Musk Yusuf

Price range: $399 through $1,999

The Abassids could never have done this. The Umayyads couldn’t have dreamed about…

Spray Bottle

When I composed Tibetan Musk, I didn’t intend to focus on the Tibetan theme. Rather the focus was on the Musk.

It wasn’t about deliberately capturing the smells of Jokhang Temple Mount or the spices wafting down the valleys. I wanted to showcase Sultan Qaboos’ precious musk grains in a perfume I would be honored to have presented to him myself.

While Tibetan Musk portrays a French aesthetic using Chinese musk, for a proper Tibet inspired perfume—a fragrance designed around the Zen aesthetic, from the incense to the spice to those scents that throw a monk back to his childhood—for a perfume like that, you need a very special ingredient.

You know not all ouds are created equal—neither are all musks. And as I’ve learned, not all ouds get along with all musks. It took a royal treasury that was off-limits for all of recent history to open up before you finally got access to vintage musk pods that were so potent, so sappy and sticky that infusing artisanal oud became a meeting of histories—distant eras that somehow warped time so they could meet.

The class of oud we’re talking about wasn’t around in the days when this musk was first brought to the palace, while the musk was locked up during the formative years of artisanal oud distillation. It’s only now that these two worlds get to stand on the same turf.

To get to the heart of the Chinese aesthetic and capture the scents you’d associate with the orange groves of Yunnan and the dry spices of Tibet, that oopmh, required a meeting of distant eras.

Right alongside the batch of Ha Tinh oud I’d been busy infusing with Tonkin, I infused myself a batch of Oud Yusuf with musk. Tibetan Musk. In the same way Ha Tinh LTD became the backbone of NFU, Musk Yusuf’s foundation is Oud Yusuf infused with Tibetan musk.

The Abassids could never have done this. The Umayyads couldn’t have dreamed about it. Sultan Qaboos’ predecessors may have speculated it, but it wasn’t until now that the creamy chocolaty earthiness exuded by the aged musk of Tibet got injected with the boozy, apricot aroma of Oud Yusuf.

You might say, “What does a Thai oud have to do with Tibet?”

Oud Yusuf is just about the most orange oud I’ve smelled. Infused with Tibetan spices, it’s a dream ingredient and makes the perfect base for a Tibetan-style perfume.

As an ingredient, a Tibetan musk-infused Oud Yusuf doubles up as a fixative with potent diffusivezen power. You could now smell how the accessory notes symbiotically ride atop this combo while also enhancing the zesty orange-hued, jammy-floral profile of Oud Yusuf to a magnitude you would have never thought possible. All the while maintaining perfect harmony between notes, where not one single whiff feels out of place: Zen.

Surrounding the musked-up Oud Yusuf, imagine a delicate arrangement of precious frangipani, a dash of clove, while the peachy apricot sweetness is beautified by… as if there wasn’t enough musk in this already: Musk Motia.

I’m sure you’ll agree Oud Yusuf’s ‘pretty’ profile is taken to new heights by the exquisite trio of mimosa, orange blossom, & musk-infused jasmine, while at 33% of the composition the musked-up oud oozes out confidently throughout your wear and doesn’t budge all the way to the drydown.

For this edition, we’ve also delved deeper into giving the Thai ‘fruitiness’ a more robust floral deimension, since Oud Yusuf is the quintessential fruity oud – but also the most floral of the genre. The trick here is to use ‘fruity‘ florals with a zest that doesn’t take a way from their lush aromas.

Two of the most incredible examples of such a flower extracts are osmanthus and narcissus, both of which have been incorporated into this edition. These additions, along with other tweaks to the composition give you an even more lush floral dimension while also beautifying the signature fruity-floral aroma of Oud Yusuf to make this the most exquisite Musk Yusuf to date.

It’s a fine time to be alive, isn’t it? For all his perfumed extravagance, you have the chance to don what Louis IV couldn’t even dream of. A perfume no Emperor or Sultan ever had access to. To see and smell these olfactory galaxies collide as if the universe was fine-tuned to serve up a bespoke spritz exclusively for this oud-crazy circle you followed the rabbit hole into…

If there’s one smell that may be even more beautiful than Oud Yusuf, Musk Yusuf is it.

Featured Testimonials…

Musk Yusuf – – opens like stepping into a sun-drenched spice market, deep in the Far East—cool citrus zest swirling with dry peppery spice, softened by a veil of the finest musk imaginable.

You immediately get this mentholated breeze, almost incense-like, with hints of frankincense, saffron, clove, and something herbaceous and mysterious. The opening is dry, airy, and clean, yet unmistakably exotic.

Then comes the apricot-orange glow, unmistakably inspired by the DNA of Oud Yusuf—but here it’s drenched in Tibetan musk, taking it into a deeper, muskier, golden dimension. That subtle fruity brightness morphs into something more vivid—turning redder, warmer, almost like candied citrus fruit resting in a field of dry grass and sun-warmed oud.

The musks here are expertly handled—not overly animalic, but vibrant, textured, slightly naughty, and incredibly wearable. They don’t dominate but dance lightly with the oud, creating a scent that’s elegant, spicy, woody, musky, and faintly floral in the heart. There’s also that glowing white floral whisper, possibly jasmine or orange blossom, that brings balance and grace.

The drydown is where Musk Yusuf becomes truly special: dry woods, jungle air, and a muskiness that somehow starts to resemble ambergris—that same warm-skin, sunlit mineral breeze that feels both grounding and uplifting.

If I had to describe it in one phrase: a golden forest at sunset, touched by the wind from distant mountains, where oud, musk, spice, and fruit blend into pure poetry.

This is not just another musk scent. It’s Oud Yusuf meets Tibetan mysticism, and yet entirely its own beast. The performance is solid, projection steady, and it’s a fragrance you can honestly wear any day, any season. Total signature scent potential.

Musk Yusuf is a masterclass in natural perfumery—and a musk-lover’s dream come true.

—Thomas W / Germany

I’ve had this Musk Yusuf for close to a year now, it opens with a heavy dose of Oud Yusuf and animalic Tibetan musk up front, dehydrated apricot, some spices, a hint of floral, and a little bit of orange peel.

This is an oudy and musky scent profile, came off a bit fizzy and savory on me tonight, has a medium body, and leaning a bit on the darker side. It’s almost like a 3-in-1 combo concoction, between Oud Yusuf PP, Tibetan Musk PP, and EO2 Kashmir. A lovely and enjoyable composition.

—Ben W / USA

Musk Yusuf opens with a cool, mentholated, citrusy, almost frankincense note. Some of that orangey, apricot aspect is definitely from the oud! It’s made more apparent a few seconds in. Next are wafts of herbal spices, such as saffron, clove, lots of pepper, and some unknown. Very dry. Loads of musk, but very soft, and light on the animalic aspect.

In the late drydown, there’s some dry woods and the musk adds an aspect that is surprisingly similar to ambergris, with its warm airy effect on skin. The orange fruity note stays bright and even may get brighter, becoming more RED as time passes.

This is truly magical!

Overall, Musk Yusuf is an exotic, fruity, spicy beauty, conjuring cozy images of the far east.

—Anthony C / USA