DrB1414
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DrB1414
Antique wood, leather, smoke, liquor, and dried fruits.
Oud 777 is hands down the best perfume by the house of Stephane Humbert Lucas. I'm not a fan of the house, but this right here, is something special. More so than O Hira. It does share some similarities with O Hira, but the latter is more Labdanum centered, with very soft woods in the background. Here, the woods take center stage, and the resins, mostly labdanum, support from behind. This perfume showcases one of the best and true-to-life Oud Accords that I have come across in commercial perfumes. I would not be surprised if there's real Oud in this. Not barnyard or fermented, just a beautiful earthy, antique, dusty, leathery oud.
Starts off with a blast of earthy, leathery oud, a very dry and antique smell. Beautiful opening and quite strong. Soon after that, the resins start creeping in, mellowing the woody aspects, together with some spices, dried fruits, and smoke. As it develops all the mentioned notes coalesce to become a leathery, smokey, resinous accord that lingers for a long time with a soft and perceptible sillage. What I love most about the Oud Accord in this is that it has a very antique wood, old wood type of aroma to it. Like an old wooden chest. It's dry, dusty, old smelling. This is my favorite type of Oud accord, and very hard to come by. Paired with the ladanum it creates this ancient aroma that is just intoxicating. Aside from the Antique Wood Accord, there is also a leather accord, a boozy/liquor accord, dried fruits, and smoke. Like sitting in an ancient castle library, sipping on fine liquor, eating dried fruits, on leather chairs, and smoking shisha.
A very special perfume, and incredibly well put together, truly intoxicating aroma longing to the Orient.
Starts off with a blast of earthy, leathery oud, a very dry and antique smell. Beautiful opening and quite strong. Soon after that, the resins start creeping in, mellowing the woody aspects, together with some spices, dried fruits, and smoke. As it develops all the mentioned notes coalesce to become a leathery, smokey, resinous accord that lingers for a long time with a soft and perceptible sillage. What I love most about the Oud Accord in this is that it has a very antique wood, old wood type of aroma to it. Like an old wooden chest. It's dry, dusty, old smelling. This is my favorite type of Oud accord, and very hard to come by. Paired with the ladanum it creates this ancient aroma that is just intoxicating. Aside from the Antique Wood Accord, there is also a leather accord, a boozy/liquor accord, dried fruits, and smoke. Like sitting in an ancient castle library, sipping on fine liquor, eating dried fruits, on leather chairs, and smoking shisha.
A very special perfume, and incredibly well put together, truly intoxicating aroma longing to the Orient.
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Holy Grail Earthy Perfume
Find me in the Dark chapter 2 from The Unleashed Apothecary.
I had this fascination and propensity toward earthy, petrichor, dank, damp, and even swampy smells for a long time. I believe part of this is due to spending a good part of my childhood roaming the forests and the hills, many times during heavy rainfall. Also, spending time with my grandparents in the countryside where they had a damp basement. That scent always fascinated me and somehow stuck.
Therefore, I always searched for perfumes able to showcase that combination of wet soil, a dank cellar, moldy basement. I tried dozens and stopped at this one. This was the one I'd been looking for to capture that vision in smell, in perfume form. I consider this to be my favorite earthy perfume and since discovering it, I stopped searching.
However, this is quite a complex potion, not in the way it transitions from start to finish but rather in the way it concentrates various major accords into a whole. There is the strong soil, almost wet earth smell/accord. This is the first thing that hits you once you spray it. Then, there is the moldy, damp basement or cellar accord. If you are familiar with how a damp basement or a cellar smells, that scent is vividly captured here. Additionally, you get a wet fur accord, an animalistic facet created by the costus root. And lastly, the forest smell is evoked through the heavy usage of fir. Minor players are the sage in the opening, providing a nice aromatic touch, and the honey, which I believe fits great as it somehow balances the overall bitter flavor of this perfume. This could be a signature perfume for someone living in a forest, in a wooden cabin soaked by too many rainfalls, wearing animal pelts instead of clothes, brushing their teeth with earth, and perfuming themselves by rubbing some sage on their face. Raw, nature-like, animalistic, and unfiltered. And although I don't fit the aforementioned lifestyle, I love wearing this, especially when I crave something like that, or whenever I attend a heavy metal concert.
There are two more perfumes in this trilogy, part 1 and part 3. I find part 1 to be an apt predecessor as it is brighter, yet just as evocative and high quality, while I wasn't a fan of part 3 which I found a bit head-scratching as it didn't feel like it belongs with the other two, the quality wasn't at the same level, and the leather accord used had an almost latex feel to it making the perfume that much more confusing. Part 2 is definitely my favorite of the three, and I would recommend a sample to anyone who's into any of these accords or just looking for original and challenging/fun compositions.
IG:@memory.of.scents
I had this fascination and propensity toward earthy, petrichor, dank, damp, and even swampy smells for a long time. I believe part of this is due to spending a good part of my childhood roaming the forests and the hills, many times during heavy rainfall. Also, spending time with my grandparents in the countryside where they had a damp basement. That scent always fascinated me and somehow stuck.
Therefore, I always searched for perfumes able to showcase that combination of wet soil, a dank cellar, moldy basement. I tried dozens and stopped at this one. This was the one I'd been looking for to capture that vision in smell, in perfume form. I consider this to be my favorite earthy perfume and since discovering it, I stopped searching.
