ClaudioCH

I spontaneously discovered this perfume for the first time during a trip to Dubai in 2021 in the in-house Khalis store in the middle of the Gold Souk.
Mind you, I was in the poorer working-class neighborhood, which is why the store was very narrow and simple.

Looking for a classic souvenir of the souk, I smelled the Amber Oud while testing some of Khalis' fragrances and found it solid at first, but not exceptional.
Due to the low price of the equivalent of 30€, I took the 100ml bottle with me anyway.

At the time, I was not yet able to correctly identify the scent of real oud and appreciate it accordingly.

This changed more and more over time, so that I can now say that there are few equivalent oud fragrances for this price that smell so luxurious and authentic.

In the first opening, you immediately get an authentic oud note, which has a minimal animalic and somewhat spicy aftertaste, while at the same time harmonizing perfectly with the high-quality amber notes. A subtle, powdery note, which loosens up the amber scent somewhat, is also perceptible.

The fragrance perfectly reflects the impressions in the gold souk in the middle of Dubai. The intense heat, the oriental scents, the impressions of economic superlatives, everything is captured compactly in this fragrance.

The fragrance is increasingly persistent, but impresses with the high-quality composition of the ingredients and a solid longevity of around 7 hours.

The sillage does not take up too much space, but you will definitely be noticed if you spray a little more.

All in all, this is a price-performance hit with that certain something and a very authentic oud note, which is also suitable for Western noses.

I know few fragrances, which opinions are so divergent, as Kirkè by Tiziana Terenzi.

The fragrance was a few years ago one of my first niche perfumes and admittedly I bought this blindly after I learned that prominent clientele should often wear this fragrance.
This has aroused my curiosity, whereupon I unpacked the bottle upon arrival of the fragrance excited and extensively sprayed the first sprays on a test strip as well as the skin.

The first thing that penetrates one's nose are numerous, mainly synthetic-smelling fruits, like a freshly delivered, tangy and pompously filled fruit basket from Seville, Spain.
This creates not only a gentle cloud of fruit, but the fragrance is downright a steamroller of fruit with proper pressure. Quasi like an overripe passion fruit from the Caribbean, which is about to burst.
The comparison with Erba Pura (in my opinion also a wonderful fragrance) is understandable, but not appropriate. They are simply two independent fragrances, which should not compete and also do not have to.

Exactly that makes this unisex fragrance in my opinion so special.
You get for a solid P / L ratio a fruit bomb, which acts despite the recognizable synthetic enormously high-quality.

The pear incl. the peach and passion fruit are very good to hear in the top note, remain thereby also steadfastly over the entire fragrance.
In the course of development joins the Terenzi-typical musk as a wonderful base to the fragrance composition.
To drydown all components mix once again, but always remain individually identifiable. Like a well sorted coin collection.

One simply stands out with this fragrance. This fragrance is thus ideally suited for going out, for various social gatherings but also for activities such as dates or vacations on the beach. In an important business meeting I see this fragrance rather less.
Despite the concentrated power in sillage and durability, I see numerous areas of application here, because this fruit composition despite the olfactory need to show off always seems high-quality, this simply can not be denied.

However, you should bring the right personality, which is why I associate this fragrance with a "main character fragrance".

One is present by the exorbitant durability and sillage everywhere and leads an enormous, fruity-delicious, plump scent tail behind him with.
I have had regelrecht at about 10 sprays the following situation:
A cyclist smelled the scent at a major intersection in a major city and followed me certainly 10 meters as long as he could ask me what fragrance I wear.
Such a presence I had not yet experienced another time.
So far, I have also received countless compliments for this fragrance, from both sexes. With women, the fragrance also comes despite the fruitiness very well, if this is relevant to someone.

Clearly, there are then also those who turn up their noses at 10 sprays Kirkè and give downright funny looks of themselves.
But that's what makes this fragrance, you wear it with pride and ignore drivel from old-fashioned personalities, which usually carry 1 sprayer Le Male. It is a fragrance where some people in everyday life think "How can you only?" but that's what I love about him.

In this sense, I can recommend this fragrance to extroverts and confident people who value presence and polarization, and in any case want to embody a certain level of class & sophistication.

Admittedly, when I first smelled Oud Satin Mood (OSM) 2 years ago in my regular perfumery, I did not understand the hype, because the fragrance on the strip smelled rather boring and different than expected, much softer and very rosy.
I had rather expected an oud in the sense of Initio's Oud for Greatness.

Thus, I devoted myself at that time to other fragrances à la Penhaligon's Mr. Sam etc.

Almost forward I came last month in search of another winter fragrance with exorbitant durability (due to dry skin) again on this fragrance.
Usually my skin absorbs many fragrances that are considered "beastmode" very quickly, which is why I put enormous emphasis on H/S at these price ranges. Represent here a clear view, because, if I would use only 1-2 sprays, you can let it be anyway directly.

Now to the fragrance:
After an erroneous purchase of Herod with the most ridiculous H/S in my perfume journey landed directly on Ebay, I smelled OSM again and suddenly found great pleasure in this velvety-oudy, never too potent and very strong rose-dominated fragrance. It just smells like pure luxury. The scent cloud is just melt-in-your-mouth and definitely brings attention - so you get noticed a lot.
The oud note is so well balanced that the top note is primarily a slightly powdery rose with a balanced woody, vanilla undertone.
As the fragrance progresses, the luxurious oud becomes more and more present, but never surpasses the fragrant roses, but blends perfectly into the fragrance composition. Quasi never musty but always very rose-focused with high-quality oud as a base.

