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30-minute test of courage: Can you manage the fecal cow shed or not?
Zafar is the first fragrance that really put my love of oud to the test, because it separates the wheat from the chaff within the first half hour. And I wouldn't blame anyone who couldn't stand it.
Without any great lyrical castles in the air, straight into the feeling:
- After spraying it on:
Pungent, fecal cowshed meets an intense, more synthetic (bubblegum) floral combination so as not to completely kill the fragrance from the start. The floral accords are the must-have counterpart to the oud.
I don't want anyone around me after spraying it on, otherwise no one will like me that evening.
- After 10 minutes:
Thank goodness. The feces are gone. It's just a cowshed oud now. But it still pops.
I can now perceive orange blossom and pepper more clearly. The bergamot adds a slight acidity. A dark rose flashes in the background.
- After 30 minutes:
The strong oud was only the 'shining star' for the first half hour. The animal notes are almost gone. Phew, thank you.
The "bubblegum flower" (orange blossom and jasmine) comes out more clearly now, though. Unfortunately, this makes it very cheap and unrounded. A bit of 'stinky oud' paired with pepper is still present.
- After 45 minutes:
The oud is gone. Short, but intensely banging performance. Okay.
The last few minutes have hardly changed: Bubblegum-synthetic floral with rose, pepper and darker but restrained wood. I can also smell some iris, which rounds off the fragrance and makes it slightly creamy.
- After 1.5 hours to hour 3:
Zafar has become lighter, it has now entered the most beautiful period of its DNA, as everything is now less intense and more airy. This helps enormously, as it makes the synthetics more bearable, almost "flattering".
- Hour 3-6:
Quite a straightforward drydown with rather uncomplex notes. A little floral, a little woody, a little vanilla. Perceptible vetiver or moss - rather absent.
- Hour 6 to the end (approx. 10/11h):
No more change in the drydown. Leaves a flowery-sweet spray mark on my arm.
Sure: even 24 hours later, my arm smells of something that reminds me of it. But I only rate a fragrance up to the point where you could really say that there is "still something there".
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Conclusion:
The Zafar is a test of courage for Europeans and their noses in general. This is oriental power. It is challenging.
If you make it through the first half hour, you've done it. Respect!
Would I recommend it for the price of €250? For the die-hards among us? Sure, why not. There are worse 250-pound fragrances. But for 90% the Zafar would be a "pass". I can absolutely understand that. I wouldn't hold it against anyone.
P.S.: This has very little to do with the Zafar. The creation from Xerjoff is much more pleasing, much more "European". Even if the comparison is rather misleading - I would go for the Xerjoff. Simply because it doesn't smell as synthetic and, above all, 'rounder'.
So if you're simply looking for a "Zafar" for your collection, you should look at Xerjoff ;-)
Without any great lyrical castles in the air, straight into the feeling:
- After spraying it on:
Pungent, fecal cowshed meets an intense, more synthetic (bubblegum) floral combination so as not to completely kill the fragrance from the start. The floral accords are the must-have counterpart to the oud.
I don't want anyone around me after spraying it on, otherwise no one will like me that evening.
- After 10 minutes:
Thank goodness. The feces are gone. It's just a cowshed oud now. But it still pops.
I can now perceive orange blossom and pepper more clearly. The bergamot adds a slight acidity. A dark rose flashes in the background.
- After 30 minutes:
The strong oud was only the 'shining star' for the first half hour. The animal notes are almost gone. Phew, thank you.
The "bubblegum flower" (orange blossom and jasmine) comes out more clearly now, though. Unfortunately, this makes it very cheap and unrounded. A bit of 'stinky oud' paired with pepper is still present.
- After 45 minutes:
The oud is gone. Short, but intensely banging performance. Okay.
The last few minutes have hardly changed: Bubblegum-synthetic floral with rose, pepper and darker but restrained wood. I can also smell some iris, which rounds off the fragrance and makes it slightly creamy.
- After 1.5 hours to hour 3:
Zafar has become lighter, it has now entered the most beautiful period of its DNA, as everything is now less intense and more airy. This helps enormously, as it makes the synthetics more bearable, almost "flattering".
- Hour 3-6:
Quite a straightforward drydown with rather uncomplex notes. A little floral, a little woody, a little vanilla. Perceptible vetiver or moss - rather absent.
- Hour 6 to the end (approx. 10/11h):
No more change in the drydown. Leaves a flowery-sweet spray mark on my arm.
Sure: even 24 hours later, my arm smells of something that reminds me of it. But I only rate a fragrance up to the point where you could really say that there is "still something there".
#############
Conclusion:
The Zafar is a test of courage for Europeans and their noses in general. This is oriental power. It is challenging.
If you make it through the first half hour, you've done it. Respect!
Would I recommend it for the price of €250? For the die-hards among us? Sure, why not. There are worse 250-pound fragrances. But for 90% the Zafar would be a "pass". I can absolutely understand that. I wouldn't hold it against anyone.
P.S.: This has very little to do with the Zafar. The creation from Xerjoff is much more pleasing, much more "European". Even if the comparison is rather misleading - I would go for the Xerjoff. Simply because it doesn't smell as synthetic and, above all, 'rounder'.
So if you're simply looking for a "Zafar" for your collection, you should look at Xerjoff ;-)