Alcohol volume in colognes

I bought my fair share of Turkish colognes lately and all came with different volumes of alcohol: some are 60°, others are 70° and it goes up to 80°.

How does this difference impact on the scent itself? Does it make it last longer? or smell stronger? Or is it solely a matter of economy, to produce the cologne at a cheaper cost?

Enlighten me please, gents.

Alcohol helps the scent last longer for sure, and maybe stronger too. Colognes are usually between 60 and 85. A cologne with 60 volumes of alcohol can be used as an after shave too. Eau de toilette is from 85 and above.

odysseas said:

Alcohol helps the scent last longer for sure, and maybe stronger too. Colognes are usually between 60 and 85. A cologne with 60 volumes of alcohol can be used as an after shave too. Eau de toilette is from 85 and above.

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Funny I thought it was the contrary: the more alcohol, the less the scent lasts.

Folace said:

Funny I thought it was the contrary: the more alcohol, the less the scent lasts.

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In general, you are correct, but there are more variables in play than just that. A lot of it depends on the strength of the fragrance oils used, and what else is being used besides alcohol and fragrance. Aftershaves usually add water (among other things) to the mix, which reduce the alcohol percentage, but don't add to strength of scent. Therefore, Odysseas's claim that 60% volume colognes can be used as an aftershave requires qualification. If the cologne is just alcohol and fragrance (i.e., 60% alcohol, 40% fragrance) odds are the scent would be far too potent to go splashing on one's face; indeed, it would be in Eau de Parfum territory. If you splashed that on, nobody would be able to stand being in the same room with you. If an aftershave is, say, 60% alcohol, 35% water, and 5% fragrance, it would probably be better suited to the job.

The take-home, though, is alcohol percentage matters less than concentration of fragrance oil: more fragrance oil means more potent scent.

Jerry-built Hustler said:

In general, you are correct, but there are more variables in play than just that. A lot of it depends on the strength of the fragrance oils used, and what else is being used besides alcohol and fragrance. Aftershaves usually add water (among other things) to the mix, which reduce the alcohol percentage, but don't add to strength of scent. Therefore, Odysseas's claim that 60% volume colognes can be used as an aftershave requires qualification. If the cologne is just alcohol and fragrance (i.e., 60% alcohol, 40% fragrance) odds are the scent would be far too potent to go splashing on one's face; indeed, it would be in Eau de Parfum territory. If you splashed that on, nobody would be able to stand being in the same room with you. If an aftershave is, say, 60% alcohol, 35% water, and 5% fragrance, it would probably be better suited to the job.

The take-home, though, is alcohol percentage matters less than concentration of fragrance oil: more fragrance oil means more potent scent.

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You miss an important thing: colognes have 2-6% fragrance by definition. You can't have a cologne with 40% fragrance, because it won't be a cologne anymore, but an eau de parfum, and they would sell it at a price of an eau de parfum.

odysseas said:

You miss an important thing: colognes have 2-6% fragrance by definition. You can't have a cologne with 40% fragrance, because it won't be a cologne anymore, but an eau de parfum, and they would sell it at a price of an eau de parfum.

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I see. I might have caught your point better if you had used the term "eau de cologne," which typically designates a scent concentration, rather than "cologne," which often is used as a generic term virtually interchangeable with "eau de toilette," or, more broadly, fragrance in general. At least, that's how I've come to understand the lingo, and how I used the term "cologne" in my prior post.

Don't let the alcohol volume to fool you too much. It doesn't necessarily mean that the rest of the stuff would be "fragrance". It could be water or something else, too.

Interesting post, guys. Thanks for the education.

I've never found any correlation between listed typical alcohol concentration in EDTs and fragrance performance (endurance/projection).
Regards,
Renato

Folace said:

Funny I thought it was the contrary: the more alcohol, the less the scent lasts.

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Jerry-built Hustler said:

In general, you are correct, but there are more variables in play than just that. A lot of it depends on the strength of the fragrance oils used, and what else is being used besides alcohol and fragrance.

The take-home, though, is alcohol percentage matters less than concentration of fragrance oil: more fragrance oil means more potent scent.

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Phil & Jerry:
...while I'm a not a 'perfumer', we all know that aftershave (AS), products contain an astringent (perfumers alcohol), which closes the pores of the skin, improving the appearance of the skin, and helps prevent infection. AS's in comparison to colognes will have a higher percentage of water and because of the fairly low amount of alcohol...it's OK to reapply during the day if needed or desired.

Many AS products contain a moisturizer, but if your AS is 'drying' upon the face & body...the addition of glycerin will fix this problem (I add about 8-10 drops of glycerin per 8oz bottle of vintage Clubman Club Royale).

Also, AS's will have a lot less (percentage wise...1-3%), essential scent oils / aromatic compounds than edts or colognes which is another reason why AS will not have a lasting effect than either edts and colognes.

Most colognes on the other hand will have a concentration of only 3%-8% essential scent oils / aromatic compounds and in my opinion is only good for making you smell nice and does not have any other properties, such as being a AS.

That said, colognes are designed to adhere to both the skin and clothing for a longer period of time and this can be attributed to the high concentrations of alcohol found in many colognes.

However, the higher the percentage of essential oils / compounds...the longer your cologne will last, and the less you need to apply even though your own nose will become accustomed to the scent and you will think it has worn off.
So in essence...the choice is yours...experimentation is one good start...just my

The Wikipedia definition is well stated and defined as follow;

"Perfume Extract or simply Perfume (Extrait): 15-40% (IFRA: typical 20%) aromatic compounds.

Esprit de Parfum (ESdP): 15-30% aromatic compounds, a seldom used strength concentration in between EdP
and perfume.

Eau de Parfume (EdP), Parfum de Toilette (PdT): 10-20% (typical ~15%) aromatic compounds, sometimes listed as "eau de perfume" or "millésime." Parfum de Toilette is a less common term that is generally analogous to Eau de Parfum.

Eau de toilette (EdT): 5-15% (typical ~10%) aromatic compounds.

Eau de Cologne (EdC): Citrus type perfumes with 3-8% (typical ~5%) aromatic compounds. "Original Eau de Cologne" is a registered trademark.

Perfume Mist: 3-8% aromatic compounds (typical non-alcohol solvent).

Splash (EdS) and Aftershave: 1-3% aromatic compounds".

Read More: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perfume

[FONT=&amp] “Happiness is like [aftershave and/or cologne]: You can't give it away without getting a little on yourself". Tonsumology (the study of shaving), Slogan[/FONT]

Folace said:

Funny I thought it was the contrary: the more alcohol, the less the scent lasts.

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.It is the contrary...Higher the proof,the more rapid the evaporation.I prefer 80-90%,I don't use aftershave for smelling good all day,I use it to disinfect the shave,it's original purpose,the nice scents are just an added bonus...