Lak

This review focuses on the 55 ml EDP edition. Lak is an unexpected gem from the very first moment, bursting onto the scene with an extremely dense and striking intensity, overwhelming your senses with all of its notes at once. The initial impact is deep and radiant — right from the first spray, you're enveloped in a bold mix of pitch black rose, musk, and dried fruits, exuding an almost leathery sweetness. The introduction combines dark incense with a rich floral character that carries a faint hint of oud. After some time, a nutty walnut or chestnut accord emerges, though the composition isn't too complex — it simply arrives unexpectedly. The nutty notes vaguely remind me of dirty, earthy, oily bushes of an indeterminate plant, like wandering through a grove of untamed flora. A subtle, dusty, tobacco-like spice emerges, bringing a smoky and slightly woody edge, reminiscent of dark clouds before a storm. These layers create a deep, almost mysterious atmosphere. As the fragrance moves into its final phase, it dries down into a softer, powdery finish, rounding out the earlier intensity with a creamy, nutty warmth. The longevity is excellent, with the fragrance maintaining a steady, bold projection that hits a dirty nutty note as it settles — almost like the quiet calm of a library. Entirely unisex, I can't determine if it leans more towards masculine or feminine — it walks a fine line, remaining completely unisex. Its balance of musky, floral, and woody elements makes it a versatile option for both genders. I don't believe the fragrance pyramid displayed on Fragrantica is accurate. It shares similarities with the Rasasi Shuhrah profile (I'm honestly surprised no one has made that comparison), but I can confidently say I've never smelled anything quite like it before. It is remarkably unique. The bottle itself is beautiful, reminiscent of an Arabian market. It feels like a rare find, something you'd be lucky to stumble across, which is, in fact, the truth. I'm not sure how I managed to get it for less than €11 — it was listed as the only available piece. There's no mention of it on Al Haramain's website, and their subpage for it has even been removed. Anyone who owns this can consider themselves lucky because it's unlikely to be found again, unless you're desperate enough to import it, since, from what I've seen, it's only available for purchase in India. This fragrance represents a rare, nostalgic touch of brilliance that's unlikely to ever be found again. Opening note: 8 Sillage/Projection: 8+ Dry down: 9- Longevity: 9- Blend/Composition: 9 Versatility: 6- Uniqueness: 10- Value for money: unavailable Bottle design/Aesthetics: 8- Overall experience: 9- Blind-buy rating: 2

Update: I’ve got the 55ml Lak spray on one wrist and the 15ml Lak oil on the other - so let’s finally get to the bottom of this comparison. When I asked the seller if the spray and the oil were similar, the reply was quite simply; “I think same”. So let’s start by stating that the spray is NOTHING like the oil. They are not even remotely related. The Bottles: The oil comes in a cheap silver bottle that falls apart (the lid and the base have now fallen off, the seller advised me to just glue it back together). The spray (on the other hand) comes in an impressively heavy and beautiful gold metal bottle. The Smell: The oil is sweet ‘n’ juicy Heaven in a bottle (full review for the oil on my blog), but the spray isn’t anything special. The spray starts like a transparent hairspray with a medicinal oud note. I couldn’t believe the vast difference between the two - I’ve got bandaid oud hairspray with dry walnut husk on one wrist and rich, sweet-opulence on the other. I waited for the spray to develop, or at least warm to become less parched and dry. 1 hour in and I suddenly think it’s a clever idea to now blast my neck with 3 generous sprays. I’m instantly reminded of the boozy oud-poop intro and suffer that for the next 10 minutes. In comparison, my wrist now smells a lot more interesting. Maybe there’s a timid musk trying to get through the walnut shell? Still no dried fruits nor sweetness but it’s getting spicier, as I detect saffron. 2 hours in and I smell clean, spicy walnuts - it’s becoming a skin-scent as it’s transparent and not overbearing, plus the longevity is awesome. My mum just smelt both to confirm that they are nothing at all alike and around my next she said “it doesn’t smell like YOU, you smell like someone else” which I interpret negatively. I think it’s clear that I officially don’t like the spray. The heavy gold bottle (and the scent) actually reminds me of ‘Nasmah’ by Al Haramain. So the bottom line is, the spray is a dry walnut, synthetic oud and spicy musk mix - the oil is a beautiful rich blend of sweet dried fruits, walnut, black rose and a little musk. The oil goes into my favourites list and the spray goes into the sin bin.

