HugeBalls

To my nose, the oud and rose aspect of this is VERY similar to Dominic Ropinion's The Night, albeit toned down a level. The oud is definitely the Hindi variety, as the agarwood chips were almost certainly soaked and have undergone some degree of fermentation, resulting in a clean but prominent 'barnyard' note. Experienced Hindi oud lovers and fans of The Night will love this -- amateurs that have only smelled synthetic freshie slop will have their noses smashed yet again.

Overall, it's brighter and more fruit-forward than Ropinion's juice, thanks to the mango and ginger notes. Good lasting power and becomes a sweet, woody scent in the drydown. Good stuff.

It's dark, it's ultra potent, uber peachy, sweet & sour, floral oud fragrance. I've had the opportunity to wear this several times now, and everytime I do, my daughters remark on how much they love how I smell. It's sweet, it's slightly floral, and theres a gorgeous sweet agarwood when it dries down. It's not all that similar to Al-Mendoos, which is much more woody and oud forward. If I could modify it in bespoke fashion, I'd add a touch more oud to Nectar Thai. The only other thing I'd change is the atomizer, which kind of sucks on these 8mL bottles, which is no fault of Elkhaldi. I'm absolutely buying a bottle of this when this 8mL is gone. Gorgeous and very unique scent -- highly recommended!

Truly headache inducing. I don't know if its the fake lily of the valley, jasmonates, or the aldehydes, but something in Honeysuckle Chadō is absolutely is unrelenting on the nostrils and pounds my brain stem with a ball peen hammer. Feels completely unbalanced, which unfortunately lends to an air of amateurish composition. This was a scrubber for me.

It's official. I'm a bonafide member of the "I hate the 'aqua/marine' designation that's associated with a generic 'blue' accord in men's perfumes" club. It's a MARKETING PLOY! Literally a scheme cooked up by corporate advertising suits in NYC after running focus groups on a bunch of impressionable dullards. And judging by the reviews here on Parfumo, fragrance enthusiasts appear to be no less resilient to being afflicted by this virulent PSYOP. After all, young men are eager and willing to open their wallets for the "upscale" experience of wearing a brand like Roja!

NO, this fragrance does NOT remind you of relaxing and sipping cocktails on a boat in the Mediterranean. That is a false association that was seeded in your brain, and subsequently watered, fed, and mimetically nurtured in your subconscious through your overindulgence in online perfume media run by shysters. Do you know what being on a boat in Italy actually smells like? Brackish salt brine, iodine-heavy kelp, crustaceans + mollusks, a hint of olive trees, a whiff of herbal aperitif from the Campari you spilled on your shirt earlier that day, and a vaguely fecal/humanoid-musk note that varies in intensity depending upon how near you are to a major urban area. This doesn't smell like that. At all.

Is Isola Blu a mass-appealing, citrus-forward, 'blue' scent? Absolutely. If that's what you're into, fantastic -- go forth and wear young man! But don't pretend that this somehow "captures the essence of an aquatic lifestyle" (*I just experienced pure physical revolt and cringe by typing that*). But remember, the market for synthetic 'blue' fragrances is completely saturated, and there are perhaps hundreds of options available to you as a consumer. If you feel inclined to drop $500 MSRP for 50mL of Isola Blu, more power to you, but you could also just get the sufficiently similar Blue Talisman by Ex Nihilo at half the price. Meanwhile, if you want something that's been thoughtfully composed, is uniquely refreshing, and does a fine job of capturing the aroma of coastal myrtle trees and salty, kelp-laden bodies of water -- go try Acqua di Sale by Profumum Roma and thank me later.

This is a piece of genuinely interesting perfumery. I get a strong iodine note. It's the aroma of tidepooling -- the sun baking small pools of salt water, hermit crabs, and seamoss into the crevices of craggy shoreline rocks. Somewhere in the distance, coastal trees.

I don't why or how this is possible, but the longevity is INSANELY good on my skin. I put it on 16+ hours ago and it's still bouncing around my nostrils in a lively fashion. I find this to be very pleasant and fun to wear. Really good!