We may earn a commission when you buy from links on our site, including the eBay Partner Network and Amazon.

Black Aoud 2006

7.4 / 10 824 Ratings
A perfume by Montale for men, released in 2006. The scent is floral-oriental. Projection and longevity are above-average. It is still in production.
Compare
Similar fragrances
We may earn a commission when you buy from links on our site, including the eBay Partner Network and Amazon.

Main accords

Floral
Oriental
Woody
Spicy
Resinous

Fragrance Notes

RoseRose Cambodian oudCambodian oud Indonesian patchouliIndonesian patchouli LabdanumLabdanum SandalwoodSandalwood Mandarin orangeMandarin orange MuskMusk
Ratings
Scent
7.4824 Ratings
Longevity
9.2704 Ratings
Sillage
9.1681 Ratings
Bottle
7.1634 Ratings
Value for money
7.8311 Ratings
Submitted by Kankuro · last update on 12/07/2025.
Source-backed & verified

Smells similar

What the fragrance is similar to
Intense Black Aoud by Montale
Intense Black Aoud
Black to Black by Mancera
Black to Black
Black Prestigium by Mancera
Black Prestigium
Acqua di Parisis Essenza Intensa - Arabian Roses by Reyane Tradition
Acqua di Parisis Essenza Intensa - Arabian Roses
Boss Collection - Silk Jasmine by Hugo Boss
Boss Collection - Silk Jasmine
Abyat by Arabian Oud
Abyat

Reviews

82 in-depth fragrance descriptions
Dolby

69 Reviews
Dolby
Dolby
Very helpful Review 8  
This man, my dear, wears lipstick.
Nowhere as dark as I thought it would be.
In fact, only the opening is stark, woody, and raw.
Deceptively, it led me to believe that it would remain as such.
A serious linear and inky fragrance.
Actually not all that pleasant up close.

And then, out of the blue, a rose emerged.
It initially appeared, strangely enough, as I took my nose away from my forearm for the third time, resigned to the fact that I was going to smell like a bloke for the rest of the day.

Visions of a crimson rose growing out of a dark mass struck me … and then it grew, and grew, until this very much became the predominant note, totally shadowing its woody roots.

Do I like it?
Not sure.
I prefer my roses gourmand and this one definitely isn’t, but if you want a red rose with great projection, this will be right up your street.
...
Now, I have to come back to tell you that I presented my neck to my beloved and “Turkish Delight” was his verdict.
However, when I asked him to smell my forearm, he looked at me puzzled, and declared that it smelt completely different.
No idea why.
Fact remains that if I could smell what he first smelt, I probably would adore this perfume … but I don’t, so I stand by my initial assessment.
5 Comments
Drseid

828 Reviews
Drseid
Drseid
Very helpful Review 6  
The One That Led The Way, But Has It Been Surpassed?...
I really thought I would love Black Aoud by Montale. It was said to be similar to the more recent release, Portrait of a Lady by Frédéric Malle that I absolutely adore, so if so, how could I *not* love this too?

Well, after now trying the Montale, I do see where the comparisons are coming from with both scents relying on a rose, patchouli and Oud combo to create their dark rose accords... Unfortunately, that is where the comparison ends, IMO... Black Aoud's synthetic Oud note that mixes with the rose early on immediately strikes me as a bit bizarre. It makes the rose a more watery, "feminine" and slightly rubbery that just does not fit my tastes much. A nice dark rose scent to be sure, but hard to wear, IMO. With Portrait of a Lady I find a much deeper and natural smelling rose opening with a superior quality patchouli heart that makes it a lot more easy to wear and appreciate for me, at least. Black Aoud has very good projection, but longevity is somewhat lacking on my skin. I get about five hours longevity with it at decent strength and that is well-below average for me.

So the bottom line is Black Aoud is a good scent and it deserves a lot of credit for bringing attention to the rose, patchouli, Oud combo that is so popular nowadays. That said, Portrait of a Lady perfects the blend with much better quality IMO, and adds raspberry to the mix for good measure for a more wearable and balanced package. Portrait of a Lady would have to be a "must sample first" before buying Black Aoud, IMO. A weak thumbs up for Black Aoud by Montale and a 3 stars out 5 rating.
0 Comments
Sherapop

1240 Reviews
Sherapop
Sherapop
Helpful Review 6  
Danger lurks beneath the surface...
Lots of patchouli-rose-oud perfumes exist these days, and many of them are much more about rose and patchouli than they are about oud. Montale BLACK AOUD is an exception to the general rule, with just as much oud as rose and patchouli. The combination of the fairly declarative oud note along with the labdanum produces a scent very similar to leather, so this composition is bound to appeal to anyone who likes leather.

