Istanbul

Incredible, beautiful scent! A real treat! Do you like saffron? If so, you will love this! Saffron and rose are the main stars, I think...supported by other perfect nuances! The new Istanbul formulation is even better, with more sweet woodsy and ambery notes, although I do miss the more dominant saffron vibe of the original.

This has become one of my favorites. Strong smooth oriental, rose, saffron and some musk to support these. Also a tiny bit fresh, could be the Peach. Reminds me of Al Haramain Mukhallat Maliki, but this is, while very strong, still more gentle. Also a bit less complex. Very good.

I was looking for a signature fragrance for myself, and finally i found AKAF Istanbul, a Wow Attar with immense blast which filled the whole room infact whole house...

I can't believe they discontinued this one.

Instanbul starts with quite a medicinal aroma from the saffron and is followed by tart peaches. Even though it is not listed in the notes I detect a strong citrus flavour and I think that is from the tartness of the peaches. There is definitely a lot of Saffron in the background which adds a very pungent aroma to the mix. The rose is very shy and a little overwhelmed by the Saffron. Reminds me a little of Molton Brown's Saffron and Patchouli Body Wash which I adore. I can't say this is one of my favourites and even though I love Saffron, there is too much in this perfume. Tends to make this a more masculine fragrance to my nose. To soften the Saffron, I layered with Monotheme's Rose which makes the Rose come forward and much more wearable. Longevity is only about 4 hours, this is a very light fragrance.

Reminds me of Rasasi Khaltat Al Khasa a little. Maybe a bit nicer than the Rasasi. But lacks the kind of oomph I'd like. Certainly an inoffensive fragrance and a safe bet for people who want to dip their toes in the sea of Middle Eastern fragrances. It doesn't smell fecal or animalic at all to me. Would appeal to a lot of people.

This is a camphorous oud in the top but no barnyard or fecal quality. You have to really stretch and be abstract to get the rose dimension in this. It is not a typical "rose" scent. These are real Middle Eastern frags and a bit overwhelming to western noses. This is a bit tarlike yet sweet.

Nice attar this one from a great house. Good all round performance.

This is an interesting one. It starts with a fresh bitter note, almost like menthol. I'm not sure, is this saffron? I don't know what saffron smells like on its own. After about two hours, it becomes softer and sweeter, but never completely sweet, the fresh bitterness remains. I don't really smell the rose or peach, maybe as a hint of something fruity and flowery. It is not my thing on its own, too bitter for me. But I like layering it with my sweet rose perfumes, like Lancôme Parfait de Roses or AKAF Kayseri. It balances out the sweetness nicely.

I have a sample of Istanbul from the year of its release. In my opinion, it is one of the best saffron perfumes ever made. I wish they didn’t discontinue this masterpiece.