Iris Ghalia Ensar Oud 2019 Parfum

Admittedly, it took some time for me to reach the point in my fragrance journey where I considered thinking about Ensar Oud scents, let alone owning any. The absolute high-end price and the somewhat over-the-top marketing kept me from ordering or testing an EO until the beginning of last year. However, after trying some niche fragrances, I was so intrigued by a scent from Ensar Oud that I ordered a 15ml bottle, I can hardly bring myself to say it, blind!!! You can guess which one it was - Right! - Iris Ghalia - version 3 or 4 (I don't know the exact difference between the two versions).

First of all, I must say that I absolutely appreciate Iris as a fragrance note. I love that powdery, buttery yet earthy floral scent aura that surrounds you as soon as you spray fragrances with a high natural iris content. Since Iris Ghalia is supposed to be the spearhead here, I couldn't hold back any longer and had to get myself a bottle!

I still remember the day when the Iris Ghalia arrived at my home via express delivery. With trembling hands, I opened the package and the small Ensar Oud box inside. There it was - my first Ensar - a tiny 15 ml bottle with the silver inscription - Iris Ghalia. Not even two seconds later, I cautiously pressed the spray head and an extremely oily layer covered the back of my hand.
A few seconds later, something olfactorily followed that I could hardly believe. I got goosebumps, simply due to the beauty of this fragrance!

Yes - it starts off quite animalic due to the high content of natural animal ingredients like amber, musk, hyraceum, castoreum, and muskrat. However, the initially present iris, along with incredibly natural-smelling blackcurrant and peach notes, quickly dampens the initial animalic aspect, and Iris Ghalia becomes floral, fruity, and creamy within just 2-3 minutes, with an incredible sparkling - almost reminiscent of Coca-Cola - effervescence (probably from the Tibetan musk combined with amber).

The cola note, which I have also been able to detect in other Ensar Oud fragrances, is present throughout the entire long-lasting scent journey. Iris Ghalia becomes - I suspect due to the high iris content - increasingly syrupy, creating a play between iced tea peach and sparkling cola. The fragrance also becomes more floral with the iris and the prominent blue lotus! In the background, a present animalic aspect always lingers, ensuring that the scent never becomes too sweet. Overall, IG has an extreme progression and thus never becomes boring!

As is typical for Ensar, the ingredients are incredibly well intertwined, creating a true work of art! For a purely natural fragrance, this lasts extremely long. I get a good 10 hours of longevity, and the sillage is quite strong in the first few hours. Despite the present animalic notes, Iris Ghalia is definitely one of the most mass-appealing Ensar Ouds and can therefore be worn without hesitation to evening events in "Western spheres," without having to worry about being looked at askance!

In conclusion, I would like to make a small correction regarding the previously mentioned exaggerated marketing of EO: Now that I have gained some olfactory experience, I can say that you can truly smell the absolute high-end quality of Ensar Oud, and there are indeed very few, if any, perfume houses out there that possess such magnificent vintage ingredients and can showcase them as skillfully as Ensar Oud!
Thus, I have transformed from a slight skeptic into a fan and am diligently saving for more artworks from this house!

As you can probably guess from my enthusiasm, Iris Ghalia was the beginning of my fascination with the artisan world - especially Ensar Oud. In the meantime, I own several other equally great Ensar Oud fragrances, as well as an additional 30ml bottle of Iris Ghalia.
After testing several Ensar Oud fragrances, I can say without a doubt that Iris Ghalia will always be among my absolute favorites from this house. A truly royal iris from the Sultan, perfectly showcased by Ensar Oud! A true Iris Ghalia!!!