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Wafa Ard Al Zaafaran

8.0 / 10 69 Ratings

A popular perfume by Ard Al Zaafaran for women and men. The release year is unknown. The scent is sweet-spicy. The longevity is above-average. The production was apparently discontinued.
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Main accords

Sweet

Spicy

Oriental

Woody

Resinous

Fragrance Pyramid

Top Notes

Frankincense Plum

Plum

Heart Notes

Vanilla

Orris root Rose

Rose

Base Notes

Patchouli

Peru balsam Vetiver

Vetiver

Ratings

Scent

8.069 Ratings

Longevity

8.264 Ratings

Sillage

7.864 Ratings

Bottle

7.964 Ratings

Value for money

9.256 Ratings

Submitted by Darkbeat, last update on 09/10/2025.

Smells similar

What the fragrance is similar to

Black Phantom - Memento Mori

Oud Save the King Eau de Parfum

Carlisle

Tafakhar

Tobacolor

Noir Extreme Eau de Parfum

Reviews

6 in-depth fragrance descriptions

02/13/2024

7
Bottle 8
Sillage 9
Longevity 8
Scent

Oldish2002
126 Reviews

Oldish2002

Helpful Review 3

The dark emptiness

Another blind purchase yet another experience. Huge box, very hard bottle and decent atomizor.
On the strip, it has a looot more plum to my nose than Black Phantom that resembles with.
A lot more plum and a bit more syrupy. Maybe a bit boozier as well.
Not as refined at first but once it settles.. wow. Very similar to black phantom. Same caramelized coffee vibe with lots of rum and very balsamic to my nose.
Also creamy/powdery since we have that orris root in the middle.
Since I am not the biggest fan of rose I do like that the rose in here it's not that strong. Just to give a tiny bit floral hint.
Price ? Great. Very cheap most of the times (30-40 bucks)
Versatility ? Dressed up in my opinion. Not daily nor casual.
Being a sweet fragrance, colder seasons will suit better.
Performance ? 8+ hrs easily with a noticeable sillage. It can also be very potent or even annoying if you spray more than 3 times.
I would give an extra 8/10 regarding the quality/price ratio.
I was pleasantly surprised and I do enjoy to have a bottle of this.
As always, try it first.

Overall : 8/10

10/31/2024

10
Pricing 9
Bottle 9
Sillage 9
Longevity 10
Scent

MrMSmith
3 Reviews

MrMSmith

1

Unique and Mysterious

This scent profile is so freakin good! This is a guaranteed compliment getter every time I wear it(both men and women). Had a guy I know straight up buy a bottle the same day he smelled it on me...no questions asked!

When you first spray this on, it might smell a little strange(medicinal). Don't worry, that goes away after about 10 minutes. What unfolds is a beautifully crafted dark/smoky/sweet/resinous/floral aroma. Man, it's hard to describe...you just gotta smell it.

I know this gets compared to Black Phantom a lot, but they are different. Wafa has more character in my opinion, whereas BP is darker and more linear.

And as far as the value you get for the price...unreal! I plan to get a back up bottle to make sure I have this in my collection for years to come!

01/19/2024

10
Pricing 8
Bottle 7
Sillage 7
Longevity 8
Scent

MattRacer
9 Reviews

Translated Show original

MattRacer

Top Review 16

Inexpensive impressive journey into the oriental world

Here we have it, the next remarkable discovery in the field of affordable Arabian fragrances with a truly impressive scent character.
As things stand, the Wafa from Ard Al Zaafaran is obviously still an insider tip. However, I wouldn't be surprised if this Orient Express were to run full steam ahead on the hype train in the near future. In my opinion, it certainly has what it takes.

First of all, you get a thick, high-quality, artistic presentation on the table here, which, however, typically for one or two Arabian fragrance houses, also tends to be kitschy. Golden bling bling and personal taste or not, for twenty euros this level of detailed outer packaging is certainly not to be taken for granted. The slide-open box catches the eye with an artfully curved and ornate -W- on the front, which is enthroned on the cover in a rather elaborate, three-dimensional recess and gives a preview of the contents. The bottle then presents itself beautifully framed in a recess in the inner box. Everything poses in a slightly boastful and extroverted manner amidst the inflationary use of golden color. Nevertheless, objectively speaking, the whole thing looks lovingly designed.
The bottle itself is of the bulky, solid and high-quality variety. It looks solid and stable. The heavy metal cap with decorations on the edge and on the cap completes the high-quality presentation.
The velvety front cover of the bottle is the biggest objective point of criticism here, as it obviously tends to peel off easily at the edge due to the edging in the box. This shows that the cover was stuck on rather clumsily. With the overall bold visual and material presentation, however, this can be overcome.

