Attar Al Kaaba

This is wonderful. At first, it's a bit too sharp and medicinal, but when it dries down, it's the most beautiful thing. Sweet roses (not cloyingly sweet like some chavvy reggaeton girl, but with a subtle and sophisticated sweetness, nothing gourmand). Roses and incense, a meditative aroma reminiscent of churches and Holy Week processions. I'm not religious and I don't attend any religious rituals, but I often visit churches for the art and architecture, and this attar smells of churches, burning wax candles, roses, and something sacred. I don't know what mosques smell like, but I imagine something similar to this beauty. A comforting scent, perfect for winter, relaxing and clean. Very, very changeable: over time, the sweet roses and medicinal note predominate at first, then it becomes more incense and Magno soap, and finally ends up as a clean musk clinging to the skin. What a beautiful perfume! I can't stop sniffing my wrists. It's similar to Sharqiah by Al Rehab but not so dry and Marwah by Al Haramain but more complex and less sweet. The old oud/saffron/roses combo becomes a masterpiece. Totally unisex. It's a pity I can only wear this in winter because it would be too cloying and suffocating in our terrible Andalusian summers. Mine came in a black box and is quite long lasting, but the sillage is not huge. I don't know if the red version smells different. By the way, the velvety box and golden flask are beautiful too.

I remember when I first bought this, over a decade ago, I thought it was a little harsh, but intriguing. Over time I came to appreciate then love the treacle toffee/rose effect in drydown, also the subtle sense of incense. Nowadays with oud being such a popular note, it seems quite soft. I use the oil, which is quite powerful. Not sure if it's been reformulated, or different in non oil form ,since some here are saying it's not very impactful. My husband loves this on me, and can wear it too. It got him into Arabian perfumes. It's one of a few perfumes I wear (among hundreds :) ) that he nearly always reacts to with an 'mmm aahh', the others being Chanel 19 EDT, Santa Maria Novella's 'Aqua Colonia Rosa Nova' and Metamorphic by Kingdom Scotland. Not much in common with that lot except a certain complexity I think. The mood is elegant, clean yet deep and rich. I love wearing dark red velvet in winter, this and Luten's le Fille de Berlin would be first choices for those velvety winter outfits Big love, and much admiration for this unassuming company.

My first foray into the world of Eastern perfumes and I'm bowled over. What a seductive, rich, unctuous fragrance. Resinous, woody, with a very pronounced damascene rose accord, Attar Al Kaaba is what I always dreamed a real oriental would be. The western world's interpretation of this type of fragrance tends to fall into the sweet side of the spectrum. Here we have a heady combination of woody resins and what opens as a dark, heady rose note. 2 hours later: it's becoming a skin scent. Very different from European frags; no development through different stages over time. 3 hours later: the scent is gently fading away, leaving behind a soft trail of rose. I recommend, but would remind potential buyers that Eastern fragrances are composed in a wholly different way than what we're used to...expect to reaaply now and again. No, applying huge quantities at once will not make it last longer; anointing yourself with a free hand will not help at all; you'll end up offending the folks around you and overpowering your own sense of smell.

This is a very pleasant surprise - I wasn't sure if it would be too heavy (it's rich, but on cool, quite dry skin that's good as it doesn't disappear!) or smell a bit like an incense stick, it's very faintly incense-like - if you were to buy a very high quality rose incense. When I first tested it I also had on L'Artisan's Havana Vanille, which I'd say is a good quality scent, but next to Al Kaaba it started to smell too sweet, like a fudge doughnut, or something that a supermarket would spray in its bakery section to tempt in customers To my nose Al Kaaba starts off smelling like rich rose with a touch of swimming pool, then turns to rose incense. But after half an hour this delicious sweet amber rose emerges. It's a bit like rose flavoured treacle toffee - a lovely dark/bitter treacle-like sweetness. I think that effect is due to the small touch of bitter aoud combined with rose and amber - which probably has a touch of vanilla.

