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After reviewing Amber Aoud and Musk Aoud, here's my final review of the trio from Rojas Aoud collection. This time, it's about the one that started it all in 2011: Aoud. I have to say that Aoud is the only one of the trio of which I haven't tested the crystal version as well.

Aoud can be considered a classical Rose-Oud-Saffron combination with the other notes from the breakdown supporting the blend but never becoming dominant. Aoud is a very authentic middle eastern smelling fragrance which not taken for granted at all considering it's released by a European brand. I've travelled a few times to the Middle East and can confirm that you are getting the real middle eastern smell with this fragrance. That means that the fragrance takes no compromises to appeal to costumers from the Western world. Either you like it or you don't. Aoud has some minor animalic facets. It's a smoothly blended mixture of opulent rose, dark and slightly smoky woods and spices. The opening is quite strong but after 1-2 hours, the dry down is more appealing to most people. Actually, the dry down is similar to the ones of Amber Aoud and Musk Aoud.

Nowadays, Rose-Oud combinations are offered by many brands, so what makes Aoud stand out from the rest and worth 720€/100ml? Aoud was released in 2011 so it can be considered one of the first Rose-Oud fragrances on the western market. In addition, as I said it's very authentic. The packaging and presentation is very luxurious and Roja has high standards when it comes to quality of ingredients. But if that's enough to justify the price tag anyone has to decide for themselves.

Considering performance, I had slightly higher expectations. Same as Amber Aoud and Musk Aoud, the fragrance last on my skin for about 8 hours with about 3 hours detectable sillage from my side. That's not bad but also not great either for this type of scent and also considering the price tag. However there are a few things I have to mention: I only tested the fragrance in colder climates. It would be interesting to see how it performs in the Middle East. Also, it's the only one from the collection that I currently don't own a full bottle. Spraying from a sample might be considerably less juice than spraying from the bottle. I can also not rule out that I'm just going to become olfactory fatigue after 3 hours because especially in the first hour Aoud is the strongest projecting of the trio to my nose.

Let me finish the review with possible occasions where the fragrance is most suitable. The fragrance is of such high quality that I wouldn't waste it on anything except special occasions like birthdays, family gatherings or high class/black tie events, simply situations where it really matters. Of course, depending on your finances, this fragrance would be a great signature scent as well but a pretty costly one. When it comes to Oud our western conception is often that it's only going to work in colder climates. I happen to find the opposite. In the Middle East temperatures rarely go below 15°C through the year and in summer it's about 45°C. They still wear their oud scents so why we in the west shouldn't as well?

I already wrote a review on Amber Aoud and since I also own a bottle of this fragrance I want to report my experience. Unlike Amber Aoud, this time I own the crystal parfum version but also tested the normal one.

First things first, to my nose the crystal version smells exactly the same as the normal parfum version. If someone tests both versions side by side and notices any differences, it's more likely due to different stages of maturation than due to the scent itself. Also the performance is the same but I'll get to this later.

Musk Aoud was released in 2013 being the last part of a trio. Aoud came first in 2011, followed by Amber Aoud in 2012. Whereas you could consider Aoud the classical Rose-Oud-Saffron combination, Amber Aoud was sweeter and more mass-appealing because it softened rough edges occurring in the original Aoud. Musk Aoud took a very different approach by adding a natural musk note coming from Ambrette seeds rather than an animal. Due to the musk note as well as nutmeg, oud and jasmine the fragrance is definitely more animalic than the other two of the trio. Especially in the opening (first 5 mins), the fragrance might be too animalic for some noses. However, interestingly the fragrance is not stinky at all, especially after the first 5 mins are gone. I even find the original Aoud more stinky than Musk Aoud, although I wouldn’t call Aoud stinky as well. I guess it's the rose and leather note getting more prominent and contributing to keeping the fragrance in balance.

To really appreciate the fragrance you have to get through the opening minutes and afterwards the smell is one of the most sexiest, intoxicating and just somewhat interesting one could imagine. All in all, the scent drys down to a base more similar to Amber Aoud. I slightly prefer Amber Aoud but only by centimeters or inches.

It is no secret that Roja uses very fine materials and luxury packaging resulting in luxury prices (720€/100ml) and this one is no different.

Considering performance, as I said, there's no difference between the crystal and the normal parfum. The scent lingers for around 3 hours, not shouting but also not close. Afterwards it gets closer to the skin and stays there until the 8 hour mark. Honestly, I expected and hoped for a little better performance from a fragrance of this category and price tag, but maybe it's just my skin or the fragrance has to maturate a little more.

I have to admit, there's rarely a fragrance that I would rate a perfect 10/10. My collection has approximately 120 fragrances and I've tested probably about 500 more. From all of those fragrances there's probably a hand full that I would give a perfect rating. And Amber Aoud by Roja is one of them although it's not perfect.

Amber Aoud is part of Roja Aoud collection. All fragrances in this collection are definitely well made and contain high quality ingredients. All fragrances in this collection are also packaged beautifully and are sold at a premium price (720€/100ml). But it's luxury and luxury costs.

