I came across the descriptor “coumarinic” twice today - twice! Its used to describe hay-vanilla-almond like. I came across it when I did my fragrance test for Palo Santo (Bursera graveolens) and Oakwood Chip CO2 (Quercus sessilis).
I highly recommend anyone interested in essential oils, anyone purchasing an essential oil, to do a blind-fragrance test. I’ve been doing one for about a month, each day picking a new oil, and without looking at the name, describing to myself what it smells like. It‘s been a really eye-opening experience. First, when you look at an oil name, your brain will assume what it’s supposed to smell like (for example, black pepper). But when you do the test blind, you don’t have those preconceived ideas. Second, when you repeat the exercise at certain intervals, like again after 20 minutes and 2 hours, you start to notice different odors and what was a first impression may actually linger or dissipate completely. Finally, when you compare your notes to how others describe the oil, you get to develop your olfactory palette and vocabulary. And, you can also see where you have perceived it differently - and that could totally be because the oils were cultivated under different conditions. It’s an art and a science.
For me, Palo Santo is coumarinic (agrestic and balsamic), woody, camphorous, and smokey. Oakwood Chip CO2 was less complex: coumarinic (vanilla, maple like) and woody.