Opus V – Woods Symphony

Here is my overly long relationship with amouage’s woods symphony if anyone’s interested: I bought woods symphony 6 months ago without ever smelling it. The notes looked promising, I love Amouage as a house. And the price I got it at was pretty unbeatable. When I first tested the perfume, I had no idea what to make of it. It was so dry and buttery, the orris was the dominant note and it wasn’t even close. The rose and jasmine didn’t come out much until a couple hours in, and the oud/animalic notes were very very light and barely detectable. It lasted a decent time, but was very weak and sat close to the skin. I enjoyed it, but it did not do anything for me. It seemed okay, like it was missing something. It just wasn’t interesting. It was, however, gorgeously blended of course. I wore it about 4 times, and I did begin to enjoy the perfume, but it just wasn’t pulling me in like so many of the other amouage’s did. I ended up selling my bottle at a pretty low price (around $130) , and I don’t know whether I regret that decision or not. Seeing any amouage go is hard for me, because they’re so beautiful crafted and so well made. Anyways, I’ve been without the bottle for about 4 months now, and I pretty much forgot about the perfume until a couple days ago. I was in a Neiman Marcus (I don’t have any major stores where I live, so this was like being a kid in a candy shop for me) and as I was testing a lot of amouage’s that I hadn’t been able to test in the past, I came across woods symphony-my old friend. I smelled it, just from the cap (I wanted open spots to test new perfumes) and it brought back so many memories. That dry parchment-like orris and rum, those light but slightly sweet florals and that barely noticeable animalic base all pulled me into memory lane. To be honest; I miss woods symphony. I enjoyed it, and it was fun to have, but I don’t regret selling it. In fact, It’s my least favorite amouage in the library collection which is saying a lot because that’s my favorite collection in all of perfumery that I’ve gotten to try (haven’t tried timber yet though, that has some mixed reviews). Woods symphony is good, but it’s short from being great. It lacks that uniqueness, and most importantly the performance that Amouage had perfected, and for that reason, unless millions of dollars fall from the sky into my pockets, woods symphony will sit as a memory rather than a bottle on my shelf.

One of the dislikes below me mention "watery facet" This put a smile on my face and prompted me to finally write a musing on this scent I own this fragrance for a year and I still am reserved in really expressing how impressive this is. Now this is a good example of even how someone with different taste and nose distinguishes this magical watery feel that perfumer JCB has. (look up his other work outside LV) No other Amouage I have has this feeling. Picture this: A juxtaposition of a floral-powdery-pollen feeling and watery essence that travels through it. Many people get hung up on "woods" for me the word "symphony" is where the emphasis should be. Where a combination of different tempo and timbre, silence and sound create this ephemeral quality to existence. I have mused on this name, almost like a koan before you spray this on. For now, I would say regarding the perfume brief: technology and how information travels is exactly this...... This moment happening here; Some person typing on their keyboard, going nowhere. Yet some other person elsewhere sitting down reading, getting inspired or maybe upset by some glyphs on a screen. How ephemeral/fleeting and yet whimsical is this encounter? So, as the website blurb states: Opus V is a floral and woody fragrance inspired by the classical and modern methods of disseminating knowledge. Maybe we don't see classical ways like books or the woods because we are too focused on the screen or the florals. Or maybe I am among the chosen few that can smell the symphony between these elements. Anyway, this scent is haunting, textured and unique. I get weak in the knees every time I sniff the atomizer. Opus scents are meant to be special, So if you are reading this hoping to "quickly" get an idea of what this smells like, sorry I won't spoil that surprise. However, If you are still interested in trying this, get a sample. If you (like me) love iris, just get the bottle if you can afford it. Remember, Opus scents (Chong era) are not meant to be a daily driver or easy to digest. They even stand separate to the main line, because they are special and different. If you want easy-like-on-first-sniff fragrance, look somewhere else. PS: After hunting down an Opus X bottle. I think it's funny that opus V survived the discontinuation...so maybe it is a mainstream-easy-to-like fragrance??