And the best:
Despite the exorbitant durability of at least 15 hours (even with dry skin) and an almost perverse sillage, the fragrance never seems oppressive. He is extremely present, however, takes no one the air to breathe.
I would equate the H / S with Arabians Tonka by Montale.
Now and then you get even as a carrier a scent tail, which conjures up a pure joy in the face. For usually one is even briskly scent-blind.

All in all, Monsieur Kurkdjian has succeeded here next to Grand Soir another masterpiece.

For all those who have shyness about a potential "granny smell" due to the present rose:
These were also my concerns, which, however, were refuted when I got involved in this luxurious fragrance. The combination with the luxurious oud you should let work when testing a few minutes to hours, so that the fragrance can unfold its incomparable presence.
In my opinion, the clothing style again plays an important role and I see this fragrance on man and woman from 20 years with elegant-self-confident outfits.

Perfect fragrance composition for man and woman for important business meetings, dates, walking in the fall / winter and ideal for going out.

Despite my long-standing savvy in the world of perfumes, the first sniff of this well-composed fragrance has opened up a completely separate league for me.

The first point of contact with Grand Soir I made in a carefully sorted niche perfumery in the heart of Munich.
At the first spray on a test strip, this extraordinarily noble kind of an unknown depth struck me directly.

No sooner did I smell the opulent fragrance DNA, so I interrupted my brother in his okfaktorischen journey of discovery and made it clear to him, now with Grand Soir on the back of the hand, that we should go but as quickly as possible in the fresh air, so that the perfume can unfold in full glory.

This step is mandatory, because I grew up with neurodermatitis and my skin some fragrances not insignificantly influenced by the scent course as well as the durability.

However, in the next 5 minutes in the comfortable walk along the Marienplatz I quickly realized that this smell is not simply that, some niche fragrance.
There was clearly more behind it.

I could not stop leading the back of my hand to my nose (which is always a positive sign) and began to perceive a very intense, noble and strongly ambrierte as well as resinous fragrance cloud. Not to be confused with Christmas gourmands, Grand Soir resides primarily in the amber nouveau riche. A minimal spiciness, which resonates with the resinous notes, rounds out the overall concept. An all-around adult and opulent fragrance.

This is exactly what describes this noble composition exactly. A mostly linear scent progression with consistently strong sillage and durability of over 10h captivates through the high-quality fusion of amber notes, which enclose one like a cuddly Loro Piana cashmere sweater, which, mind you, is pleasantly warming on the skin and never scratches due to the soft wool.

You just feel comfortable with this fragrance and by wearing the resinous-amber notes with the essential benzoin and labdanum mix, you literally radiate inner peace, self-confidence as well as luxury.

Coupled with the nevertheless very strong sillage, which provides an elegant, not too dense but still strongly present scent tail, this fragrance is virtually like a Birkin bag. Without much logo clamor, possibly with appropriate clientele not even perceivable as luxury. But the median, which has at least a small measure of interest in designer goods, will recognize the Birkin and be amazed.
Exactly so acts the room-filling and yet not to flood, fragrant fragrance.

In my eyes, one of the noblest as well as finest autumn as well as winter perfumes of our time.
Equally suitable for men and women.
Noteworthy is mMn. only that you are dressed appropriately and not with the Nike Tech suit running around, because that would not do justice to this high-quality fragrance.
In this respect, I recommend this warm fragrance garb self-confident, personality-conscious contemporaries from 20 years upwards.
Finally, also praise for the noble flacon, frames itself excellently in any collection and appears due to the simple presentation and the golden drop very valuable.

Let me know with pleasure, how your impression is to this smell.

Got the Herod, after testing the new Althair, as a 2022 batch in a niche perfumery.
The Althair was good, though too boring and actually reminded me of the earlier (great) versions of Sculpture Homme at first.

Now to the Herod:
Very pleasant, smoky vanilla scent with a hint of cherry in the top note and a not too harsh tobacco note as a base. Minimally reminiscent of Spicebomb Extreme, but is clearly deeper and definitely a bit smoky. However, one quickly gets used to the almost chimney-like smokiness and quickly finds pleasure in the entire composition.

Now to the reason why I will acquire for the time being no more PdM fragrances and also recommend it to no one.
The durability as well as sillage of the Herod (as well as among others Oajan, Layton Exclusif etc.) is underground bad.

I own just under 50 perfumes, some of them niche, others designer and even simple Zara Dupes.

With all these fragrances I have never heard such a grotesque durability as well as sillage (if you can even call this so).
It is unclear to me how a fragrance for 230€ can perform shamelessly dermaßen underground.
Immediately after spraying Herod is a skin scent, which holds a maximum of 1h and is consequently no longer perceptible even with deep content at the point of application.
Before here of fragrance blindness is spoken:
If 40 (!) Spray on clothing, hair, skin according to feedback from 10 people over the day only minimally perceptible, this is simply embarrassing and destroys any image of the brand.

Sure, skin types are different & my skin is rather dry, which is why I often spray a little more.
Only if even on pieces of clothing or with the most diverse people consistently a shelf life of maximum 1 hour is achieved, this is a cheek and should not be for sale in my opinion.