About the juice itself... What you get here is a perfume that catapults you into the world of oriental fragrances in many ways and reveals a very comprehensive insight into them. First of all, a plum is thrown around your ears (and nose), which comes across like sweetened dried fruit. The fruit sweetness here is very approachable and free of acidity. However, this stone fruit is already quite sugary here.
The whole thing is then skillfully grounded and rounded off by an earthy, woody and slightly smoky base. A distinctly resinous incense gives the fragrance a warm base. At the same time, it makes the fragrance appear quite dark and noble. One could also assume a hint of tobacco as a fragrance note here.
The classic dark, earthy patchouli note underpins the fragrance throughout and literally grounds it. Furthermore, there is always a subtle, creamy vanilla floating in the fragrance veil, which makes it somewhat playful, but above all pleasing.
I detect a subliminal hint of rose, which lends the fragrance something noble and mysterious at the same time. Fortunately, this note is extremely subtle here, to an extent that seems appropriate for a fragrance of this type.
Overall, you can expect a fragrance character that can be briefly described as sweet-spicy-oriental, with a warm, dark and somewhat wicked appearance. The fragrance has character, but will not offend most users and consumers too much. The sweetness here is stylish and well balanced. In my opinion, it gives the fragrance a solid pleasantness, but never comes across as overdriven or squeaky.

The whole thing seems, at least to my nose, to be of a level of quality that you would not expect at this price point. The fragrance is round, soft and the notes are harmoniously interwoven. The fragrance is interesting and not too synthetic. Even 50-60-70 euros would be perfectly ok here. To be honest, an expensive niche house could also bring out this fragrance and it wouldn't attract much negative attention. Hopefully Ard Al Zaafaran isn't reading this. But perhaps the hype train will also ride the supply and demand curve with gusto and do the rest.

Due to its opulence, I would definitely place the fragrance in the cool season. The worst possible use would be at 30 degrees in summer, before a visit to the sauna, to create a negative image so that you can discuss a different use for yourself ;-)

Sex? Due to its resinousness, spiciness and smokiness, I would rather see the fragrance on men. However, this gourmand fruity sweetness paired with the vanilla and the light creaminess of the fragrance is also suitable for a woman, as long as she is strong, wicked or dark enough to want to wrap herself in this mysterious cloud of fragrance. In any case, I find the idea of perceiving the fragrance on a woman quite exciting.

Pleasantness? Definitely! My wife really liked the fragrance and approached me about it on her own initiative, which doesn't happen too often due to her only rudimentary affinity for perfume.
Longevity and sillage are not on the beast-fashion side, but they are good. I get about 6-7 hours of longevity here and a perceptible sillage for 3-4-5 hours.
Other Arabian fragrances can do this a little better, but I think the level of strength here is quite appropriate as it suits the warm, chic, classy and mysterious scent. It doesn't scream "Here I am!" from meters away, but knows how to seduce those around it.

For me, associations and comparisons with other fragrances of the same species arise, for example, in the direction of Parfums de Marly Carlisle, even if this one "crackles" a nuance more in the air and seems a little more multi-faceted. My nose has not yet been able to smell the Black Phantom mentioned here, which is why I cannot say anything about its comparability. What did come to mind, however, was the memory of an Argos - Triumph of Bacchus. The latter is of course a whole lot more artistic, harmonious and "expensive", and comes with a cool, playful alcohol note. However, I couldn't avoid being confronted with this comparison. Where Bacchus tends to triumph with peach, here the related plum takes the place of stone fruit. In terms of spiciness, tobacco/smoke, vanilla and basic "orientalism", however, the fragrances follow similar paths.

In this sense: Wafa is definitely worth a test for fans of this fragrance! I would describe it as an absolute price-performance hit, which has positively surprised in many ways, and the quality, both the outer packaging and the fragrance itself, is in the upper league.

07/15/2024

10
Pricing 9
Bottle 8
Sillage 8
Longevity 8.5
Scent

DuftDoktor
8 Reviews

Translated Show original

DuftDoktor

Very helpful Review 16

Misleading fragrance pyramid

With a downcast look, I admit that I too have often been led astray by false fragrance notes. So I am not above you, dear fellow perfumers. In addition to the correction in this case, I would like to draw your attention to the following effect: You smell what you think you know!

