Indole

Indole is perfumery's great shapeshifter. In tiny doses, it is the intoxicating, narcotic sweetness at the heart of jasmine, tuberose, and orange blossom - lush, heady, and deeply seductive. Push the concentration higher, and its character flips dramatically toward animalic, fecal, and mothball-like territory. This dual personality is precisely what makes indole so fascinating: it is the molecule that gives white flowers their dangerous, almost indecent allure.