Arooq Al Oud Al Rehab Perfume

Oud, this resin that has become so popular in the Western perfume hemisphere in recent years, has evidently found such a ravenous market that the stocks of the agarwood tree have been irresponsibly depleted. Entire regions, even countries and islands, which not long ago were considered typical habitats for these trees, have been stripped bare, with the trees often so mistreated that they died. That the resin can also be harvested from living trees has been demonstrated by Arabs and Asians for centuries, but the hunger, indeed the greed for this fragrance, whose value has skyrocketed due to sudden global demand, has made sustainable management impossible.
Well, just as in the 70s the last elephant was almost shot down simply because everyone was hot for ivory, it seems now that the agarwood tree is in danger, just because everyone thinks they need to slather themselves with a fragrance that, unfortunately, is contained in that resin which the tree secretes in response to injuries or fungal infestations.
(By the way, an interesting documentary on this topic: http://www.filmtrueffel.de/de/adlerholz.php)
As far as I'm concerned, these trees can be left unscathed, because I admit I'm not a big fan of Oud. So far, only a few fragrance concepts that claimed they couldn't do without the massive use of this material have convinced me, and 'Arooq Al Oud' by Al Rehab (Apicius, thanks again for the sample!) definitely does not belong to those. Yes, I must confess: I find the scent terrible.

What comes across as sensual and erotic in Neil Morris' wonderful 'Fetish', fresh and sprightly in Montale's 'Black Aoud' or 'Aoud Lime', and borderline but still pleasantly leathery-oily in Kilian's 'Pure Oud', unfolds here mainly in a dull and such an intensely fecal way that the entire fragrance, no matter how many components it may have, is permeated by it and is simply unpleasant to me.
I have experienced the exact same phenomenon before, with another fragrance from Montale, namely 'Aoud Cuir d’Arabie'. It's quite possible that it's just me (others find the Montale scent absolutely fantastic!), but it literally made me gag upon first spray. However, I am not squeamish when it comes to indolic, animalistic, and, for that matter, fecal nuances. On the contrary, many fragrances only develop their charm for me through a certain odor.
But - as I said - in this case, just like with 'Aoud Cuir d’Arabie', it's simply too much for me.

It could be the combination of Oud and 'Skank', the connection of bitter, almost piercing, smoky, woody, medicinal on one hand and sweet, animalistic, fecal on the other - it makes me feel nauseous. But this is, I emphasize again, my very own, personal perception, which is certainly not shared by others - as one can see. But I also belong to those who no longer have any problem with 'Kouros' (I once had a huge one...), while others turn green at the thought of it. Scents, especially those that - to put it mildly - are a bit precarious, are often perceived extremely differently. With 'Kouros', at some point it clicked, and what I previously found repulsive suddenly seemed attractive, even erotic to me.
Whether that will ever happen with 'Arooq Al Oud' or 'Aoud Cuir d’Arabie', however, I dare to doubt.
(I would have never imagined that with 'Kouros'... so, let's see)

For now, I unfortunately have to pass.