The oud-rose combination has become highly saturated on the fragrance market over the last few years. Allow me to introduce you to an innovative, next-level perfume for lovers of rose and oud: EBK Paris Ruby N Vanilla Oud. As the name suggests, you must also love vanilla in addition to rose and oud, to dare to enter this olfactive adventure.

Ruby N Vanilla Oud opens with a BANG – this is what I have seen my Western peers refer to as a funky or barnyard oud. The opening is exactly what I expect with a truly oud-forward fragrance: the magic takes time to unfold, and the dry-down delivers a beautiful and darkly seductive perfume. Good things do take time, as my oud lovers already know, and in this instance, not just GOOD but great.

A flanker to the house’s famous Ruby N Vanilla Intense, this fragrance contains some of that original DNA: specifically the house’s signature velvety vanilla. The blend is, as with all of the fragrances emerging from this house, sumptuous. The note listing includes black musk; this was my first time experiencing musk done by EBK Paris, and it is stunning. The roses are dark and full-bodied; everything, the oud, roses, vanilla and musk, positively sing on skin.

The performance is incredibly potent: less is more with this beauty. You will get 12 hours+ easily of wear with strong projection and sillage. I prefer this for the fall and winter months as an evening reach, although that of course is subjective.

It is hard to choose a favorite from the lineup available at EBK Paris, however, if you enjoy oud and are looking for something uniquely compelling, consider exploring Ruby N Vanilla Oud.