JJ96

I'll say it in advance, this is my new favorite scent! At first only for the winter, because I'm not sure if it will be too brute in summer...

But first things first... where do I start?
Best with my initial question. I was looking for a fragrance in which oud plays the leading role. Not interrupted by roses, as one has so often, and rightly so, or other scents. So pure oud.

So here on the forums looking for an oud-banger... quickly I landed at MFK and since I already had very good experiences with some of his scents, I was sure that not only dull oud is used here, but also good scents are produced altogether!

A blessing were the comments and statements of the other users, because I soon realized that Oud Extrait and Oud Cashmere Mood Extrait are the horses in the stable I should bet on.

I quickly got a travel bottle of Oud Extrait and sprayed it on. In the beginning I had strong BR540 vibes, which is probably due to the saffron... all in all a great scent, which should satisfy the masses with its sweetness, but which can also catch the most masculine men with its not insignificant oud!

But that's not what I was looking for... ...I wanted the full oud club!

So the oud had to be cashmere!
Unfortunately, there are hardly any offers here and elsewhere on the net you won't get it at a discount...
But thanks to a super nice perfume, I was able to get hold of a broken bottle for the Schnapper price!
And that was a 200€-blindbuy, which I had actually renounced, but in retrospect I would do everything exactly the same again!
When I finally held the bottle in my hands, I didn't dare to spray it, because it was already after 6 pm and I already guessed that it could take up our whole bedroom, which my better half surely wouldn't have liked very much :D

So I fell asleep in anticipation of the next morning
When I sprayed it the next morning I was immediately blown away! Oud immediately from the first sprayer!
I was in heaven!
Yes, in the first hour the oud is sometimes a little bit medical for a few seconds, but that doesn't bother me, because that's exactly how I wanted it to be!
Later the resins and vanilla are added. However, they only accentuate the fragrance! The oud plays the first violin at all times!
To the durability I can only say that I can still hear him after a full 12 hours outside and not only on the skin!
I can't say anything about the silage, due to lack of feedback, but I assume that it's worth seeing :)

I am super happy with my sweetheart and have finally found my new signature scent (at least in the cold half of the year)!

So for everyone who made it this far, thanks for reading :)

Since no one has written a comment on this great fragrance here yet, I will do so now, so that interested perfumers have a little more clues :)

I was looking for an alternative to Diaghilev from good Roja. Because, although I'm really keen on experimenting, just under 1.000€ for a BlindBuy is a bit much :D
And as it is so often the case, DUA Fragrances offers a supposedly authentic clone at a much more affordable price and so I dared the BlindBuy from a nice perfume colleague :)

The fragrance starts very fruity and typically chypry (is that a word). Lemon and lime come through well, I think. Only in the background is the tarragon, which gives a slightly greenish touch.

After a good hour you get to the heart note. Fruits on some flowers and some spices.
I usually find it very difficult to smell out individual notes in Chypren, and that's the way it is here too. But that is not what matters to me. I am interested in the interaction of the individual components. And that's 1A!
It can be said that the longer the fragrance unfolds, the tarter it becomes.

Because only after about 3/4 hours you reach the dry-down. And that's the one I think is really convincing here!
Ambergris, vanilla, all hand woods, musk and leathery resins provide here for a tart, masculine and somewhat sweet dream scent!

This way the scent is retained for a long time until it is close to the skin after about 11 hours.

In conclusion, I find this fragrance very pleasant and beautiful to wear! So much so that I might take a look at the real Diaghilev... but first only a few ml :D
If that happens, I will try to add a comparison to the commentary.

Hey, this is the first comment on the fragrance, how nice :)
I was able to test the scent in a sharing, and what can I say? I love vetiver scents anyway, but this one... This is my new go-to summer vetiver!