This is honestly waaay more on the feminine side of Amouage's "men's" fragrances. Upon first spray, the Orris/Iris has that granny/mom floral Sunday-church vibe with Jasmine and Rose acting as carriers of the Orris/Iris. The Rum is wrapped around all of the florals with VERY little wood in sight. The oud is hidden and nonexistent to my nose, almost as if they barely used any wood in their ingredients. The drydown becomes a more unisex fragrance with the sharp florals toned down to a boozy sharp Orris, making it an easy fragrance to pull off in a white tee or casual wear on an outing to a golf course, church, beach-side breakfast, or a nice hike. I was genuinely thrown off the first week of owning it but the more time I spent with it, I began to fall in love (a common thing with Amouage fragrances). If a woman would be wearing this, it would be a 10/10 no doubt; but for a man...a 9/10. It's beautiful and full bottle-worthy if you're a collector but if you're not into unisex fragrances and want a more masculine scent, this isn't for you. There's a lot to love about this one, just let it dry down because that initial blast smells like a woman's fragrance. Scent: 9 oofs (more than likely a 10-oof rating over time just because I end up calling all of my Amouage's masterpieces after a couple of wearings) -The dry down is beautiful, bright, sensual, and comforting. Gorgeous, I tell you! *chefs kiss* Longevity: 7 oofs -I was able to detect it for 5 hours on my skin and way longer on clothes. Sillage: 7 oofs -It doesn't radiate like other Amouage's but for the low price of $149 that I paid I think it's 100% worth the money.

Very dry and woody orris opening with a touch of rum. Feels like you’re an old and abandoned basement but it’s cozy at the same time. Dry down loses the rum, mellows down the orris, and brings in an equally dry woody note that almost leaves you gasping for air (almost a similar feeling to how it’s harder to breathe in humid weather, but this isn’t a bad thing for this fragrance). A gorgeous and very very soft rose and jasmine begin to contrast the dry woodiness and orris root, and bring an extremely smooth and gorgeous sweetness to perfectly balance the fragrance out. There is something in here that reminds me of a note in Versace Eros for women, and I’m suspecting the jasmine note, although they are extremely different fragrances. This fragrance also has a very light touch of animalics, but it’s not an immediate “stank face” reaction, it’s an added depth to the fragrance to keep it from being too one dimensional. Anyways, this fragrance isn’t for everyone. In fact, it’s not for most people, but it is for me (although it took me about 4 months to fully appreciate and understand this fragrance). If I had no idea what the notes were in here, and I was listing accords that I smelled, I would list it as such: Orris, Woody notes, light floral, animalic. That is really all that is in this beautiful creation. Woods symphony is a quiet but bold beast in the way that it lasts 8-10 hours on skin but projects very softly. And that’s what makes this fragrance so special. It’s not going to attack you, but it will allure you if you get close enough to people around you. Sample before you buy, 8.9/10.

Opus V – Woods Symphony Amouage (A37655H096 batch) Credit to Jacques Cavallier the LV perfumer and creator of many of our lovely classics. Woods Symphony is a very wearable and is suitable for the iris/orris lovers. It opens with prominent orris that is not as powdery as some other iris prominent frags, the rum and booziness is kinda light weight I feel despite others saying it's strong. I definitely get the rose more than jasmine but the rose doesn't last long enough before it gets overwhelmed by the muskiness which on my skin it starts to dominate and this has to come from the civet. The amber is there too. There is no musk and amber listed as notes so it has to come from the civet note. The civet note really starts to dominate after about an hour and a half probably 90mins in with the orris still hanging around in the background. This happens about 90 minutes after my sprays and I think I prefer the opening hour or so before the drydown amber muskiness starts to stay primarily there. The oud and dry wood seems to be an undertone under the civet on my skin. This polarizing change is rather obvious for me as I did overspray. Judging from the strength of the juice on my skin, for now I think it's gonna last at least 8 hours. It isn't a big projector but has the longetivity. This said I think everyone should test it at the stores or get a decant first because I don't think it is blind buy safe unless you adores frags that are seemingly a hybrid of rose-orris muskiness with woodiness. I'll probably need to give this another wear or two before I decide if I want to keep it.

For the life of me, I can’t figure out why people are complaining about performance with this fragrance. I smelled it in store and it was completely arresting so I got a sample. Ran through the sample and really enjoyed it then, I come here and read every other person saying it only last 5 hours so I tested my sample last night. I put lotion on every morning but my skin wasn’t saturated so I figured this would be a pretty standard test. Had my watch on and made note that I applied the fragrance to each wrist at 9:30pm. Woke up earlier than expected, around 5 am, and, guess what? Still very present. Didn’t even need to put my nose to my wrists to catch a smell. 6am came, 7am came and, still there. “Good enough for me!” I thought so hopped in the shower and when I got out, to my surprise, IT WAS STILL THERE. I mean damn, 9-10hrs isn’t good enough for y’all? Must be an issue of nose fatigue or maybe there’s iso-e in this scent that some of you can’t pick up. Luckily I can smell iso-e clearly and with no problem. What a banger from Amouage. A fragrance I think could be signatured in those cooler months. Glad I’ve got a bottle of this coming in the mail tomorrow! 9/10 for me. Hate that this isn’t working for some of you but glad it works great for me.

