In short
Ethyl phenylacetate is an ester with a sweet, honey-floral note. It is a building block of honey accords.
What Ethyl Phenylacetate smells like
Ethyl phenylacetate is sweet and honey-like with rose and fruity facets. Supplier and database profiles put floral, sweet and honey first, then rose, balsamic and fruity; Sigma-Aldrich's food-grade listing ranges widely, from apricot, cherry and pineapple to rose, waxy and wine-like. Perfumery sources describe it supporting rose and white florals such as jasmine and orange blossom, with ripe, mellow fruity undertones on a light balsamic, slightly powdery background.
- Leading note
- Sweet floral honey
- Clear facets
- Rose
- Supporting facets
- Ripe fruit, apricot
- Faint facets
- Balsamic, waxy
- Character
- Sweet, soft, mellow
What makes Ethyl Phenylacetate distinctive
The gentlest of the honey esters: rosy, fruity and mellow, without the acid's animal note or the methyl ester's force.
How Ethyl Phenylacetate is used
Used in honey, rose and white-floral accords, and in fruit and honey flavours.
Typical role: modifier (used in small amounts to change the character of a blend).
How Ethyl Phenylacetate differs from similar materials
- Methyl Phenylacetate
- The methyl ester is stronger, with jasmine and a musky drydown; the ethyl ester is softer, with rose and ripe fruit.
- Phenylacetic Acid
- The acid is heavier and animalic; ethyl phenylacetate is a sweet floral honey with rose and fruit.
- Phenylethyl Phenylacetate
- Phenylethyl phenylacetate is heavier and far more tenacious, dried rose petal and dense honey; the ethyl ester is lighter and fruitier.
Each difference compares the published descriptions of the two materials. Smell varies with grade, supplier and dilution; compare them side by side on blotters before substituting one for another.
Formulation considerations
Stable in most bases.
Identity and classification
- Type
- Aroma chemical
- Origin
- Occurs in nature
- Odour family
- Gourmand / Floral
- Note position
- Heart note
- Physical form at room temperature
- Liquid
- CAS number
- 101-97-3
- Molecular formula
- C10H12O2
- Molecular weight
- 164.2 g/mol
- IUPAC name
- ethyl 2-phenylacetate
The CAS number, formula and molecular weight are taken from PubChem compound 7590, whose own record lists this CAS number; checked 19 October 2026.
Safety and compliance
Hazard classification of the neat substance, as PubChem summarises it, read 26 October 2026. Companies notifying the ECHA C&L Inventory report it as not meeting the GHS hazard criteria (1,778 of 1,782 reports). Unless it is harmonised, this is the notifiers' own classification, not a binding one.
This page is general information, not a safety assessment or a specification. Confirm identity, composition, IFRA status and allergen content from your supplier's documents for the lot you hold.
Materials it works with
-
Phenylacetic Acid
Aroma chemical · Animalic / Gourmand — honey, animalic, sweet, waxy
-
Phenylethyl Phenylacetate
Aroma chemical · Floral / Gourmand — honey, rose, balsamic
Ethyl Phenylacetate is also suggested as a partner on the pages for Isobutyl Phenylacetate and Methyl Phenylacetate.
Used in formulas and accords
Used in 2 published formulas
Ethyl Phenylacetate is an ingredient in 2 perfume formulas in the Formula & Accord Library.
RUŌOD House Originals
Original compositions by RUŌOD House.
Further reading
Questions about Ethyl Phenylacetate
Is Ethyl Phenylacetate natural or synthetic?
The molecule occurs in nature. Commercial Ethyl Phenylacetate may be made by synthesis or obtained from natural sources, so check the supplier's specification if the distinction matters to you.
What is the CAS number of Ethyl Phenylacetate?
101-97-3. It was checked against PubChem on 19 October 2026.
Which published formulas use Ethyl Phenylacetate?
Ethyl Phenylacetate is used in 2 published formulas in the RUŌOD Lab Formula & Accord Library: Beeswax Throne and Linden Afternoon. Each is listed with a link under "Used in formulas and accords" on this page.
Sources
- PubChem — compound 7590, checked 19 October 2026.
- PubChem — GHS classification (the ECHA C&L Inventory notifications and any harmonised EU entry), read 26 October 2026.
- The Good Scents Company — ethyl phenylacetate — odour database.
- Scentspiracy — Ethyl phenylacetate — distributor's description.
- ChemicalBook — ethyl phenylacetate (CAS 101-97-3) — odour database.
- Olfactory profile: the RUŌOD Lab team's synthesis of the published descriptions above, reviewed 20 October 2026. Evidence: more than one published description. Classification and the short description: revision 1. Descriptions of odour are judgement, not measurement.