Well I got the red boxed one, this attar is AMAZING, I could smell it even before opening the outer box! It's magic, initially it's a triumph of roses and oud, then come the saffron and the honeyed sandal, and finally it's like rose incense and burnt wood. This is a fragrance you cannot ignore and which you cannot forget. I love it, it's my feminine fragrance, I alternate it with Night Dreams oil, which is more masculine but lasts much longer. I tried also to mix them, with good results. These two are really stunning and Al Haramain is really a great value of money and high quality as regards these two. Some people say that the black boxed Kaaba is more masculine and deeper, I'd like to test it someday and see if really there's a difference.

Well, this is a lovely surprise! Based on the reviews here, I was intrigued to try an Arabian perfume. I bought a 3 ml roll on tester off eBay dirt cheap, and am delighted in this little gem. Like others, I found the opening a little confronting. Well, that's oud for you! But not quite as tarry as some I've tried....more medicinal perhaps. Soon after, this settles into a glorious woody, amber, rose combo that is just heavenly. I am not finding it particularly masculine as someone has noted. Quite the opposite on fact, this is soft and well rounded, suiting both sexes, but definitely suitable for females wanting an oud based scent. Anyone looking for a cheaper alternative for their oud-fix than Montale, look no further!

I'm certain that Attar al Kaaba has been reformulated, unfortunately, because the bottle I own (I bought it in 2018) is a real bomb, very very thick and long lasting oil with massive projection and sillage. My colleagues could sniff it from the other rooms and came to tell me that, they said I smelled amazing and were so enchanted by this middle-eastern dreamy cloud. It's so sad that reformulation is killing so many fragrances that I love. I prefer not to buy them anymore and try to preserve the old ones that I have, alternating them every day, also because otherwise I get bored easily

Sweet-scented Oud... Wearing Al Haramain - Attar al Ka'aba is a lovely experience. I get a very sweet, musky, ambery rose with very soft oud and sandalwood. It's one thing I enjoy about these attars is that they are always rich, always sensual, and they make me feel good whilst wearing them. With this one, it's no exception. Just a very good, inexpensive but high quality oil which doesn't disturb, doesn't overwhelm, but instead coats the skin with a warm, "golden" kind of aroma which is welcoming, comforting and intoxicating. I highly recommend it!

I have one from Haramain that ́s called Mukhallath Maliki. It ́s not very different from this but instead of rose it ́s more saffron and oud. Overall it ́s of a higher quality and very strong and long lasting, Í like it very much, it ́s lovely.. Haramain have several perfumes that only differs slightly, Like this, Safeena al arab, Fakhrul arab, Mukhallath Maliki and some more. I really like Mukhallath Maliki the best, a wonderful quality.

I got a 3 ml sample from Ebay (black box) ,and I have worn this a couple of times. Wow! Surupy roses, creamy sandalwood and as someone (Lemonlime) in a nother review said, refurbished wooden store. This is a true arabian journey and it will absolutely lift up any moods. I think that all other positive reviews here says it all, and this is a diamond in an arabian treasure chest.

I love it! It is just the right amount of Oud for it not to be overwhelming. The Taif roses beautifully come through, they are sweet and jammy. The amber ties everything up. This is completely natural smelling and a bit earthy. This is just divine, a sensual cosy scent. For the price, this is a MUST buy if you like warm rose scents.

I like it. I consider it a very natural Rose scent. Slightly fruity with a touch of amber and a small touch of Santal. I don ́t get very much oudh, if there is any it ́s miniscule amounts. Natural, safe, rather long lasting. Very nice but very far from an oudh scent.

Al Haramain have many other perfumes that are not in this data-base. Two others that I am rather fond of are Mukhallath Jamal and Mukhallath Maliki, very nice, more Oud in Maliki, Jamal is a cheaper one but still very good, at least to me.

attar al kaaba - perfume of Kaaba, the wholiest of sites for Muslim piligrims. it meant to smell as close to heaven as humanly possible. not bad smell. prefer Marwah attar, but this one is nice as sweet.

Страхотен, топъл, сладък аромат. Действително арабските парфюми са по-различни и най-вече плътни. Агаровото дърво има наситено, смолисто и уникално звучене. Определено парфюма е унисекс.

Deep meditation in a rose garden on the beauty of roses. Very wonderful scent! One of the best rose-oud fragrances I've ever owned. I can't get enough of it. Very addictive!