In the vastness of the Internet, I have found the following fragrance pyramid in several places, which I subjectively edit (1. by sorting according to decreasing intensity and 2. with symbolization of the intensity by exclamation marks):
- Top notes: Styrax (!!), Moroccan rose (!), artemisia, spicy notes
- Heart notes: Leather (!!), iris (!), cedar, jasmine, tuberose
- Base notes: Amber (!!!), patchouli (!!), oud (!!), white musk, vetiver

==> "Wafa" is a heavy, dark, warm amber fragrance with leather, patchouli and oud as well as other interesting characteristics.

The opening is characterized by a resinous, spicy drumbeat that is almost alcoholic ("boozy"). This can be mistaken for plum (as in Chambre Noire). Admittedly, the fragrance gap is not large - but for my nose it is clearly there and not negligible. I think that styrax, rose and some spices create such an ethereal impression.

After a few minutes, iris leather enters the olfactory stage. The base, of course, already casts its powerful shadow. The association with Ferré for Men Eau de Toilette made it clear to me that iris and leather are to be found here. That iris leather is admittedly far weaker and more fragile, but in my opinion contains the same powdery, leathery aura.

After half an hour to an hour, the leather and the floral notes fade. The fragrance "dries down", i.e. the agitated time of the (powdery) floral leather is over. Now only amber, patchouli and oud dominate the fragrance. After a bang opening and a brilliant heartbeat, "Wafa" now settles down on a cozy bed of amber. Finally, the patchouli and woody notes disappear and the fragrance falls asleep in a pleasantly warm, ambery state.

"Wafa" inspires me. I would not have thought that such an extremely inexpensive fragrance could have such quality and take me on a stimulating olfactory journey with numerous stops. A truly excellent and multi-faceted fragrance.

"Wafa" is often compared to Black Phantom - Memento Mori and Carlisle. Well, in my opinion, they are merely distant relatives, not clones! There is a certain similarity due to the dark patchouli, but the fragrance concepts are fundamentally different.

Let me rather compare "Wafa" with Aoud Night. That fragrance also contains leather, oud, patchouli and rose. Of all the fragrances in my collection, this is the one that comes closest to "Wafa". They are both heavy, strong and evil. (Although "Wafa" doesn't stay evil all the time, but more on that in a moment.)

however, "Aoud Night" is primarily a rose oud fragrance, while "Wafa" is an amber fragrance at its core. Twenty or thirty minutes after application, their closeness is at its greatest: leather, oud, patch and flowers are now distinctly present in both fragrances. After that, "Aoud Night" fades linearly (i.e. just gets weaker), while "Wafa" takes a turn: It becomes cozy-sweet and ambery with a dry woodiness. The leather also leaves "Wafa" in the drydown.

Incidentally, only "Aoud Night" is suitable for sports (such as dancing), as it allows you to breathe deeply and quickly. "Wafa" is too dusty in the drydown - despite its ambery sweetness - which could take your breath away.

Never mind, sport is not the area of application for "Wafa". Despite - or perhaps because of - its impetuous opening and heart, I consider it a wintery cuddly fragrance.

For those who are impatient and (due to less or even greater impetuousness...) want to get straight to the cuddly, er, amber core, I recommend "Eternal Oud | Lattafa / لطافة". And there is actually a plum in the opening...

01/12/2024

10
Pricing 8
Bottle 7
Sillage 8
Longevity 5
Scent

Val
39 Reviews

Translated Show original

Val

4

Sweet death

... were the first thoughts I had in my head when I sprayed on "Wafa | Ard Al Zaafaran / ارض الزعفران التجارية".
My morbid associations are supported by the fruity-ashy plum-incense combo. There's also a lot of patch and a medical Frankenstein note that looks deep inside the human body like a dissecting knife.
The rose merely serves as decoration for the coffin, which has been colorfully cobbled together from vanilla-scented wood.

"Wafa | Ard Al Zaafaran / ارض الزعفران التجارية" is a niche fragrance from the Arabian Lattafa Group and is so special that you can only love it or hate it.
It has a dark seriousness that is the opposite of crowdpleasing. No laughter, no facial expressions - just a face that looks like a mask. This smoky fruit sweetness, reminiscent of dried fruit and the fresh smell of corpses, shows me the finiteness we are confronted with every day.
Even though "Wafa | Ard Al Zaafaran / ارض الزعفران التجارية" is definitely a high-quality composition, I unfortunately can't think of a single situation in which I could wear it - except for a funeral.

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