Atelier des Ors — Aube Rubis
Essence
Aube Rubis is one of the five debut fragrances (2015) of Atelier des Ors, Jean-Philippe Clermont’s Grasse-based house known for suspending 24-carat gold flakes in its juice. Composed by Marie Salamagne, it is a modern “fruitchouli” — a sparkling grapefruit-blackcurrant opening that collapses into a sweet, earthy, praline-dusted patchouli-and-vetiver base. Its distinctiveness lies in pairing a bright, almost candied fruit top with a dark, sometimes medicinal patchouli underbelly, gilded with a caramelized amber sweetness; reviewers repeatedly frame it as a more approachable, fruit-forward cousin to the patchouli-gourmand template of Mugler Angel.
Scent Profile
wear reports describe an arc that genuinely shifts. The opening is bright and sparkling — grapefruit and blackcurrant — sometimes with a waxy, lipstick-like iris and an aromatic clary-sage facet that several reviewers single out as the most interesting element. Praline then dusts the composition with a nutty, chocolate-y sweetness. After the lively start, many report the fragrance “collapsing” into a caramelized fruitchouli: iris and patchouli fuse into a plummy, nebulous sweetness, punctuated by occasional surges of medicinal/dirty patchouli, with Haitian vetiver and musk grounding the base. Perceptible throughout: patchouli, sweet praline/caramel, fruit; more submerged: violet, the iris’s powdery edge. Largely linear after the first hour. Signature accord: sweet, charred/earthy patchouli over candied grapefruit-blackcurrant. Detractors note a sharp, dusty, “potpourri”/Michael’s-craft-store synthetic facet some mistake for oud.
Performance
wearers claims are reasonably consistent on strong performance. A a wearer states “the longevity is around 8 hours plus, and the sillage is quite strong, but not overwhelming”; a detailed review reports roughly 10-hour longevity with moderate sillage on skin. It is described as having significant tenacity without being “ultra-extreme glue-like.” Best in cooler weather per multiple reviewers. A practical note from the wearers: it can be worn in a “subtle dose” for daytime/everyday but leans better to evening. Apply conservatively given its sweetness and projection.
Wearing Context
Autumn and winter are the repeatedly cited best seasons, with reviewers calling it a “dark,” velvety, night-leaning fragrance — “not cozy and certainly not soft.” That said, fans of the fruity-bright opening wear it more broadly; one a wearer found it “more versatile and year round” than the house’s zingy citrus Blanc Polychrome. Fully unisex despite a feminine-skewing fruity-sweet character. Best for casual-to-evening, cooler-weather wear; social perception skews sweet/gourmand.
Comparisons & DNA
Reviewers anchor it to Mugler Angel’s patchouli-caramel dynamic, but “less violent, more approachable.” wearers comparisons also invoke Lolita Lempicka (Perfume Posse: “like a blackcurrant version of Lolita Lempicka with a much darker underbelly”) and Cacharel Liberté (the “sizzling fruit-chouli” 90s style). One a wearer calls it “a delicate interpretation of Penhaligon’s Empressa.” Within the house, it is contrasted with the sharper citrus Blanc Polychrome and the iris-showcase Iris Fauve (sharing a caramelized amber facet). DNA: sweet fruity-patchouli (fruitchouli) gourmand in the modern niche idiom.
Reception
Reception is mixed-to-positive and polarized along the fruitchouli axis. Çafleurebon framed it admiringly: “What Iris Fauve did to show the many facets of iris, Atelier Des Ors Aube Rubis does for Patchouli, showcasing it in such a way as to gild the scent… then bathe Aube Rubis in a golden light.” Perfume Posse’s reviewer “LOVED” it, calling it “the most surprising gourmand I’ve tried.” Praise centers on the dynamic, aromatic-sage opening and a fruitchouli that is “not among the most sugary.” Criticisms: the drydown “collapses” into a conventional caramelized fruitchouli (a reviewer who liked the opening was ultimately “disappointed”); a recurring complaint about a sharp, screechy, dusty/medicinal synthetic note shared across the line; and skepticism about the gold-flake gimmick and high price (Black Narcissus called the gold aesthetic “showy and superfluous”). Polarization: patchouli-haters can be won over, but those expecting complexity find the base ordinary. Sample before buying given price and the divisive base.
Versions & Reformulation
Single composition, no known reformulations.
Acquisition Notes
Niche/luxury tier. Pricing has been cited at $285 for 100 ml (per a 2020 Çafleurebon giveaway listing a “100 ml bottle/ $285 of Aube Rubis”) and up to $330 / £320 at full retail; discounters list it far lower (e.g., grey-market around $75–110 for 90/100 ml has appeared). Sold in a 100 ml format (the house’s standard sculptural bottle with suspended 24k gold leaf); INCI confirms “CI 77480 / GOLD 24K.” Decants and samples (5 ml/10 ml) are widely available from sample services. Authentic channels include the brand site, Luckyscent, Indigo Perfumery, Osswald, Jovoy, Harvey Nichols, Selfridges and Escentual. No documented counterfeit or batch-code guidance found.
Notable Facts & Lore
- Aube Rubis (“ruby dawn”) was part of Atelier des Ors’ inaugural collection debuted at Esxence 2015 (alongside Cuir Sacré, Lune Féline, Rose Omeyyade and Larmes du Désert).
- Per Çafleurebon’s editor-in-chief Michelyn Camen, she first met creative director Jean-Philippe Clermont at Esxence in 2015, where Pierre Guillaume of Parfumerie Générale hosted a dinner.
- The brief, per Salamagne, was an addictive fragrance “structured around a precious, complex patchouli, enveloped in a sensual vetiver”; the brand’s stated concept is the “first light of dawn and the eternal cycle of life,” with grapefruit-blackcurrant as dawn coolness giving way to warm, golden patchouli.
- The 24-carat gold flakes are the house signature, described as “stardust” — a much-debated aesthetic choice among critics.