firmenich — Ambranum (PE 908685) — manufacturer's description.
• Olfactory profile: the RUŌOD Lab team's synthesis of the published descriptions above, reviewed 26 October 2026. Evidence: more than one published description. Classification and the short description: revision 1. Descriptions of odour are judgement, not measurement.