The Story
Why it exists.
The beginning
Murasaki means purple in Japanese. Koh is incense. The name does what the bottle doesn't bother to: it tells you exactly where this scent lives. Purple Haze: Murasaki Koh launched in 2026 as part of Ensar Oud's EO Leather collection, and it reads less like a fragrance and more like a place. A dim room where fruit has been left to ferment on a wooden altar, and someone is burning something old nearby. The composition stacks three regional ouds (Cambodian, Vietnamese, and what the brand lists as Chinese and Malayan) under a heart of Afghan rose, blue lotus, and cassia blossom. Raspberry and violet leaf pull the sweetness sideways. There is nothing demure about it.
Murasaki Koh mixes Cambodian, Vietnamese, and additional regional ouds into the structure from the start, layering them with orris butter and tonkin musk so the woods feel marbled rather than stacked. The result is a composition where the smoky-sweet accord runs through the entire vertical, not just the bottom. The cassia blossom and blue lotus in the heart lend a spiced floral warmth that keeps the raspberry from tipping into candy.
The evolution
The first 15 minutes are tart and almost startling. Sour raspberry skins, the green sting of violet leaf, a flash of hyacinth that reads cold before it reads floral. Silver fir sits underneath, giving the opening a resinous backbone that most fruity openings don't bother with. The conifer note is sharp and sappy, like needles crushed between fingers, and it sets up a contrast with the fruit that makes both more legible. By the 30-minute mark, the Afghan rose and cassia blossom have arrived, and the raspberry settles from sour fruit into something closer to jam. Blue lotus adds a watery, almost metallic sweetness that keeps the heart from going syrupy. The rose here is dense and jammy rather than fresh or powdery, and the cassia adds a cinnamon-adjacent warmth that pushes the composition away from fruit-dish territory. Jasmine is present but quiet, a texture more than a statement.
Cultural impact
Murasaki Koh sits in the EO Leather collection alongside other Ensar Oud releases, and its multi-oud structure gives it a density and complexity that distinguishes it within the brand's catalog. Wearers describe it as reading fruity and floral on top of a smoky-woody base, a profile that bridges the gap between gourmand-leaning niche fragrances and traditional oud compositions. The blend of Afghan rose, cassia blossom, and blue lotus in the heart adds a floral dimension that softens the smoky intensity of the three ouds without diluting them.
