Zidan

As I live in Dubai, UAE, I have had more of a chance than most to see the Al Rehab fragrances in their local cultural setting. I am altogether aware that the vast majority of people who buy Al Rehab perfumes in the West will have had them supplied from online retailers, but I would like to share with you something about purchasing these fragrances here before I give my short review. For a start, buying an Al Rehab fragrance in Dubai will mean in all likelihood that you will need to visit the Perfume Souk area in the city near to the famous Gold Souk of Dubai. This is because Al Rehab is not stocked in any of the major or minor retail outlets and - unlike Rasasi, Arabian Oud, Swiss Arabian or the other local brands - does not have an outlet based in a mall. This also means that you will have to take a route through one of the older parts of the city, by the side of the Creek, along past the shops selling all sorts of knick-knacks, past the Asian cyclists carrying stacks of cardboard on the backs of bikes, past the East Africans trading with Afghans, past the shwarma and juice stalls, until you come to the Perfume Souk area. Here you find the Al Rehab shop at the end of a busy, crowded, furiously neon-lit street.... Now when you enter this shop, you will truly wonder how it is that some of these fragrances are so well recognised as being very credible dupes of some of the fragrances from the most admired houses internationally. Creed? Montale?.....Surely not. The Al Rehab shop is staffed by some very friendly elderly local Arab gentlemen. Very nice, and a Salaam Aleikum and a few words of Arabic goes a long way. But yet, the shop. My, my, my....More like a hardware store than a fragrance shop, it is not unusual for your total to be worked out on the back of an envelope and change to be plucked out of wooden drawer. Last time I went there I wondered if I could pick up a hammer and a box of masonry nails while I was at it!...Suffice to say that this is nothing like the image of sparkling, shiny Dubai portrayed around the world. Yet, there is charm in this as well - and most definitely value for money if this is a consideration at all. (As an aside, buying these 6 ml CPO vials costs me 4 UAE dirhams each, about $1.10, ie they are practically giving the stuff away.) So what are their fragrances actually like..... Al Rehab Zidan is a great masculine fragrance oriented towards freshness in the warmth of Spring and Summer. Applying this oil to the skin the first thing that comes to mind is the similarity to that beautiful Italian fragrance, Fendi Life Essence (now sadly discontinued). This is due mostly to the two notes they share - mandarin orange and coriander - at the top of the fragrance. Yet, this similarity seems to continue well into the dry-down, making Zidan a reasonably good dupe for those who miss Fendi Life Essence. However, further into the life of the fragrance, other interesting notes come out to play - rhubarb, licorice and star anise (all favourites of mine) - making it a very interesting trip.....But I just wish these notes were a bit more pronounced and well-blended. Al Rehab Zidan is a very good fragrance which deserves a lot more recognition. It is well worth a try and may serve as a worthy addition to your Spring/Summer wardrobe....and as with the other Al Rehab fragrances, it is sold for pennies but smells so much more.

Yet again, Al Rehab hasn't failed to wow or impress. Zidan is a spicy, freshly green, amber powerhouse that quickly comes to life once on your skin. At first it is citrus with deep, dark spices. It evolves quickly after that into a peppery, refreshing citrus, tea and rhubarb concoction that is perfect in this warm weather. The Amber note came into play around 30 minutes after application and it holds the other notes together beautifully. I am also getting a rather faint, shy waft of Licorice now...nothing overpowering about that particular note though, which I am happy about. Zidan is refreshing, sophisticated and smells a lot more expensive than it is! Yes, it's intended for men and it does have a masculine quality to it...however, I feel women can easily wear this too if they have the right chemistry, which I feel very blessed to :) As usual with this perfume house, a little goes a long way as projection is huge! Longevity is fantastic too. Highly recommend this one to anybody curious about it. The price tag warrants a blind buy!

This is a burst of freshness. It is not any one note that jumps out at me, but the combination. There's fruit, but I wouldn't call this fruity. There's definitely citrus, but to my nose, it's not a citrus scent. There are spices, but it's not overly spicy. What it is, is young and energetic and fresh. The anise gives a bit of a rubbery note that I quite enjoy in perfume. Woody, musky base notes settle this one to the side of class even when it remains young, fresh, and edgy. This fragrance leans towards love, and I think on my guy it will be incredibly sexy and a true love. I think that people might not understand what fresh-cut rhubarb smells, because this is absolutely it! Not sweet, but tart, and a bit green, and oh so refreshing! This note should be at the top of the notes by votes!

#1467 in my "Tour de Fragrance" Another underrated scent from Al Rehab that has great quality for an inexpensive scent. A dupe of Emmanuel Ungaro "Apparition Homme Intense", a scent Ungaro unfortunately discontinued, though it occasionally still shows up on eBay. Rhubarb, licorice and tea the primary notes here. I liked "Apparition" better than anything Ungaro puts out today, even though I am not usually a fan of star anise and licorice in the same scent. I think bad bottle design hurt Apparition more than the scent. But fortunately Al Rehab brought it back. "Zidan" is Arabic for "abundance", and this potency kinda fits the name. Solid longevity and sillage for a mere $9.99. Unbeatable bargain. Safe blind buy. A versatile scent, but probably best for date night.

I've been trying a few of Al Rehab's fragrances of late, they are generally good quality, this is my favourite of them. A really nice, warm, comforting, good fragrance. I get a good blend of Amber and tea. Star Anise is generally something that I dislike quite a lot, I don't actually detect any of it here, this is such an inoffensive fragrance. It has a bit of a 1980's vibe to it, which is good, I'm more then partial to an 80's powerhouse fragrance. Sillage is good, but longevity is excellent. Spray with caution as too much will become headache enducing.