This fragrance is remarkably unique, defined by an unexpected and captivating dryness. Before even checking the notes, my first thought was: “Wow! this smells like a dry tree!” That immediate impression captures its essence perfectly. It opens with a touch of citrus, but not the bright, juicy kin; rather, the faint citrus nuance found in real cedar oil. Though not officially listed, it’s what most strongly evokes the impression of aged, sun-bleached wood. The dry woody notes pull you in like a whirlwind, soon joined by a beautifully earthy iris and a faint boozy undertone that deepens the texture. There’s no noticeable sweetness at all, which is precisely why I love it; it’s a portrait of ancient wood and iris, rendered with startling realism. In the drydown, it turns subtly soapy and I love that. Projection sits closer to the skin than in many other Amouage compositions, but that restraint suits its character. With patience, you can detect the subtle interplay of floral tones and oud in the background, though they never steal the spotlight. A dry woody-iris composition with a faint boozy nuance and restrained projection. No sweetness, no civet; pure craftsmanship. Tag(s): Cold iris, dry woods, ancient wood

Top: Orris Absolute, Rhum Heart: Orris Concrete, Rose, Jasmine Base: Agarwood, Civet, Dry Wood Accord Woods Symphony is soothing and attractive, beautiful and sophisticated, it’s like a fragile watercolor painting compared to other scents in Opus collection. I think it’s the reason why it’s a hidden gem. People love Opus collection because of very bold and edgy juices and this is totally different. It’s not weak anyway - Woods Symphony is light yet long lasting with good projection. It was totally coincidence that I found this. My dear friend bought this one earlier and after checking it I knew it would be a big love for me. Powdery Orris with a little bit sweet Rum is irresistible, Rose and Jasmine makes the blend somewhat traditional and very classy while woody base with a hint of Oud and Civet brings the glamour of some vintage perfumes. Still the concoction is very youthful. So beautiful and perfect for any occasion and any weather! Thank you for reading, I hope my review was helpful. I would appreciate a lot if you want to follow me on IG and/or YouTube (English subtitles): @ninamariahperfumes It gives me a lot of motivation to write more. 🤗

AMOUAGE Opus V is not a fragrance, it’s a feeling. At first sniff it may not seems like a complex fragrance, like a shampoo smell like someone said...the special thing about Opus V is how it makes you feel. It’s July, I’m on a yacht in Sardinia after a long sunny day, and I just came out of the shower. I am getting ready to leave the yacht to have a dinner in Portocervo and I can smell the fantastic iris shampoo that i’ve used, mixed with the dryness of the linen smell of my shirt and the animalic nature of the skin warmed by the sun. This is what I dream of while wearing opus V. Probably the hate about Opus V it is due to the fact that it is an extremely seasonal perfume. In my view this fits perfectly summer, it belongs to the heat and the salty sea breeze helps to enhance it. Performance are exceptional and the sillage is really great, i love sniffing it in the air even more than on the skin. The only thing that I complain about is...my english:(, I would have liked to have better expressive abilities to rightfully review this MASTERPIECE. Luxurious and perfectly fits the idea that I have of Amouage <3 Definitely in my wishlist!

This is criminally overhated and underrated. This has nothing to do with babywipes or cleaners or bleach. All of that is nonsense. It’s a soft mix of Rose and Jasmin which are both subtle but detectable. The Civet note is even more subtle. A beautiful rum like note, phrasing it like that cuz i cant exactly tell if it’s rum, is also detectable. Most noticeably a mix of dry woods and orris. I love this juice. This is a very beautiful creation but granted, not worth the full retail price. If you love a good woody scent with floral elements try this and everything up to 180-200 bucks is totally ok for this as this will make you smell pleasant, different and it lasts a long time. Projection isn’t beastly but also very detectable.

Outstanding. Addictive. Extraterrestrial. Unisex. An orchestra of orris and woods. multidimensional iteration of iris. There is no easy way to describe this. For sure it’s an iris tamed to Perfection and a unique iteration of iris. High class perfumery. Top notch. Floral woody powdery earthy nuances of orris clashing with bitter woods. As if sweet woody boozy iris combined with jammy waxy nuance of orris trying to assert dominance over bitter woods with oud at their back. Buttery nuances of orris and a sharp metallic rose trying to bring some harmony to no avail. It’s a clash of components throughout. Such fierce clash that exudes animalism. pure work of art.

