Dubai - Majalis The Spirit of Dubai 2016

Majalis is complex, stunningly addictive, opulent and very much wearable. Upon initial spray, you are overwhelmed with a wide array of accords....each pulling for your attention. What do I notice? The overall feeling is warm, smoky, spicy, and sweet....and the main accords that stand out: rich pipe tobacco, smoky incense, thick/sticky/sweetness (vanilla & dates?) hints of citrusy sweet fruit, espresso beans, woody notes, and florals. I can't get enough of this house lately...and they spared no expense on the presentation. Performance is stellar! No complaints here

L.E. : it's a cold weather/ winter perfume, as far as lasting goes. 12 Hours after spraying it and I still smell it on my skin. Still, shouldn't the Middle East be the opposite, hot, thus hold longer in the summer (when I bought it) ?

With the risk of cracking some eggshells: What? You got me again!

The similarity with FM The Moon is false. It' s far closer to David Yurman- David Yurman Limited. Close but not same sour opening
This one's far more complex than DY (which is Extrait du perfume) , but not in the same league as the Moon. And not to forget the ingredient lists from both. So based on that, I take it that the Raspberry note might create confusion.
Add to that the Rasberry intensity lowers in 1- 2 minutes, letting itself be carried by (for my nose) tabacco (not smooth one though) , roses petals (broken and stale in water? ) and spices (roses jam taste as a smell) . The lower intensity has similarities to FM drydown, last notes, but over there the Oud still has mainstage. So again, for me a win for FM.

8- 9 for Lasting? Barely 4 hours (completly gone) on skin, and around 6 on clothes- maybe a bad batch, as I read on other sites the year on my bottle is not the best- pathetic at the price tag.

Packaging is interesting and quality (not to my taste, but hey, I am not Packages God) , box is with metal profiles on top corners, ect. . But I ask myself why did they cheap out on the hinge of the bottle cover? It' s basically an elastic used for pivoting. I understand the usage and concept, but when you take out the bottle, it's flimsy. And why a package in a package?

The price is wacky and totally unjustified. Moreso because there are some sites with 40% + discounts for the brand.

Sillage around two arms length when strong, close to one arm after around 30 minutes, but really intimate until the end (after an added 30- 45 minutes) .

P.S. : if you're ever on the fence about which one to buy, FM or this, I will say hand on heart to buy FM; because with some discounts from FM+ sites, prices are closer to eachother, but (imo) it' s worth buying FM.

I love Majalis, out of all the first generation perfumes from TSOD. I keep on going back for more and more. It's a spicy, warm, sweet incense concoction. The sillage is huge and lasted on my skin for a good 24 hours. It stays on clothes and any material that you spray on for weeks on end. I had sprayed my wrist and one week later I could still smell the scent but it was from my wrist watch which I had sprayed in the process. I think this is the best from G1 and I got 2 of these perfumes and generous samples from the boutique with the purchase. I have been told TSOD will be launching an exclusive perfume which will be available at the boutique this year, I will be waiting in anticipation. Until then I am going back to my beloved Majalis and drown myself in it's glorious aroma.

.... this is the best way to visualize the extraordinary fragrance. Close your eyes and imagine a walk as you stroll through Old Dubai along the Dubai Creek, observing the hustle and bustle of traders on and off the ships/boats, ending in the Dubai Spice Souk in Al Ras. During this walk, you absorb so many olfactory delights that are reflected in this wonderful scent. The heat enhances the impression.

Majalis is a fragrance that one would classify somewhat differently due to the many different notes a la Couleur. The first spray, "Boom," is filled with spices that completely take over at first. I personally enjoy this phase very much because nothing feels overwhelming and there’s no itching in the nose, as can happen with some spices. Over time, different notes emerge that are difficult to identify, as they only make a brief stopover before moving on.

So far, I have been able to test several spicy-oriental fragrances and I like this touch, but I have not encountered such an outstanding and extraordinary scent before.

As for longevity and sillage, these are in the upper range. I personally find the bottle very beautiful, which cannot be said about the price; € 535 for 50ml or € 705 for 100ml.

It is worth noting that the First Generation with its 7 fragrances offers a wonderful journey through the Arab Emirates. The available Discovery Set is particularly suitable for testing purposes.

Majalis was a very daring purchase for me. I had already tested the fragrance once before buying, but the high price made the decision quite difficult. Today my bottle of Majalis arrived. The packaging is already a dream, and I particularly like this case for the bottle, which I find to be a great idea for traveling. The bottle itself also shows an incredible love for detail; the walls of the room depicted on the bottle are crafted with amazing attention to detail, as is the use of real fabric for the carpet. The rationale behind such a bottle can and should certainly be critically examined: For me, the scent is primarily what matters. However, Nabeel definitely shows how a €300 perfume should look. Here, Nabeel clearly surpasses Roja in terms of presentation. I think anyone who has held a Nabeel Dubai bottle can confirm this.

The scent itself teleports me directly to distant lands. The unknown and foreign are the associations that captivate me with Majalis. The dominant notes for me are: rose (perfectly woven and never overpowering), fruity notes like apple, pear, peach, etc. Additionally, there are spicy notes of oud, the typical Arabic mocha, woods, date, and a beautiful smoky framework with myrrh and incense. After a few hours, the spicy and smoky notes become more pronounced. However, it is really very difficult to describe Majalis more precisely. The flood of perfectly intertwined notes is overwhelming for me. I have rarely smelled a perfume that has such a fine tuning of individual notes as Majalis. It is truly something special; when a perfume manages to create an allegory for me, it deserves a very good rating. I would describe the scent as follows: It is late evening in a country in the Far East, and the air is filled with the scent of foreign spices, incense sticks releasing their fragrance, and the smell of the market still lingers. In the side alleys, people sit drinking masala, Ceylon, thé à la menthe, and other specialties of the Far East. Majalis has this aura that manages to fascinate me every time.

The longevity is typically perfect for Nabeel. I can smell Majalis for over 12 hours, and the sillage remains a little over 8 hours at arm's length before it gradually becomes more intimate.

I can recommend everyone to try the Nabeel brand. Unfortunately, the brand lives in the shadows in Europe. It is also a great alternative to typical brands like Amouage, Xerjoff, Roja, Kemi, etc.