Purchased this attar in oil, 15 ml sized bottle, - no regrets. Unisex for sure, with woody-spicy edge. Full of sour-sweet juicy-woody yumminess from berries or fruits that make you crave for it over and over again. It has the same vibe that I get in Lolita Lempicka Illusions Noir SI Lolita Eau Minuit. Same spiced amber with peppery kick. Another similarity is Under My Spell Noelle of Benefit. Lak for sure has more smokiness in it and if you go deeper you can reach that delicious baklava sort of trace from melted nuts. The most impressive lasting power as well, 24 hours and more if on the clothes. Need to buy spray version in EDP now to compare!

Oil version (silver bottle) review: Damn. At first you think this is really gonna suck and be a scrubber, then you put it on and feel like its gonna be a barbershop mess, then after 10 minutes you go insane. The most delectable incensy rose, coming and going in wafts, swapping places with some nuts. I dont get much dried fruits. Now the way this thing works is pretty mysterious to me: sillage is minimum but you keep on being able to smell it! Each time you move, it’s there! How? Thats crazy for a 10€ oil. If you catch it for less than 10€ do yourself a favor and blind it, at least for educational purposes.

Cedar/date/rose spice fest, gentler than Shefon.

One word. Leather. Leather is all I could smell at the initial spray and it was sooooo intense. I just sprayed one spray. Only one on my wrist and my siblings from the other room were complaining about how much I sprayed Personally I don’t like it at all, it’s genuinely so intense and overwhelming to wear. Maybe a good niche mature fragrance but overall not for the masses. Only get this if you’re a fan of leather. I get the rose notes softly at the dry down and that’s the only redeeming quality about this perfume

well right...was a blind buy for me due to some people comparing this to Armani Prive and in search for the perfect dupe for Armani Prive Rose d'Arabie. Well I had to vote down on many similarities as on me this has very little to do with Rose d'Arabie. It is strong, it is distinctive but not nearly as dominant on the rose as the aforementioned. It is good in it's own category, quite a femme fatale, but hey don't purchase in the hope of the same motives I did.

I have the perfume oil/attar. It comes in a much less nicer packaging than what is shown in the picture here. To be fair it looks kinda cheap, but considering what i paid for it and the quality of the scent, I am not in any way complaining. What I mainly get is the dried fruits. Juicy, syrupy and sticky but not obnoxiously sweet. There is a subtle nutty aroma and the rose adds a lovely counterbalance. A middle eastern scent with an indie/niche quality to it. Cons: not really sophisticated or complex, but I think this is a wonderful scent for layering! I like to layer this with Love from Chopard(a rose soliflore) and Le baiser du dragon from Cartier

I blind bought this and after a while decluttered it. It was ok, just not what I imagined it would be like. To me it felt too "old" and a bit dusty somehow. I would say it is true to the notes listed, but I would not describe it as super sweet or yummy.

