Magnolan gets a facelift
 
FYI, Neomagnolan in crystal form can expand when heated, so it's best to heat gently from multiple directions to avoid pressure build up or cracked beakers (this is only really relevant on larger containers). See the end of the description for more info. 
 
 
Magnolan is definitely one of the molecules I'd take with me if I had to be stranded on a desert island: I find it so pleasing and rounded and sunny, even all by itself.
 
Part of that roundedness, it has emerged, is because magnolan actually contains *multiple* isomers which (surprise surprise) all smell fairly different. This will be no shock to those who frequent Leffingwell's insightful archives, but is definitely not obvious when smelling normal magnolan.
 
Neomagnolan, which is the rel-(2R, 4R, 4aR, 9bS) isomer, is the concentrated, fresh, grapefruit-rose part of the OG magnolan. More sheer and transparent, it both graces with lightly veiled rosiness and pierces with acerbic sourness.
 
Check back for a newsletter soon, where I'll say more about how Symrise managed to diastereomerically enrich this already loved material, removing the slightly plastic note and placing it among perfumery greats like Paradisone and Arborone.
 
 
Extended reading:
Neomagnolan can be a little bit unpredictable. Once heated, sometimes it can stay as a gloopy liquid for months, other times it will crystalise and solidify. It can depend on whether there is a starter or "nucleation" crystal present. If it does solidify, I advise heating gently from multiple angles on a hotplate, starting at 50C and incrementing in 5-10'C increments (maximum 80-90C). The risk of heating too fast on larger glass containers is that the crystal wants to expand but doesn't have anywhere to go, which can cause the bottle to crack.