I do not find BLACK AOUD overly masculine, and it is certainly wearable by women who like dark leatherish scents laced with roses, so I'd have labeled this creation unisex and marketed it to gals and guys alike. I see that many women own a bottle of this perfume, and I am not at all surprised.

I imagine that BLACK AOUD would be the perfect scent for a woman working as an undercover agent who uses her powers of feminine persuasion to extract state secrets from her unwitting victims before leaving behind a trace of toxic carnelian lipstick from her farewell kiss.
2 Comments
Steve0580

31 Reviews
Steve0580
Steve0580
Very helpful Review 4  
A Strong, Wonderful Scent
Black Aoud is appropriately named, because it smells dark, smoky and resinous with the floral note mostly obscured in the opening. As it dries down, the floral note comes out more but is still somewhat concealed by the smoky resin.

It has the most strength of any Montale offering that I've come in contact with and can say that this is one of the few fragrances where one spray is enough and two - maximum, if you're wearing it out.

If you're wearing this in close quarters, like an office environment, even half a spray may be too much. A couple of dabs with a fingertip is more than enough. Quite honestly, I wouldn't recommend wearing this to the office at all.

This scent definitely has a more masculine edge to it, although many women seem to like it.

Sillage and Longevity are unrivaled.
0 Comments
Miaw2

339 Reviews
Miaw2
Miaw2
Helpful Review 3  
Black Roses
This is a well done blend of dark roses, oud and patchouli that has a great sillage, lasting power and projection.

After the medicinal open, the roses show it's splendour together with the oud and patchouli.

In my opinion this is unissex. It's a heavier version of C&S Dark Rose.

Definately a great scent that deserves at least a try.

Updated January 2014
0 Comments
More reviews

Statements

164 short views on the fragrance
3
My everyday scent, my favorite i love it so much, its so intense like a nuclear bomb, sometimes i get a headache from it but in a good way
0 Comments
3 years ago
2
I think its more of a feminine scent, my wife loves this, its a high class exotic rose scent with a room filling performance.
0 Comments
2
I really like the oud and patchouli in this. But I find the strong pungent rose to be very off-putting. It's very rose forward
0 Comments
2
Very synthetic rose...linear parfum, dominate rose...on my skin performance is average
0 Comments
2
After a pungent rubbery-spicy opening, this challenging powdery spicy-floral fragrance, settles to a leathery earthy-woody base. Beast mode!
0 Comments
8 months ago
1
A rich and intense oud fragrance with a touch of rose, creating a smoky yet elegant aura.
0 Comments
1
Hideous bottle. I get pure dark rose and nothing else. Very linear.
0 Comments
1
Smells like a typical sheikh. My test strip still smells like oud, vanilla and rose after week. POWER longevity
0 Comments
1
Beautiful on a man, but believe me, on a woman it gives that extra touch.
Excellent performance.
0 Comments
1
A strong oriental fragrance with rose, oud and patchouli in the front. My favorite Montale along with Intense Cafe.
0 Comments
More statements

Charts

This is how the community classifies the fragrance.
Pie Chart Radar Chart

Images

16 fragrance photos of the community
More images

Popular by Montale

Arabians Tonka by Montale Intense Cafe by Montale Infinity by Montale Chocolate Greedy by Montale Ristretto Intense Cafe by Montale Dark Vanilla by Montale Oud Tobacco by Montale Honey Aoud by Montale Oud Dream by Montale Full Incense by Montale Red Vetiver / Red Vetyver by Montale Blue Amber by Montale Sensual Instinct by Montale Soleil de Capri by Montale Roses Musk (Eau de Parfum) by Montale Vanille Absolu by Montale Intense Iris / Intense So Iris by Montale Mukhallat by Montale Intense Tiaré by Montale Herbal Aquatica by Montale