Iris
Blue lotus
Castoreum
Civet
Hyraceum
Ambergris
Black ambergris
Blackcurrant
Mongolian musk
Muskrat
Orris butter
Peach
Spices
Vietnamese oud
Bakul attar
Cambodian oud
Himalaya costus root
Mysore sandalwood
Tonkin musk
Violet
Carnation
MacnZee
33 Reviews
MacnZee
4
Animalic Overload that rewards patience
Update: I had to sell it. It didn't settle down or get any better. Frankly just way too many animalics in it.
Today is my first full time wearing Iris Ghalia Trifecta. I have sampled a previous version of Iris Ghalia, so I sort of had a preconceived expectation as to what this would be like. Boy was I surprised when I initially smelled trifecta. On initial spray, trifecta couldn’t be further away from the other IG iterations I have smelled. The animalics, muscs, and ouds are so intense in trifecta, that I was caught off guard, unfortunately not in a good way.
For me, the first few minutes of trifecta are not enjoyable. The triple trifectas of animalics, muscs and ouds creates an almost sour, salty and strange animalic funk that makes me want to scrub it off. Thankfully, after about 10 to 15 minutes, that initial blast of funk settles down a bit and starts to smooth out. The sour, funkiness dissipates slightly into a more smoky, furry, musky tone. It is still unmistakably animalic, but much more palatable. 15 minutes in and I am still not picking up any other notes other than animalics, muscs and oud. I think it is possible that I oversprayed (one on chest, 2 on each arm - total 5 sprays)
30 - 45 minutes in and I am still getting loads of muscs, animalics, oud and ambergris. I am now starting to pick up on a bit of sweetness, which I am guessing is coming from the blackcurrant and peach.I am getting some spices for sure, but it is really hard to tell it apart from the muscs. The sharpness of the animalics has settled down significantly, and it now has that familiar smokiness I get in a lot of Ensars perfumes. I think I am also starting to feel the Iris sneak in and add a bit of soft creaminess to the composition.
2 hours in, still heavily animalic and smoky. However I have noticed a significant difference in how the fragrance smells depending on how it was sprayed. I sprayed once on my chest from about 12 inches away. And when I smell under my shirt, I am getting much more sweetness, and creamy iris, and it smells wonderful. When I smell my arm, which was sprayed twice and rather closely (only a few inches away) the smell is still very animalic and smoky, and I mainly pick up muscs and ouds. So I think spraying technique is very important with this type of fragrance.
The fragrance has settled down quite a bit now, and while I am still getting significant animalics and a slight smoky aged oud, I can just barely pick up on the creaminess of iris. I have read several other reviews of Iris Ghalia trifecta, and some mention it to be soft, approachable, and an easy wearing fragrance. Some mention that it could even be an appropriate first time oud fragrance for the uninitiated. In my experience I wholeheartedly disagree with that. If I were to spray this on someone who is not into ouds and animalic fragrances, I would expect to get smacked in the face in return. This is not an easy fragrance to wear, especially if you are not experienced with animailcs and oud. Or, maybe I just got an off batch with an extra dose of the trifecta (a quadfecta?)
In short, iris Ghalia Trifecta is a perfume specifically for those craving a massive punch of animalics, mucs and ouds. Do not go into this one expecting the soft, creamy sweet composition of prior Iris Ghalia versions. While I appreciate the composition of this fragrance, I think I will need more time with it to see if it will turn into a like. Based on my first wearing, this is my second least favorite Ensar perfume I have owned (after Rumi v2). But I will continue to try different wearing techniques, and spraying less to see if my opinion changes.
Today is my first full time wearing Iris Ghalia Trifecta. I have sampled a previous version of Iris Ghalia, so I sort of had a preconceived expectation as to what this would be like. Boy was I surprised when I initially smelled trifecta. On initial spray, trifecta couldn’t be further away from the other IG iterations I have smelled. The animalics, muscs, and ouds are so intense in trifecta, that I was caught off guard, unfortunately not in a good way.
For me, the first few minutes of trifecta are not enjoyable. The triple trifectas of animalics, muscs and ouds creates an almost sour, salty and strange animalic funk that makes me want to scrub it off. Thankfully, after about 10 to 15 minutes, that initial blast of funk settles down a bit and starts to smooth out. The sour, funkiness dissipates slightly into a more smoky, furry, musky tone. It is still unmistakably animalic, but much more palatable. 15 minutes in and I am still not picking up any other notes other than animalics, muscs and oud. I think it is possible that I oversprayed (one on chest, 2 on each arm - total 5 sprays)
30 - 45 minutes in and I am still getting loads of muscs, animalics, oud and ambergris. I am now starting to pick up on a bit of sweetness, which I am guessing is coming from the blackcurrant and peach.I am getting some spices for sure, but it is really hard to tell it apart from the muscs. The sharpness of the animalics has settled down significantly, and it now has that familiar smokiness I get in a lot of Ensars perfumes. I think I am also starting to feel the Iris sneak in and add a bit of soft creaminess to the composition.
2 hours in, still heavily animalic and smoky. However I have noticed a significant difference in how the fragrance smells depending on how it was sprayed. I sprayed once on my chest from about 12 inches away. And when I smell under my shirt, I am getting much more sweetness, and creamy iris, and it smells wonderful. When I smell my arm, which was sprayed twice and rather closely (only a few inches away) the smell is still very animalic and smoky, and I mainly pick up muscs and ouds. So I think spraying technique is very important with this type of fragrance.
The fragrance has settled down quite a bit now, and while I am still getting significant animalics and a slight smoky aged oud, I can just barely pick up on the creaminess of iris. I have read several other reviews of Iris Ghalia trifecta, and some mention it to be soft, approachable, and an easy wearing fragrance. Some mention that it could even be an appropriate first time oud fragrance for the uninitiated. In my experience I wholeheartedly disagree with that. If I were to spray this on someone who is not into ouds and animalic fragrances, I would expect to get smacked in the face in return. This is not an easy fragrance to wear, especially if you are not experienced with animailcs and oud. Or, maybe I just got an off batch with an extra dose of the trifecta (a quadfecta?)
In short, iris Ghalia Trifecta is a perfume specifically for those craving a massive punch of animalics, mucs and ouds. Do not go into this one expecting the soft, creamy sweet composition of prior Iris Ghalia versions. While I appreciate the composition of this fragrance, I think I will need more time with it to see if it will turn into a like. Based on my first wearing, this is my second least favorite Ensar perfume I have owned (after Rumi v2). But I will continue to try different wearing techniques, and spraying less to see if my opinion changes.
Updated on 03/12/2025
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