1-Octen-3-ol

Say itWUN-OK-ten-THREE-awl

Fresh-cut mushroom, earthy-metallic and slightly green, like damp forest floor.

What it is: A molecule made in a lab.
Where it comes from: occurs in mushrooms, made synthetically for perfumery
When you smell it: Heart: the first hours.
What perfumers do with it: Adds mushroomy, undergrowth realism to woody, mossy and lavender accords in tiny amounts.
Worth knowing: Mosquitoes home in on it in human breath and sweat; it also helps create the metallic smell of blood on skin.
Also called: Mushroom alcohol; matsutake alcohol; amyl vinyl carbinol

Not on the label of any of the 232 perfumes read so far.

Sources