The Story
Why it exists.
The beginning
There is a poem in the bottle. The official word on Oud & Grape comes wrapped in imagery, not specs: dusk, almost sunset, eyes dark and full of light, the color of ripe grapes on summer vines. A walk under a flaming sky. Then a sudden disappearance, and the question of whether the whole thing was a dream conjured by the guilty hour itself. That's not branding decoration. It's the brief Pierre Flores seems to have composed for in 2024, when this Oudh Collection fragrance joined Zlaza's catalog. On skin, the poem reads aloud in a language of dark fruit and slow-burning resin. Raspberry and lychee arrive first, sweet and slightly tart, catching the light the way the opening lines catch the eye.
What's interesting here is the structural gamble. Fruity oud compositions usually lead with the fruit and bury the oud in the base, a way of making the resin palatable. Oud & Grape doesn't flinch. The raspberry and lychee open bright, yes, but the grape note sits in the heart alongside frankincense, the resins allowed to share the middle act with the fruit rather than waiting their turn. Red currant and rose round out the heart, but the grape and incense are the co-stars.
The evolution
The first 15 minutes are almost disorienting: raspberry and lychee arrive loud, jammy, candied, then the saffron threads through and pulls the sweetness sideways into something drier, spicier, less dessert and more dried fruit at the market. By the 30-minute mark the grape settles into the heart, darker than expected, less candy and more crushed skin and seed, and the frankincense starts to rise underneath it, smoky and meditative. The rose is there but quiet, a supporting player. From hour two onward the base takes over, and this is where Oud & Grape earns its name. The oud is present but not aggressive, more lacquered wood than barnyard, sitting with sandalwood's cream and patchouli's earth. The leather note adds a dry, suede edge, and the amber warms everything from beneath. What's surprising is the longevity of the fruit. Most fruity openings vanish by hour three. Here, traces of the grape persist into the late drydown, almost like a memory of the opening, hovering under the resin for hours.
Cultural impact
Oud & Grape arrived in 2024 as part of Zlaza's Oudh Collection, and the raspberry-lychee-saffron opening functions as an immediate reframe of what oud can be. Rather than leading with smoke and barnyard and expecting the wearer to acclimate, the composition ushers the resin in through a corridor of fruit, saffron, and frankincense, so the oud arrives in conversation with sweetness rather than in opposition to it. The result is a fragrance that lets oud speak without requiring the audience to already know the language.
The House
ZlazaZlaza is an artisanal fragrance house built around emotional storytelling, where each scent is conceived as a personal narrative rather than a commercial product. Based in Lusignan, France, with a presence reportedly spanning both French and Albanian markets, the brand draws on a founders' shared love of scent, travel, and partnership to compose fragrances that aim to bottle intangible moments. The catalog centers on artistic, identity-driven compositions across multiple collections, including the 2024 lineup of Cybell, Aetheria, Astral, Desiderium, Meridian, Timeless, Oud & Tonka, Scenteligence, Celestique, and Oud & Pear, alongside newer launches such as the Volo D'Amore series and the White Collection.
The Creator
Pierre FloresHis creations Tagomago and Melon Kiss point to someone comfortable working with bright, juicy materials and gourmand elements. Melon Kiss, in particular, suggests a willingness to lean into playfulness and sweetness without irony.
