In short
gamma-Decalactone is a lactone found in peaches and apricots. It gives a juicy, fresh peach note.
What gamma-Decalactone smells like
gamma-Decalactone is a peach lactone — creamy peach or apricot in the flavour literature. Perfumery glossaries call it the peach-flesh lactone, creamier than aldehyde C-14 in their reading, with an overripe-peach quality that reads as peach cream at low levels and turns oily at higher ones. Others find it brighter and more fruit-forward than C-14, and less like 'artificial peach'. A flavour trade article notes the gamma lactones share similar peach notes, with only subtle differences.
- Leading note
- Ripe peach
- Clear facets
- Creamy
- Supporting facets
- Apricot
- Faint facets
- Oily, fatty
- Character
- Juicy, creamy, ripe
What makes gamma-Decalactone distinctive
Peach flesh rather than peach skin: ripe, creamy and natural-seeming, the most fruit-forward of the peach lactones.
Concentration and dilution
Peach cream at low levels; oily at higher levels.
Where the descriptions disagree: Sources disagree on which is creamier, gamma-decalactone or aldehyde C-14.
How gamma-Decalactone is used
Used in peach, apricot and fruity floral accords and in osmanthus and white-floral compositions, and widely in flavours.
Typical role: modifier (used in small amounts to change the character of a blend).
How gamma-Decalactone differs from similar materials
- gamma-Undecalactone (Aldehyde C-14)
- Sources agree the two peaches differ only subtly; most find aldehyde C-14 fattier, waxier and longer-lasting, and gamma-decalactone fresher and more like fruit flesh. (compared directly by a cited source)
- gamma-Dodecalactone
- gamma-Dodecalactone is fattier, richer and longer-lasting; gamma-decalactone is the brighter, fresher peach-apricot. (compared directly by a cited source)
- Osmanthus Absolute
- Osmanthus combines a peach-apricot lactone note with ionones, leather and tea; gamma-decalactone is the fruit alone.
- Jasmine Lactone
- Jasmine lactone carries peach skin into a waxy, floral petal note; gamma-decalactone is the fruit alone, ripe peach flesh.
An asterisk marks a difference that a cited source states directly. The others compare the published descriptions of each material. Smell varies with grade, supplier and dilution; compare them side by side on blotters before substituting one for another.
Formulation considerations
Stable in most bases.
Identity and classification
- Type
- Aroma chemical
- Origin
- Occurs in nature
- Odour family
- Fruity / Gourmand
- Note position
- Heart to base note
- Physical form at room temperature
- Liquid
- CAS number
- 706-14-9
- Molecular formula
- C10H18O2
- Molecular weight
- 170.25 g/mol
- IUPAC name
- 5-hexyloxolan-2-one
The CAS number, formula and molecular weight are taken from PubChem compound 12813, 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 report it as not meeting the GHS hazard criteria (1,780 of 1,930 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
-
gamma-Undecalactone (Aldehyde C-14)
Aroma chemical · Fruity / Gourmand — peach, apricot, creamy, fruity
-
Osmanthus Absolute
Absolute · Floral / Fruity — apricot, leathery, floral, tea-like
-
beta-Ionone
Aroma chemical · Powdery / Woody — violet, woody, fruity, raspberry
gamma-Decalactone is also suggested as a partner on the pages for 9-Decenoic Acid, Frangipani Absolute, gamma-Dodecalactone, Nectaryl, Tropifruit Givco 205 and Tuberolide.
Used in formulas and accords
Used in 10 published formulas
gamma-Decalactone is an ingredient in 3 perfume formulas, 6 accords and 1 base in the Formula & Accord Library.
Community formulas
RUŌOD House Originals
Original compositions by RUŌOD House.
Further reading
Questions about gamma-Decalactone
Is gamma-Decalactone natural or synthetic?
The molecule occurs in nature. Commercial gamma-Decalactone may be made by synthesis or obtained from natural sources, so check the supplier's specification if the distinction matters to you.
What is the CAS number of gamma-Decalactone?
706-14-9. It was checked against PubChem on 19 October 2026.
Which published formulas use gamma-Decalactone?
gamma-Decalactone is used in 10 published formulas in the RUŌOD Lab Formula & Accord Library, including Coconut Accord, Dried Fruits Accord and Gardenia Accord. Each is listed with a link under "Used in formulas and accords" on this page.
Sources
- PubChem — compound 12813, checked 19 October 2026.
- PubChem — GHS classification (the ECHA C&L Inventory notifications and any harmonised EU entry), read 26 October 2026.
- Premiere Peau — gamma decalactone — published perfumery reference.
- Scent.vn — gamma decalactone — distributor's description.
- GCI Magazine — gamma-dodecalactone in orchard, tropical, berry and dairy flavors — published literature.
- The Good Scents Company — peach odour category — 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.