Black Aoud Montale 2006

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.