Whoever reads the pyramid of scents will have guessed that this fragrance begins very citric. And that's exactly how it is. The lemon is the first thing you smell. Very light orange in the background. But fortunately not a "bath cleaner lemon", but a freshly cut lemon that is on its way to the lemonade glass. My better half spoke of a shower gel smell, and I can understand where she got it from. The top note is just very refreshing and somehow clear... I'm sure you understand what I mean ;)

After 20/30 minutes the citrus scent moves further and further into the background. The mint appears and the vetiver announces itself. But the mint doesn't stay for very long... already after 20 minutes only the vetiver remains. But together with a very light orchid note. This lies in the background and provides a certain lightness. The vetiver is not earthy or dirty, like you know it from Encre Noire or similar. It is a little bit like in Grey Vetiver or from Guerlain's Vetiver, but there it is a little bit lighter.

As soon as the base notes are reached, not much happens in the field of fragrance development. But that is a good thing! The drydown is heavenly! As I said, perfect for the (high) summer, but also well wearable on warm spring or autumn days.
The shelf life is a good 7 to 8 hours.

I haven't seen the bottle live, but it looks great on the pictures. And the Mancera bottles are all great
I also like the price! The scent is great and smells very high quality. I think my bottling will be gone quickly and then a whole bottle will have to go!

We have two premieres today. My first comment on a perfume and also my first fragrance sample from SOUK. So please be a bit lenient with me ;)

Initial situation:
I must confess, I'm a notorious blind shopper. When I have seen enough reviews and positive reviews of a fragrance, I am usually tempted to order it untested. And over the years I've become quite good at deciding which scent I like
Over time I have heard about Creed Viking here, on Youtube or other SocialMedia channels again and again...
"the new Aventus",
"the next revolution"
and he should smell "like a Viking who just swam through the freezing cold sea"...
to make a long story short, I was hooked However, the high price kept me from my blind buy routine. Therefore I bought (for the first time) a bottling from a nice member. It arrived quickly and I will report about my impressions now.

Scent:
Maybe it's my nose, but I can't see the complete head notes listed here. Not even with much imagination!
For me the fragrance opens immediately with lavender and mint. The pepper holds back a little, but is noticeably there. I find this lavender-mint mixture very pleasant and my fellow men also agree with me. Overall the opening is very fresh and reminds me very much of a lavender shower gel what I have...
The mint harmonizes very well with the lavender and gives the whole thing something very strikingly masculine as I find.

In the base wood shines in the fragrance!
Sandalwood and vetiver are very good to spot, I think. The lavender note in the base is present, but not too present. It stays well in the background. Here too, I find the fragrance very masculine and pleasant.

I think "Viking" is a very good name for the fragrance. It is fresh, a bit spicy/herbaceous due to the lavender and the vetiver emphasizes the masculinity. And because of the vetiver in the drydown, it also remains very masculine.

But now to the problem:

Performance:
The scent hardly lasts for 5 hours until I can hardly perceive it with my nose on my skin!
After spraying it takes about one hour until the drydown begins. During this time it is also well perceptible for the environment. From then on it becomes weaker and weaker until it is completely gone after a maximum of 6 hours.
That was my problem with Aventus, too. The durability is just too bad for the price that is called.
It seems that the Viking ran out of breath very quickly after his bath in the sea...
That is unfortunately very sad, because all in all I find the scent very good! I hope that Creed will bring out an Intense version or reformulation, because that's the way it will stay for me with the bottling.

Alternative:
I have a good alternative for all those who might come to a similar conclusion as I did, or who are basically looking for a super summer scent!
Guerlain Homme EdP also has a mint top note. But paired with lime and rum. Like a mojito! But you never smell the rum too strongly. It is rather fruity and fresh.
This fragrance also ends in vetiver, but here with cedar and patchouli. This also smells very masculine and fits well into the summer.
The durability is even a little better than the Creed... the 7-8 hours are already possible.
You can get it for about 30€ / 50ml. sometimes even cheaper.
To someone, on the search for an alternative, I would recommend it without reservation.