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FRUITS, VEGETABLES AND NUTS / fruity · sweet · tropical
Rambutan
Category
FRUITS, VEGETABLES AND NUTS
Subcategory
fruity · sweet · tropical
Origin
Volatility
Top Note
Botanical
Nephelium lappaceum
Appearance
N/A (tropical fruit; used as olfactory descriptor)
Odor Strength
High
Producing Countries
Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand
Pyramid
Top
A Southeast Asian tropical fruit (Nephelium lappaceum, Sapindaceae) closely related to lychee and longan — translucent flesh around a single seed, distinguished by a famously spiky-hairy red-skinned exterior. In perfumery, rambutan is a Fantasy/Concept reconstruction, lychee-adjacent but slightly sweeter and more grape-like, with no commercial extract in trade.
As reconstruction, rambutan opens fruity-rose, slightly sweeter than lychee, with a grape-skin tannin lifting the heart. Within the first hour the rose-violet ionone-damascenone backbone surfaces and the accord stabilises into something closer to a fruity-floral signature than a single-fruit identity. It rarely persists on skin past the second hour.
Evolution over time
Immediately
Immediately
The scent is sweet and fresh, reminiscent of lychee.
After a few hours
After a few hours
It evolves into a deeper fruity aroma with subtle floral hints.
After a few days
After a few days
The fragrance settles into a warm, sweet base.
The Full Story
Rambutan (Nephelium lappaceum) is a tropical fruit in the Sapindaceae family — the soapberry family — and a close relative of lychee, longan and pulasan. Native to the Malay Archipelago and now cultivated across Southeast Asia (Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines), it carries the same translucent juicy flesh-around-a-seed structure as its cousins, with a slightly sweeter, more grape-like flavour and a famously spiky-hairy skin. The name comes from the Malay rambut — hair.
Rambutan has no commercial perfumery extract. The fruit's volatile profile is dominated by water and short-chain esters that do not survive extraction at scale, and unlike lychee — which has been profiled by GC-MS and reconstructed extensively — rambutan has remained largely outside the major suppliers' catalogues. Any 'rambutan' note in fragrance is a reconstructed accord, built molecule by molecule from damascenone (CAS 23696-85-7) [A], β-ionone, γ-decalactone and a small ester palette — close in shape to a lychee reconstruction but pushed slightly toward grape and rose.
Sources & Notes
[A] PubChem CID 5366074 — β-damascenone, CAS 23696-85-7, C₁₃H₁₈O. The plum-rose ketone central to most fruity-floral reconstructions in the lychee-grape register. pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/5366074.
Did You Know?
Did you know?
Rambutan, lychee, longan and pulasan are all members of the Sapindaceae family — the soapberry family — sharing translucent juicy flesh around a single seed. Of the four, only lychee has a meaningful presence in fragrance, and even that is reconstruction. The Malay word 'rambut' means hair: rambutan literally translates as 'hairy.'
Extraction & Chemistry
Extraction method: Not applicable. There is no commercial rambutan essential oil, absolute or CO₂ extract; the fruit's volatile profile is dominated by water and short-chain esters that do not survive extraction at perfumery scale. Any 'rambutan' in fragrance is a reconstructed accord.
Molecular Formula
N/A (fruit note; not a single molecule)
CAS Number
N/A (fruit; no commercial essential oil in trade)
Botanical Name
Nephelium lappaceum
IFRA Status
No known restrictions
Synonyms
HAIRY FRUIT
Physical Properties
Odor Strength
High
Appearance
N/A (tropical fruit; used as olfactory descriptor)
In Perfumery
Rambutan is a Fantasy/Concept accord, not a raw material. It bridges between lychee and grape in reconstruction palette, often built around damascenone, β-ionone and a small ester palette. It is not used in any current Première Peau composition.
