Phenylethyl Phenylacetate

What Phenylethyl Phenylacetate smells like

Phenylethyl phenylacetate is a heavy, sweet, deep honey-rose. Supplier and trade sources describe dried rose petal, hyacinth and a dense honey facet, with a faint animalic, civet-like note, and count it among the most tenacious rose esters, lingering on a blotter for days. IFF, as listed by The Good Scents Company, gives a honey character that blends well with most floral notes. Arctander's descriptions found refer to the related acetate and alcohol, not this ester.

Leading note

Dense honey-rose

Clear facets

Dried rose petal

Supporting facets

Hyacinth

Faint facets

Balsamic, animalic

Character

Heavy, soft, tenacious, deep

• honey
• rose
• balsamic

What makes Phenylethyl Phenylacetate distinctive

Honey and rose as a base note: the heaviest, longest-lasting of the honey esters, fixing a rose rather than lifting it.

How Phenylethyl Phenylacetate is used

Used as a tenacious honey-rose base in rose, hyacinth and other floral compositions.

Typical role: fixative (slow to evaporate; helps a blend last and holds lighter notes).

How Phenylethyl Phenylacetate differs from similar materials

Phenylethyl Acetate

Phenylethyl acetate is a lighter, fruitier, more volatile rose-honey; the phenylacetate is heavier and lasts for days.

Ethyl Phenylacetate

Ethyl phenylacetate is lighter and fruitier; phenylethyl phenylacetate is a dense, dried-rose honey base.

Isobutyl Phenylacetate

Isobutyl phenylacetate is more diffusive, with cocoa; phenylethyl phenylacetate is the heavier, longer-lasting honey-rose.

Phenylethyl Cinnamate

The cinnamate is more balsamic, with less honey; phenylethyl phenylacetate is a dense honey-rose.

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

A low-melting solid; warm or dissolve before weighing.

Identity and classification

Type

Aroma chemical

Origin

Synthetic

Odour family

Floral / Gourmand

Note position

Base note

Physical form at room temperature

Solid

CAS number

102-20-5

Molecular formula

C16H16O2

Molecular weight

240.3 g/mol

IUPAC name

2-phenylethyl 2-phenylacetate

The CAS number, formula and molecular weight are taken from PubChem compound 7601, 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 (1,880 reports): H411 toxic to aquatic life with long lasting effects (96.8% of reports). 21 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

• Phenylacetic Acid

  Aroma chemical · Animalic / Gourmand — honey, animalic, sweet, waxy

• Phenylethyl Alcohol

  Aroma chemical · Floral / Green — rose, honeyed, soft, floral

• Ethyl Phenylacetate

  Aroma chemical · Gourmand / Floral — honey, sweet, floral, fruity

Phenylethyl Phenylacetate is also suggested as a partner on the pages for Methyl Phenylacetate, Phenylethyl Benzoate, Phenylethyl Cinnamate and Phenylethyl Salicylate.

Used in formulas and accords

Used in 5 published formulas

Phenylethyl Phenylacetate is an ingredient in 5 perfume formulas in the Formula & Accord Library.

RUŌOD House Originals

Original compositions by RUŌOD House.

• Beeswax Throne

  RUŌOD House Creation

• Fig Jam Brioche

  RUŌOD House Original

• Linden Afternoon

  RUŌOD House Original

• Musk Cartouche

  RUŌOD House Original

• Smoke & Milk

  RUŌOD House Original

Further reading

• How to Build a Honey Accord

  A honey accord from phenylacetic acid and its esters: the building blocks, beeswax and honey absolutes, an illustrative vegan version, handling and records.

• Perfume Materials by Odor Family: A Formulator's Palette Map

  Which materials build each odor family — citrus, floral, woody, amber, musk and more — their usual roles, what to watch for, and links to each in depth.

Questions about Phenylethyl Phenylacetate

Sources

• PubChem — compound 7601, checked 19 October 2026.
• PubChem — GHS classification (the ECHA C&L Inventory notifications and any harmonised EU entry), read 26 October 2026.
• Scent.vn — Phenethyl phenylacetate — distributor's description.
• The Good Scents Company — phenethyl phenylacetate (with IFF's description) — 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.