reviewing the newer formula from 2016..smells like walking in to Bloomingdale Dubai or Paris gallery where the smell of the oud based and mainstream designer scents mingle in the air with hints of actual bakhour smoke from kiosks in the hall ways ..smells like the million new niche synthetic oud based perfumes with a character smells like the tom fords the kilians the endless oud amber rose connotations from the mushrooming niche Arabian brands ..its a hot seller people love this sort of scent in the mid east and now in Europe and the us too its a trend ..although the original one from this maybe 15 years ago was much more potent and beautiful it had creamier more woody ambery accords now its more of the synthetic smokey resijy ambery accords.. its a unisex perfume deep dark smokey resiny ambery a hint oudy not sweet almost dry in woody synthetic base ..its well put together it develops and deepens and it radiates and lasts all day it is easily a unisex the bottle is gorgeous a heavy golden falcon heavy to carry around in a purse it comes in a 55 ml edp i didn't smell the resemblance to thiery mugler angel i am not in to gourmands and to my nose this is not utterly sweet or gourmand maybe it has hints of a smokey caramel accord found in bakhour or incense but its not tooth achin sweet like angel its a great find for the relevantly cheap price of about 21 us$ it smells different on clothes and on skin on clothes it reminds me of old school mens perfumes like yatagan from caron and some from the mancera line like the oud based ones even david yurman special edition .. its a beautiful full potent perfume classy in its own way with hints of oud but not the animalic fecal smelling oud it has the modern type of oud which you cant even say its oud it smells more like a connotation of musk amber resins balsams woods and spices in a clean musky ambery base with hints of saffron and lots of smoke and inscnsey vibes ..its great for layering i layer it with oud and with qamar also by alharmain then i use some french perfume on top to refine it even more and lighten it a bit more its too strong on its own but its beautiful one drop is more than enough great for winter cold nights great for special occasions and for parties ,people will def ask you what you are wearing it does smell like an expensive niche if worn the right way dont over spray it also reminds me a bot of the 90 ies power houses like obsession ck mixed with florientals and woody smoky tobacco like accords to my nose its a mukhalat meaning an original mix of rose oud safron amber and musk with lots of woody nutty smokey accords and rosy vibes..a perfect layering perfume or used on its own ..its also great if you use bakhour or incense over your clothes as the custom in many mid eastern countries this is a perfect base for such occasions

I have it in the oil version in a much less attractive, simple silver coloured bottle compared to the gorgeous bottle the EDP is seen in above. I ordered it blind because I read it has a walnut note and I thought it will be something different.... nad I was right! I'm not good enough to state that it is really walnut what I get but this perfume oil has a slightly smoky, creamy, spicy and kind of fresh but beautifully warm smell that is totally unexpected from a fragrance in such a simple presentation! It is complex, unusual for this price range, absolutely unisex and just beautiful. As a woman, I find it especially exciting because it has a slightly masculine vibe - at least what we traditionally call masculine in our culture with those precious woods- but it has the ability to enhance one's femininity. Smoky, dark, mysterious, beautifully done piece of art! EDIT: if anyone is wondering if the CPO and the EDp are the same or they differ now as I had the chance to try the EDP too, I can definetely say that they are two entirely different fragrances, however, they share many facets of the main idea. While the oil is sort of creamy-smoky-woody vanilla with a unique note that may or may not be walnut, the EDP has more character, it is stronger, I smell the syrupy sweet smell of dried apricots but some spices, too and an unusual smell of roasted walnuts. I also smell flowers, not necesserily roses but maybe saffron, and of course, musk. While the notes are totally different, the whole composition of the edp reminds me a little bit of Khaltat al Khasa by Rasasi, but the latter lacks fruity and nutty notes, of course. The notes listed here are definetely accurate for the EDP and not the CPO. Which one is better? It totally depends on personal preferences: the oil is smoother and can be layered under most types of scents, the EDP is even more interesting and unusual but because of this the oil is much easier to wear. The edp is getting to be hard to find in Europe and even on EBay but the oil is widely sold.

I get dried fruits and walnuts. The walnut note, which is quite realistic, has a bit of a roasted character to it. The fruit is sweet, syrupy, and decadent, with a slightly tangy undertone. If you've ever been to someone's home and they greet you with a platter of nuts and dried fruit (especially apricots), you'll have a decent idea of what this fragrance smells like. I do not get any rose, oud, or musk. The fragrance is very linear throughout its duration, and I don't notice any significant changes at all. By itself, it's interesting and unique upon application since I don't often smell a walnut note, but it gets boring pretty quickly. This is best suited for layering. Performance is excellent. Longevity easily exceeds 10 hours. It projects very lightly at first, but gradually gets stronger. Within an hour, I get at least a couple of feet of projection.

This is a bomb, the initial whiff is a bit alcoholic but I smell oud, a very strong masculine oud the kind that is in Rose Arabie (Armani) definitely niche smelling, though perhaps a touch less refined, and has great lasting power.