A manly fragrance for those who adore the scent of oudh (agarwood) from Combodia. Similar to Montale's Black Oudh minus the sweetness. An oil based long lasting fragrance.

Let's start by differentiating between Attar Al Kaaba, Marwah and Haneen which some say are very similar (if indeed identical). They do indeed share the same note combo; oud, rose, sandalwood and amber but there ends the similarities. Marwah is your entry level Arabian oil, the sweet rose dominates to make a pleasant fragrance for any wearer. Haneen smells related but with an added citronella note (I'd probably give it a miss). Attar Al Kaaba is in a completely different league of refined sophistication. Dare I compare them to the Kardashian sisters; you have an all-round likeable non-offensive one (Marwah), a crappy hanger-on (Haneen) and one that is a true beauty and potential celebrity legend. Btw, Shaikhah by Al-Rehab is completely unrelated so is more of a Caitlyn Jenner. So let's delve further into Attar Al Kaaba... I have the black box (if that makes a difference). But understand this; I've never had a fragrance go through so many different changes and phases than Al Kaaba - evidence of its intricate, refined and balanced blending. To start with it's pungent and awful like salty Dutch liquorice, sour oud and some kind of industrial strength cleaner, we must remember to have faith and be strong as we enter the nausiating sherbet phase, then we pass a spicy/soapy Old Spice moment, then we enter the dragon and it finally halts (but never calms) into its final spicy incarnation. On me, it smells like a luxury exotic soap like La Toja or Magno (a Spanish soap) but is also a very spicy Oriental and exudes old money, refinement, tasteful extravagance, class, sophistication and Arabian mystery. Attar Al Kaaba is a whole nother level. Be brave, have patience and an open mind and enjoy. Having said all of this, the dry-down of Kaaba is too spicy for me and so Marwah ends up suiting me much better as it's more feminine.

I do love my oud/rose fragrances. Unfortunately (or fortunately, however you look at it) that particular composition is saturated on the market now. Niche, Indie or designer, it's everywhere. For an oud/rose combo to go from good to great or even fan-friggin-tastic in my books, it has to stand out amonst the rest of its competitors. Attar Al Kaaba starts with a heavily drenched, deep and heady Taif Rose. Sandalwood joins the party shortly thereafter giving a creaminess to the composition and sweetening up the rose a bit ( the rose still stays dominant not giving up the spotlight.) As it starts to dry down the oud pokes it's head out just enough to make its presence known but in a very coy, modest way. It's definitely there but isn't the type of oud that slams you against the wall and hits up upside the head. The rose is very consistent in this frag and remains there from beginning to end. Amber and rose blend and I then get a warm, resinous vibe with a dollop of oud. This frag starts out with a bang. Potent and robust. Through the life of this fragrance, flames turn into embers and you're left with a very soft rose skin scent. I do like this fragrance but it's not one of my favorites though. As far as gender goes - wear what ever the hell you want. I don't believe any one of us should be bound by what society deems "normal" or appropriate fragrance wise. Projection is good. The beginning however is where you're going to get the biggest bang. The middle of this fragrances life then dwindles down to moderate projection. Towards the end it becomes a skin scent. Staying power. This is different for everyone. For me personally, I get 5 hours tops. If you like oud/rose frags then try it out. It's inexpensive so it won't break the bank and if you don't like it you're not out too much from it.

I bought this as a gift for my mother after reading about it in a discussion from here. It was imported from Saudi Arabia and came in a very beautiful container. I think my mother liked the container as much as she did the perfume. To me, there's nothing unisex about it. It's definitely a woman's perfume. The rose dominated floral / oudh combination is very nice. The oudh scent is quite evident, although the strength of the rose subdues it a bit. It was a 25ml container and while that may not seem like a lot, it only takes a tiny amount to go a long way. My mother put it on herself when I gave it to her, yesterday afternoon. She used 3 small dabs of it. It was very strong and the scent didn't seem to die down at all while I was there. As far as long lasting, she told me that she could still smell it on herself this morning. I'm not very familiar with many women's perfumes but this one is distinct. I'd go so far as to say it's unique when it comes to the U.S. I've certainly never known another woman to wear it nor have I smelled it in passing. If not for yourself, this makes an excellent gift based on both the container and the perfume.