Perfumes with star anise

Star anise smells sweet, warm and licorice-like with a gentle spice; it resembles anise but is perceived as sharper and spicier, with a slightly woody warmth.

The dried star-shaped fruits of Illicium verum, a tree grown in China and Vietnam, are steam-distilled into an essential oil dominated by anethole. The scent recalls licorice sweets and warm spice. Star anise is used mostly in the top of a fragrance and often in the heart. It pairs with cinnamon, clove, lavender, tonka, vanilla, cardamom and woods.

star anise appears in 921 perfumes in the Fisfis catalogue and is used mostly as a top note.