Dimethyl Benzyl Carbinol

What Dimethyl Benzyl Carbinol smells like

Dimethyl benzyl carbinol is a low-strength, fresh floral-green material. Arctander, as quoted in supplier listings, describes a soft, floral-green, mildly herbaceous, oily odour reminiscent of lily and hyacinth, and calls it an excellent material for lilac, narcissus, jasmine, muguet and other florals. The Good Scents Company lists clean, floral, green, rose and rhubarb; one supplier adds a fruity, bergamot and peach-like freshness, while an older evaluation found a more medicinal, phenolic, narcissus-like side.

Leading note

Fresh floral-green

Clear facets

Lily and hyacinth

Supporting facets

Mildly herbaceous

Faint facets

Rhubarb, peach

Character

Soft, fresh, clean, mild

• floral
• lilac
• herbal
• earthy

What makes Dimethyl Benzyl Carbinol distinctive

A soft, clean floral-green that is valued more as a blender for lilac and other white florals than for any striking note of its own.

Where the descriptions disagree: Most describe it as clean floral-green; one older evaluation found it medicinal and phenolic, and a supplier fruity and peach-like.

How Dimethyl Benzyl Carbinol is used

Used in lilac, narcissus, jasmine and muguet compositions, as Arctander noted, where it adds a fresh, green floral lift.

Typical role: blender (smooths the joins between other materials).

How Dimethyl Benzyl Carbinol differs from similar materials

Phenylethyl Dimethyl Carbinol

Phenylethyl dimethyl carbinol is described as drier, more lily- and rose-like, with a linalool-like freshness; dimethyl benzyl carbinol is softer, greener and slightly oily, with a rhubarb nuance.

Dimethyl Benzyl Carbinyl Acetate

The acetate adds pear, plum and a slight fattiness; the carbinol is the softer floral-green, lily and hyacinth.

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.

Identity and classification

Type

Aroma chemical

Origin

Synthetic

Odour family

Floral / Green

Note position

Heart note

Physical form at room temperature

Liquid

Also known as

DMBC, 2-Methyl-1-phenylpropan-2-ol

CAS number

100-86-7

Molecular formula

C10H14O

Molecular weight

150.22 g/mol

IUPAC name

2-methyl-1-phenylpropan-2-ol

The CAS number, formula and molecular weight are taken from PubChem compound 7531, whose own record lists this CAS number; checked 19 October 2026.

Safety and compliance

Hazard classification of the neat substance, as PubChem summarises it, read 26 October 2026. Companies notifying the ECHA C&L Inventory classify it (1,866 reports): H302 harmful if swallowed (100% of reports). Unless it is harmonised, this is the notifiers' own classification, not a binding one.

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

• Dimethyl Benzyl Carbinyl Acetate

  Aroma chemical · Fruity / Floral — fruity, pear, floral, plum

• alpha-Terpineol

  Aroma chemical · Floral / Aromatic — lilac, floral, piney, herbal

• Phenylethyl Alcohol

  Aroma chemical · Floral / Green — rose, honeyed, soft, floral

• Hydroxycitronellal

  Aroma chemical · Floral / Green — muguet, floral, soft, sweet

Dimethyl Benzyl Carbinol is also suggested as a partner on the pages for Dimethyl Benzyl Carbinyl Butyrate and Phenylethyl Dimethyl Carbinol.

Used in formulas and accords

Used in 1 published formula

Dimethyl Benzyl Carbinol is an ingredient in 1 perfume formula in the Formula & Accord Library.

RUŌOD House Originals

Original compositions by RUŌOD House.

• Cut Stem Atelier

  RUŌOD House Original

Further reading

• How to Make a Lilac Accord

  Building lilac from aroma chemicals: terpineol, heliotropin, phenylethyl alcohol and indole, an illustrative accord, balancing it and restrictions to check.

• Perfume Materials by Odor Family: A Formulator's Palette Map

  Which materials build each odor family — citrus, floral, woody, amber, musk and more — their usual roles, what to watch for, and links to each in depth.

Questions about Dimethyl Benzyl Carbinol

Sources

• PubChem — compound 7531, checked 19 October 2026.
• PubChem — GHS classification (the ECHA C&L Inventory notifications and any harmonised EU entry), read 26 October 2026.
• The Good Scents Company — dimethyl benzyl carbinol — odour database.
• Perflavory (The Good Scents Company) — alpha,alpha-dimethylphenethyl alcohol (quoting Arctander) — odour database.
• ChemicalBook — dimethyl benzyl carbinol (CAS 100-86-7) — odour database.
• Olfactory profile: the RUŌOD Lab team's synthesis of the published descriptions above, reviewed 20 October 2026. Evidence: more than one published description. Classification and the short description: revision 1. Descriptions of odour are judgement, not measurement.