Oud Silk Mood Maison Francis Kurkdjian 2013 Extrait de Parfum

Commenting on this fragrance - that is truly no easy task. In fact, it’s damn hard. On the way to putting thoughts and feelings into words, there are so many contradictions. But I’ll just dive in …

It starts with the fact that MFK has a brother of this fragrance on the market - "Oud Satin Mood" - thus creating a comparison, if not a direct competition situation. I have tested both again and again, and my first impression (from 2017) has held up to this day: I like Oud Silk Mood significantly more, I consider it the stronger fragrance (in terms of sillage and longevity), and for me, it is the more wearable rose scent for men. With these statements, I distance myself from some impressions I’ve gathered online, and it’s clear that some Parfumo users feel quite the opposite. Not least in the ranking here, if one cares to pay attention to that, Oud Satin Mood is ahead. As I said, I see it a bit differently.

I find the message in Oud Silk Mood clearer. Here we have a rose that, for me, stands out more clearly and distinctly from the very beginning and has a certain depth. Depth should not be confused with heaviness; it remains a light yet intense veil of fragrance with outstanding sillage and excellent longevity. The oud never takes center stage; it helps to give the rose a clear direction and thus support. So the whole thing is a bit less flowery-sweet and more forceful (especially at the beginning), louder, more determined. Still light and rosy-sweet, but by no means as soft, sweet, diffuse-dreamy, and above all not as soapy as Oud Satin Mood. And that makes it, for me as a man, the crucial bit more wearable.

"Wearable" as a man. Yes, that’s the next point. It’s already on the edge. Oud Silk Mood smells incredibly romantic to me. If romance had a fragrance, it would probably be like this. The romance it exudes has a somewhat unisex-intimate, yes, truly erotic quality. I find it extremely private. So where do you wear this as a man? On a warm summer night on the balcony. Under a bathrobe. Or maybe even directly in bed. For me, it’s definitely not a fragrance for mundane occasions. Not one for everyday life. Not one for leisure, yes, most likely one for a romantic candlelight dinner. In short: It demands intimacy. That moment when two souls are extremely close, merging together. Also physically. Then, yes then, I think you can wear it very well as a man. Then it fully expresses its sensuality, its seduction. Then it is truly a fragrance of love, of pure romance.

I love the scent of roses so much that it drives me to turn over every stone that promises to make rose a prominent fragrance note for men. I tell you, it’s a journey like the one Odysseus must have gone through (if I were to start now …). So far, I have identified Lumiere Noire, also by MFK, as the purest and most wearable rose fragrance possible. Compared to Oud Silk Mood, it works significantly better in everyday life and is much more versatile. I’m not at the end of my journey yet, just so much to say: Oud Silk Mood is one of the absolutely most beautiful rose fragrances I have come across. And it is wearable for men.

Finally, one question remains: Is the Extrait necessary, or does the perfume suffice? Again, not an easy question to answer. I find the Extrait to be a notch denser and more beautiful than the Eau de Parfum. However, compared to this slight push towards the perfection of this composition, the Extrait is also significantly more expensive. If fate hadn’t granted me a pretty good deal that allowed me to own a bottle of the Extrait - I probably wouldn’t have bought it and would have settled for the EdP. But I can say that the Extrait transforms the extremely beautiful rose of the EdP into a complete one, as I have never encountered it more beautifully, so rosy-pure. This means: despite the high price, a 10 out of 10 for this fragrance. For this breathtakingly beautiful, sensual, romantic rose.