Heartfire

...screeches brute Ruben and smashes a massive oak barrel full of spices on the hard head of his best friend Oudo (formerly Udo). "YOU call that a blast?" snorts Oudo, completely unimpressed. "Let me show you something that will REALLY knock you out!" Swiftly, Oudo reaches into the depths of his pants and pulls out a used new bottle of "One Man Show Oud Edition | Jacques Bogart." Before Ruben can react, he gets a hefty 100ml of fragrance sprayed right in his face and is already gagging in the process. "Wha-wha-what is this?!" Ruben chokes out and jumps in fear onto one of the filthy bar stools nearby. "That, my dear friend, is one of the coolest Eau de Toilettes on this planet!" Oudo says proudly and pulls out another bottle from his pants. Before Ruben knows it, he gets dosed again with 100ml all at once, this time he loses consciousness and topples into the open beer barrel with the strong beer. Outside, someone is smoking galbanum and several bergamots explode. "I've had enough of you two!" huffs innkeeper Wiegand and throws the two atomically radiating fragrance buddies out of the tavern in a high arc. And the moral of the story? There isn’t one, but this scent here is an absolutely brilliant diesel water for a ridiculously low price!

...shouts troublemaker Benno and jumps more or less skillfully onto one of the filthy bar stools. "No, it’s not!" replies his buddy Rolf-Leander. "Let me show you what real lava is!" Casually, he pulls a bottle from the inner pocket of his leather jacket and sprays Benno full blast. 100ml are used up immediately, the cloud of mist is physically tangible. "W-w-what is that?" gags Benno and crashes down from the stool, gasping. The nearby fruit bowl with green apples catches fire for no apparent reason. "That, my dear," says Rolf-Leander with elevated theatricality, "is one of the coolest Eau de Toilettes on our planet!" Swiftly, he reaches into his jacket again and pulls out a new bottle, "One Man Show Ruby Edition | Jacques Bogart." Ignoring Benno's gagging protests, he sprays his friend another 100ml right in the face, but has to gag himself due to the intensity. The burning fruit bowl, which has already completely burned down, catches fire once more. Outside, a cedar tree explodes. Host Wiegand has had enough and throws the two atomically radiating fragrance buddies out of the tavern without notice. And the moral of the story? There isn't one, but the scent is an incredibly powerful fragrant knockout for the smallest coin you can imagine! Masculine old-school, distinctive, and guaranteed to stand out!

One thing upfront: I have loved this scent since the very first whiff! My affinity for woods of all kinds made the very first sniff at the spray head thrilling. Given the listed fragrance notes, one might think that the scent enters into an interesting symbiosis with several accords, but here one is quickly enlightened otherwise: the inconspicuous cedar wood, which holds a quiet spot in the heart note of the fragrance pyramid, is clearly the main protagonist that stands above everything else! From my nasal perspective, Sultry Woods is 85% a powerful cedar wood scent; I only perceive a very subtle hint of something slightly earthy-leathery, the rest is merely rudimentary and hardly noticeable to me. Do I like it? Damn, YES! The cedar is represented here so realistically that it is a true delight for a wood enthusiast like me! French Avenue puts out a lot of great stuff, but THIS one definitely belongs in my Top 5! An extremely distinctive and potent scent, clearly masculine to me.

...and the honeycombs are filled with oud for some biologically questionable reason, then it smells exactly like that within a radius of fifty (in words: 50) meters! I have grown incredibly fond of Shaghaf Oud Azraq Eau de Parfum over time, and not just because of its atomic projection. The scent itself evokes a multitude of beautiful associations in me; it radiates cozy warmth and is (if you don't overdo it) by no means unpleasant or intrusive, but envelops you in a comforting, warm cloud of honey, cinnamon, and a hint of oud, with which you will be noticed. Furthermore, this fragrance is one of only two scents that I have actually been approached about multiple times on the street by complete strangers asking what lovely fragrance I was wearing. The only downside: the first 10 minutes after spraying, there is a somewhat piercing synthetic note that is noticeable, but this sounds worse than it is, as it dissipates quite quickly. What comes after that is a dream of a scent progression!

By the way, the limitation seems to be a joke, as the fragrance has been continuously available for purchase since its release and, according to Parfumo, is still being produced.

Without exaggeration: Shuhrah pour Homme is one of the strongest fragrances I know in terms of longevity and sillage. One spray is sufficient, two sprays are atomic, and by the third, the Earth's axis breaks, and the planet tips over. Okay, a dramatically exaggerated portrayal to make it clear, but you know what I mean. Now, let's talk about the scent or rather the note that I just can't get along with: that damn tomato leaf. Of all the herbal-floral essences and nuances that our wonderful planet offers us, it had to be tomato leaf? I can't agree with that. Okay, beyond the top note, it recedes into the background, and a rosy, slightly ambered sweetness comes to the fore, but in the top note, the tomato leaf kicks in brutally. Sure, that's my personal aversion to it, but if they had instead used pine, spruce, or buckwheat (is there buckwheat as a fragrance note?), I would give the scent a solid 11 out of 10. Despite this flaw, I wear the fragrance incredibly gladly, because from the heart note on, it becomes addictive for me, especially since the aura it creates is strong but never intrusive, which is something that few strong fragrances manage. In conclusion, I finally curse the cursed tomato leaf and recommend everyone to buy it blind, as you can't go wrong at THAT price anyway. Thanks for reading, and a big hate to the tomato leaf! Bye!