Aldehyde C-18

Say itAL-dih-hyde see-ay-TEEN

Creamy coconut flesh and suntan lotion, with a soft fatty sweetness.

What it is: A molecule made in a lab.
Where it comes from: synthetic, traces occur naturally in many foods
When you smell it: Heart: the first hours.
What perfumers do with it: The standard coconut note; adds creamy, sun-warmed skin effects to florals and gourmands.
Worth knowing: Another misnomer: it is a lactone, not an aldehyde, and the number does not count its nine carbons.
Also called: gamma-Nonalactone; coconut aldehyde

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