In short
Phenylethyl alcohol (2-phenylethanol) is the main constituent of rose water and rose absolute. It is a mild, rosy material used in large amounts as the body of rose accords.
What Phenylethyl Alcohol smells like
Phenylethyl alcohol is a mild, warm rose with a honeyed character. Arctander, quoted in patent filings, describes it as mild and warm, rose-honey-like, of moderate to poor tenacity, and notes that poorer grades show earthy or pungent hyacinth-like or 'gassy' green top notes. Mosciano adds sweet, floral, fresh and bready with a rosy-honey nuance. Pure material smells only faintly rosy in water. It is the main constituent of rose water and a large part of rose absolute.
- Leading note
- Mild rose
- Clear facets
- Honey
- Faint facets
- Bready, fresh green
- Character
- Mild, warm, soft, sweet
What makes Phenylethyl Alcohol distinctive
Softness. It is the gentle, honeyed rose — never sharp — that rounds out rose accords and makes rose absolute fuller than rose oil.
Concentration and dilution
Pure material smells only mildly rosy, and faint in water; impurities stand out much more strongly than the alcohol itself.
How Phenylethyl Alcohol is used
Used in large amounts in rose and floral compositions as a soft, honeyed body note, and widely in cosmetics and flavours. Its quality depends heavily on purity.
Typical role: backbone (used in large proportions as a structural material of an accord); blender (smooths the joins between other materials).
How Phenylethyl Alcohol differs from similar materials
- Phenylethyl Acetate
- The acetate is fruitier and sweeter — rose and honey with peach and a yeasty note; the alcohol is the milder, warmer rose.
- Rose Absolute (Rosa centifolia)
- A glossary credits rose absolute's fuller, petal-like character to the phenylethyl alcohol it keeps; the alcohol alone is milder and simpler. (compared directly by a cited source)
- Phenoxanol
- One glossary describes Phenoxanol as less heavy than phenylethyl alcohol and greener; phenylethyl alcohol is the warmer, honeyed rose. (compared directly by a cited source)
- Phenylethyl Benzoate
- Its benzoate ester is a faint, tenacious rose-honey fixative; phenylethyl alcohol is the light, fresh rose.
- Peomosa
- Peomosa, the ring-methylated relative, moves the rose towards peony and mimosa, with green and earthy facets.
An asterisk marks a difference that a cited source states directly. The others compare the published descriptions of each material. Smell varies with grade, supplier and dilution; compare them side by side on blotters before substituting one for another.
Formulation considerations
Stable and easy to use; it can carry a faint chemical note in lower grades.
Identity and classification
- Type
- Aroma chemical
- Origin
- Occurs in nature
- Odour family
- Floral / Green
- Note position
- Heart note
- Physical form at room temperature
- Liquid
- Also known as
- 2-Phenylethanol, PEA
- CAS number
- 60-12-8
- Molecular formula
- C8H10O
- Molecular weight
- 122.16 g/mol
- IUPAC name
- 2-phenylethanol
The CAS number, formula and molecular weight are taken from PubChem compound 6054, 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 classify it (2,688 reports): H319 causes serious eye irritation (94.5% of reports); H302 harmful if swallowed (81.5% of reports). 2 of the reports find it does not meet the hazard criteria. 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
-
Citronellol
Aroma chemical · Floral / Green — rosy, fresh, citrus, waxy
-
Geraniol
Aroma chemical · Floral / Citrus — rosy, sweet, citrus, fresh
-
Rose Oil (Rosa damascena)
Essential oil · Floral / Fruity — rose, honeyed, spicy, fresh
-
Phenylethyl Acetate
Aroma chemical · Floral / Fruity — rosy, fruity, honeyed, sweet
-
beta-Damascone
Aroma chemical · Fruity / Floral — fruity, rose, plum, blackcurrant
Phenylethyl Alcohol is also suggested as a partner on the pages for Acetaldehyde Ethyl Linalyl Acetal, Acetaldehyde Ethyl Phenylethyl Acetal, Cinnamyl Acetate, Dimethyl Hydroquinone, Dupical and Geranyl Isovalerate.
Used in formulas and accords
Used in 75 published formulas
Phenylethyl Alcohol is an ingredient in 39 perfume formulas, 30 accords and 6 bases in the Formula & Accord Library.
Community formulas
RUŌOD House Originals
Original compositions by RUŌOD House.
Further reading
Questions about Phenylethyl Alcohol
Is Phenylethyl Alcohol natural or synthetic?
The molecule occurs in nature. Commercial Phenylethyl Alcohol 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 Phenylethyl Alcohol?
60-12-8. It was checked against PubChem on 19 October 2026.
Which published formulas use Phenylethyl Alcohol?
Phenylethyl Alcohol is used in 75 published formulas in the RUŌOD Lab Formula & Accord Library, including Açaí Accord, Amber Accord and Aperol Spritz Accord. Each is listed with a link under "Used in formulas and accords" on this page.
Sources
- PubChem — compound 6054, checked 19 October 2026.
- PubChem — GHS classification (the ECHA C&L Inventory notifications and any harmonised EU entry), read 26 October 2026.
- US patent 4,554,096 — perfumery uses of phenyl alkanols (quoting Arctander) — published literature.
- The Good Scents Company — phenethyl alcohol (with Mosciano's description) — odour database.
- Scentspiracy — Phenyl Ethyl Alcohol — distributor's description.
- Olfactory profile: the RUŌOD Lab team's synthesis of the published descriptions above, reviewed 24 October 2026. Evidence: several independent published descriptions, which agree. Classification and the short description: revision 1. Descriptions of odour are judgement, not measurement.