Dubai - Bahar The Spirit of Dubai 2015 Eau de Parfum

Watery notes overpower in the beginning. And the middle. And the end. Nevertheless, there is nuance, especially after that first hour or so. Something resinous slowly comes through, then hints of juicy fruit. Polite, aquatic, androgynous fragrance. Low-to-no sillage but surprisingly good longevity. I like my ozonic scents a bit more substantial.

Bahar is a weak spot in the Spirit of Dubai line-up, which is not to say that it is a weak fragrance. On the contrary, it is enormously potent – basically a generic sports fragrance steroid-pumped by a phalanx of powerful aromachemicals, among them the salty, poisonous Ambroxan and other nameless (but not blameless) modern woody ambers. The fragrance is bathed in a Chernobyl-grade chemical glow that effectively obliterates the delicacy and detail of the other notes.

When exposed to a particularly high dosage of aromachemicals, my nose quickly becomes fatigued. It has just enough time to grasp at something that smells citrusy, marine-fresh, and salty before bowing out completely. Even after scrubbing furiously with soap, water, oil, make-up removers, and acetone, Bahar persists, blocking out everything else except the bitter stink of chemicals. Since Bahar costs over $350 for fifteen milliliters of perfume oil, there is little to no advantage in going for this over, say, Dior’s Sauvage, if powerful aromachemicals are your thing.

If you have visited one of the Gulf countries, or Dubai in particular, then you have certainly smelled this fragrance or one of its imitations everywhere, from the first wealthy people of the Gulf to simple workers of Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi nationality.

All the scents you can imagine in one bottle... but it tends towards creamy, sugary floral perfumes, and I don't know how it is classified as a Fresh-Aquatic fragrance?

Dubai - Bahar is far from being a Fresh-Aquatic fragrance ...it is a luxurious fragrance, but it tends towards women's perfumes and Very expensive perfume.

Some men may love this fragrance, but I’m not one of them.

Final evaluation: A floral, sugary, sweet, and creamy women’s perfume that is very expensive and definitely not suitable for men.

The Nobel Prize-winning author Han Kang wondered, in The White Book, whether our attraction to what shines comes from an original memory: that of glimpsing the reflections of life-saving water.

Spirit of Dubai takes us on a thirsty journey through a forest of overwhelming, tropical density.

Flowers bloom everywhere, clashing with saffron, rose, violet, and jasmine. The woods hold their ground too: sandalwood, oud, and other precious essences.

And then come the fruits. More than you could ever name. Yet still, you press on, thirsty.

You can smell it—the water. You know a spring must be near. But you wander in circles, almost sickened by the sweetness around you.

Finally, you see it: sparks of white light piercing through the leaves. You push aside a branch, and there it is—the lake, pure.

And despite your thirst, you remain still, struck by beauty. For this fragrance reminds us that sometimes, the need for beauty outweighs even the need for thirst.

Insta: switzer_scent

Bahar was the last fragrance from the first Spirit of Dubai series that I still needed to test to know the entire range. Unfortunately, nothing has completely convinced me so far except for "Dubai - Turath | Nabeel." "Dubai - Majalis | Nabeel" was very good, but due to a lack of everyday suitability, it had to move on.

Bahar is completely different from the other fragrances in the Spirit of Dubai series. Here, the buyer does not receive a strong oriental scent, but rather something modern, fruity, and unfortunately also far too ordinary. The fragrance pyramid reads once again like the latest Brockhaus encyclopedia. Now comes the somewhat sad part. I can hardly perceive or recognize any of the notes. I'll keep it brief at this point: I just smell Invictus Aqua here, I would say 75-80% similarity. That is also the reason why there is no description of the fragrance following this. The only difference is a pineapple and oud in the heart and base notes, which smells like it’s from "Purple Accento | XerJoff." I really don’t know what to say about Bahar or how to rate this fragrance. It smells good and high-quality, but just like a dupe. For over €250 for 50 ml, I simply find that unacceptable.

The longevity is of course very good, over 10 hours was again no problem, and the sillage is good, but after 5-6 hours it’s almost skin close; other Nabeel fragrances perform significantly better here.

I am truly disappointed with Nabeel Bahar. Here, it has simply been copied, and that is not acceptable in this price range for me. A regular perfume buyer, so not a perfumista, would probably even label this fragrance as Invictus or not recognize the difference at all. I had my girlfriend test Bahar without telling her what she was testing. She said it was a typical scent from the Douglas Top 10 and immediately thought of Invictus Aqua.