Amber Aoud is part of a trio within this collection that was released in the years 2011-2013. Whereas the original Aoud is a classic Rose-Oud-Saffron combination, Amber Aoud softens the sharper edges of Aoud by adding sweetness (Amber accord + Ambergris) and fruitiness (fig) without getting in the animalic territory like Musk Aoud does. The dry down of the trio is a kind of similar base with minor differences. You could argue that those three fragrances are too similar and therefore redundant. I have to disagree with this kind of argument because I see those fragrances being targeted to different groups of people. Amber Aoud is still the most mass pleasing of the trio because of the softened edges and the toned down animalic notes. I also believe you should start with this fragrance at first, if you are new to Oud in general and/or Rojas Aoud collection. I personally prefer Amber Aoud just a tiny bit over Musk Aoud and about one mark more than Aoud. Amber Aoud and Musk Aoud smell divine, Aoud is just very good.

Amber Aoud (and the other two as well) is a fragrance that fits perfectly to a very special occasion like birthdays or black tie events. Having my cultural background in mind, this is not an everyday scent but something that you are going to save for those situations. From my travels to the Middle East I know, that they would see this differently and you could use it on a daily basis there as well. In general I have to say that Roja created a very authentic middle eastern smell with the trio which is not taken for granted with European perfume houses.

Performance is my biggest issue with Amber Aoud and the trio in general. No matter which version of the perfumes I tried (normal parfum or crystal parfum), the performance was about 8 hours with 3 hours sillage. Given the longevity and sillage rating of more than 8 here on parfumo, the price tag and the type of scent, I would have expected something between 10-12 hours longevity and 5-6 hours sillage. Now I know that performance is skin dependent and maybe my full bottle (normal parfum, 4 months old) just needs to maturate more, so you might get a different experience. I've also just worn the scent in colder temperatures. It would be interesting to see how it performs in the Middle East.

Despite the fact that I had different expectations considering performance, I decided to rate the fragrance a perfect 10/10. 8 hours is still good enough for most situations I would wear the fragrance in and the scent is just too heavenly to rate it any lower.

I just received the fragrance this morning and after giving it a full wearing I can confirm that this is going to be my go-to-scent for the upcoming winter months.

The scent starts with a sparkling mix of citrus, aromatic notes and tobacco. Although not being redundant the opening gives me a similar feeling like wearing the Enigma (Creation E) Parfum Cologne.

After about 15mins the citrus component starts to fade and the tobacco gets more prominent. Spicy and ambery/vanilla tones start to overshadow the aromatic notes. About an hour into the wearing I do see why people compare this fragrance to Tobacco Vanille by Tom Ford.

This fragrance is still different to Tobacco Vanille, it only shares some facets.
Another facet of the fragrance is the ginger note which is probably responsible for the sparkling opening and remains as an uplifting character in the scent at this stage.
In addition, the coconut notes gives a fragrance a smooth character and the pine note adds some woody character. This stage of the fragrance remains for about 4 hours until the fragrance makes a slight turn again.

Deep in the drydown, maybe at the 5 or 6 hour mark, a rose note shines through. To be honest, I wasn’t looking at the note breakdown at first and I was wondering where the rosy smell came from until I noticed that it must be me. Then I checked the fragrance notes and saw there is rose inside.

I couldn’t detect the fragrance anymore after about 7 to 8 hours after application.

As you can see, the fragrance is very complex and although I used other fragrances to describe the scent, the fragrance happens to be very unique to my nose. I understand why many people take comparisons the TV but this one is not as linear and also more subtle. I wouldn’t consider this being a weak fragrance at all but TV is definitely more projecting and also longer lasting, however, I see Manhattan definitely more office and work appropriate.

Today, I enjoyed every minute of the wearing experience and I’m definitely going to wear this one with the same excitement during the winter months.

Considering bottle and presentation, I guess there’s not much to say except it’s gorgeous.

Talking about the price, I understand that 350€ (300£) is a steep price tag for a fragrance but considering presentation and the complexity of the scent, the price is justified in my opinion.

I find this fragrance more on the masculine side on my skin, however it would be interesting to see how it develops on feminine skin. I usually don’t put genders on fragrances and I think woman can easily wear the fragrance with confidence as well.

I've heard a lot about this scent and it seems to be very divisive. Some say it's stinky and animal, others say it's a beautiful honey fragrance. I personally belong to the latter group of people.
However, I can imagine why people could perceive the fragrance differently.

Let's first talk about why I really enjoy the scent. On my skin the scent is very strong on the notes of honey, vanilla and light floral touches. It acts like a typical gourmand fragrance. I can barely detect any oud in the fragrance and also the jasmine, which seems to be much more prominent on other peoples skin, is somehow toned down on my skin. I don't get any fruitiness, rather a certain softness, but the fragrance that comes closest to this fragrance on my skin is Back to Black by Kilian Paris. They are not redundant and also not copying each other. They just smell similar on my skin (not on paper).

Now that I've talked about the scent on my skin, please be aware that it might be different on yours. And that's exactly the point why I think that people either love or hate the fragrance. If the oud and the jasmine are both more pronounced on your skin, I can imagine people finding this one more stinky and animalic, because both notes can have those characteristics. You should definitely try the fragrances on your skin before buying.

Talking about performance, it exactly performs like you would expect from an oriental fragrance with gourmand and woody notes. I can smell the cloud around me for several hours and it practically stays on my skin from morning to late afternoon.