However, this is quite a complex potion, not in the way it transitions from start to finish but rather in the way it concentrates various major accords into a whole. There is the strong soil, almost wet earth smell/accord. This is the first thing that hits you once you spray it. Then, there is the moldy, damp basement or cellar accord. If you are familiar with how a damp basement or a cellar smells, that scent is vividly captured here. Additionally, you get a wet fur accord, an animalistic facet created by the costus root. And lastly, the forest smell is evoked through the heavy usage of fir. Minor players are the sage in the opening, providing a nice aromatic touch, and the honey, which I believe fits great as it somehow balances the overall bitter flavor of this perfume. This could be a signature perfume for someone living in a forest, in a wooden cabin soaked by too many rainfalls, wearing animal pelts instead of clothes, brushing their teeth with earth, and perfuming themselves by rubbing some sage on their face. Raw, nature-like, animalistic, and unfiltered. And although I don't fit the aforementioned lifestyle, I love wearing this, especially when I crave something like that, or whenever I attend a heavy metal concert.
There are two more perfumes in this trilogy, part 1 and part 3. I find part 1 to be an apt predecessor as it is brighter, yet just as evocative and high quality, while I wasn't a fan of part 3 which I found a bit head-scratching as it didn't feel like it belongs with the other two, the quality wasn't at the same level, and the leather accord used had an almost latex feel to it making the perfume that much more confusing. Part 2 is definitely my favorite of the three, and I would recommend a sample to anyone who's into any of these accords or just looking for original and challenging/fun compositions.
IG:@memory.of.scents
A Legendary Attar, A Legendary Leather
Here's another personal favorite of mine. Sultan Leather Attar from Ensar Oud. It's also one of my favorite attars ever, one of my favorite Oriental blends, and one of my favorite Leather compositions. It could easily make it to several top lists for me. For those who might not know, this is the predecessor of EO1 parfum. Without the ethanol. I might be in the minority here, but I always preferred Sultan Leather Attar to EO1. The oil is deeper and more leathery, and the ones before 2019 have an even greater depth to them. Maybe because most people in the fragrance community have this "attar phobia" they shy away from them. Just don't. If you are an EO1 fan, at least get a sample of this.
Going to the perfume itself. This is not complex, it doesn't change much and feels monolithic. However, the way the main notes are blended just works. This is also all-natural, using high-quality raw materials, hence, you don't need to employ many, just the right ones. In this case, rose, various ouds, and ambergris. These are the main notes that are present throughout but there might be some other small additions for complementing and fixating purposes. Overall, it feels like the most rich, luxurious, warm, Oriental leather accords that I have come across, which is built using various ouds. I'd say Chinese, Merauke, Indonesian, and Sumatran, but I know there are quite a few iterations therefore, some might differ slightly. Creating a realistic leather accord with only natural is no easy task, but here, it surpasses most. And what better way to contrast the leather than using rose? Natural smelling, velvety rose, none of the syrupy and jammy accords one might come across so often in commercial Oriental perfumes. Lastly, ambergris, to fill in the gaps. Clean, salty, sweet, with an almost resinous and musky aroma. It truly adds that extra touch to the composition.
Wearing this makes you feel like a Sultan no doubt. It's opulent and lasts forever, creating this most addictive, luxurious Oriental aura around you. Truly compelling.
IG:@memory.of.scents
Going to the perfume itself. This is not complex, it doesn't change much and feels monolithic. However, the way the main notes are blended just works. This is also all-natural, using high-quality raw materials, hence, you don't need to employ many, just the right ones. In this case, rose, various ouds, and ambergris. These are the main notes that are present throughout but there might be some other small additions for complementing and fixating purposes. Overall, it feels like the most rich, luxurious, warm, Oriental leather accords that I have come across, which is built using various ouds. I'd say Chinese, Merauke, Indonesian, and Sumatran, but I know there are quite a few iterations therefore, some might differ slightly. Creating a realistic leather accord with only natural is no easy task, but here, it surpasses most. And what better way to contrast the leather than using rose? Natural smelling, velvety rose, none of the syrupy and jammy accords one might come across so often in commercial Oriental perfumes. Lastly, ambergris, to fill in the gaps. Clean, salty, sweet, with an almost resinous and musky aroma. It truly adds that extra touch to the composition.
Wearing this makes you feel like a Sultan no doubt. It's opulent and lasts forever, creating this most addictive, luxurious Oriental aura around you. Truly compelling.
IG:@memory.of.scents
Too much Deja Vu
Encens Chypre is a beautiful Chypre-Oriental attar, inspired by the likes of Mitsouko, with an Oriental twist in Sultan's style, with Frankincense, elemi, benzoin, and a dash of civet in the base. It's easy to wear, quite linear though, and a beautiful composition that doesn't unfortunately bring anything new to the game. I'd say, the least interesting of his Chypre attars, and my least favorite, but the easiest one to start exploring. Because it's so linear and repetitive, I can't speak too highly of it, and I would rather go for Diaghilev or Mitsouko. Beautiful, just a bit boring.
Synthetic Mess/Miss
Sampled this hoping for a good Jasmine and Oud pairing. I guess I forgot this is still Xerjoff. A weird Jasmine accord, an even weirder Oud accord, sweetened up by synthetic vanilla and cashmeran. A sweet-floral synthetic mess that doesn't smell of Jasmine or Oud. I can't believe this one gets so much praise. Doesn't come across as animalic at all.
I sampled both the Vintage and the current version. They are 85-90% identical, don't fall for the "vintage is better stuff". Both suck.
I sampled both the Vintage and the current version. They are 85-90% identical, don't fall for the "vintage is better stuff". Both suck.