Amouage is NOT for everyone but I seem to love everything from them. Opus V is a pure masterpiece. It's the perfect blend of orris, woods and booze. I'm a little surprised to see that most consider this to be unisex, maybe leaning SLIGHTLY feminine, but I guess I can see it... To me, this is really gentlemanly. VERY gentlemanly, very sophisticated, and very classy. I'll tell you what; the company that can produce this and produce Interlude (and flankers) and Opus XIV AND Reflection Man AND Beach Hut Man, etc etc, is a special kind of company. As far as I'm concerned, Amouage deserves the Nobel prize for fragrance!! ;) Rating: 9.0 / 10.0 All day long!

There is something in this perfume that attracts me to smell it all the time...it is a different take on Amouage, like nothing else....On me, it starts earthy, a bit of rose that disappears soon and then is conquered by the muskiness of civet...behind civet, after the first 30 min max where civet enters strongly, you can still smell the earty notes, a kind of buttery feeling and a bit of the flowers and woods..In other words, earty animalic notes dominate the fragrance. It is not as strong as other Amouage but still very ok with a good sillage!! I recommend a try but NOT a blind buy!!!....just for its uniqueness, it worths it!

@markopeeko here you buddy and thanks it’s been great. Still, doesn’t change anything I said. Could be a matter of oily vs dry skin but that’s largely remedied by just putting on lotion lol. Also, I believe the normal range (under a normal distribution curve) for skin ph is between 4 something and 6 something. Doubtful such a range would produce such drastic differences for folks but I’ve been wrong once or twice before. My guess, as I mentioned, is there’s iso-e in here, which of course isn’t listed, the same way there’s iso-e in epic. Whatever percent of the population just can’t pick it up no matter how much is sprayed.

Woods symphony: What if the nature had a concert inside the darkest parts of a Black Forest ? This is what the symphony would feel like, elegant, smooth, sweet yet dark and opulent. This fragrance blends masterfully Oud notes with sandalwood and other precious woods drying down to a beautiful iris, this one however it’s not an airy and fresh take, instead it’s thick and has plenty of volume. It almost doesn’t fit through your nose but still manages to balance out the whole structure and even more to envelop your senses in a majestic symphony. Stunning, gods performance, quality is actually super good. Blind buy it, 10/10

Without looking at the notes, it smells like dry wood and florals with a very earthy, dark, and smoky character. They somehow created a masterpiece. It smells like something a rich man or woman would wear if they wanted to stand out and be different from everyone else. Yes, it’s unisex. I’m usually not a fan of unisex fragrances, but Amouage somehow made me like this one that works for both men and women. It’s also very long lasting. I love it, but I’d definitely recommend getting a sample or going to a store to smell it before purchasing.

I appear to be in the minority here, but I absolutely love this juice. Opus Woods just works for my skin chemistry and, on me, smells very similar to Creed Spice & Wood (but less Royal Oud-leaning). I sometimes wear suits to work and Opus Woods goes so well with that look -- sharp, polished, and with a little bit of spice kick. And yet it's versatile and could be worn on a night out. If you're not sure, test it. But if you happen to like it, don't be surprised.

Beautiful subtle fragrance from Amouage. Nothing skanky nor resinous from this, a nice departure from their typical line. Soft, velvety, creamy and long lasting. This has a large similarity to La Fin Du Monde by ELDO, albeit the popcorn note is subbed out for rum. Both play in the same ballpark; very much a spring and early summer fragrance. I would never pay full price for this type of fragrance, but for $139 on Aura, it's a home run!

This smells pleasant, but it smells feminine. In the opening, rose is the most prominent note. Strange considering the note profile says rose is in the mid. To my nose, it smells almost exactly like Versace Bright Crystal, my wife's signature scent for the longest time. I would actually wear this frag but I just can't bear being self-conscious that those around me might think I'm wearing a woman's perfume.

Woody, clean, a bit soapy on the first spray As it starts to dry the florals emerge, first fresh and then powdery from the orris The fragrance develops into a beautiful combination of florals and dry woods Delicate, preserved powdery rose with orris It has very subtle animalic notes, but predominantly it's creamy florals on a base of dry woods