Ubar

Review of the original release, wedge shape bottle c. 1995, and the rerelease c. 2009 made in the UK with the magnetic cap It’s my birthday. Tradition holds that I allow myself to rummage deep into my collection and wear something very special, something celebratory, something life-affirming in reward for not dying yet again, precious in itself and precious to me. Ubar has done those honors on a handful of occasions. And as it’s my birthday, I’ll play my favorite game: an arm-by-arm comparison. On my left is the original release from 1995, and on my right is the rerelease/reformulation from 2009. Dangerous game this; two arm lengths is but a pin-tip’s distance for Ubar. First, a generalization of the two. A perfume critic we all know reviewed Ubar in a guide published in 2008, a year before the rerelease of Ubar. I scratched my head at the description “Godzilla floral”. We all know that Luca Turin doesn’t smell things the same way as most of us, but I still could not make sense of it. I found there to be nothing reptilian or crude about Ubar; Godzilla’s indifference towards monstrous aggression and destruction wasn’t in Ubar either. Larger than life? Fantastical? Mythical? Otherworldly? Yes, those work. Ubar in both forms has an uncontained and unrestrained euphoric vitality and joie de vivre that is the opposite of Godzilla. That explosive joie de vivre makes it a wonderful companion for my day of days. Now, on to the technical stuff, first noting that my vintage 1995 bottle is 30 years old: it’s not going to be the same now as when it was bottled. But as time travel hasn’t been invented yet, that’s mostly irrelevant; it is what it is. The orange notes at the top are definitely a lot quieter in the vintage, which is not much of a surprise since citruses are usually the first to age out, but the fuel and floral violet leaf note is quite intact in both. After this, some notable differences. The vintage is darker and deeper, with the florals far more indolic and heady, the tuberose seeming to do a lot of heavy lifting, and there’s a big slug of oakmoss in it as well. The florals are a true amalgam, with the indolic jasmine, banana fruity ylang ylang, heady and creamy tuberose, and sweet and unctuous muguet all existing in a seamless and spaceless bouquet. Fans of vintage Lanvin Arpege will find themselves in very familiar territory. The rerelease finds this same amalgam but with clearer resolution to the materials. The jasmine is brighter and more citrusy certainly being helped along by a clearer orange blossom, which is either very quiet, absent, or more indolic so as to be hidden behind the other indole-presenting florals in the vintage. The oakmoss in the rerelease is noticeably quieter, with the perfume opting for more rosewood and balsams instead (no surprise). As they both dry down, the vintage rides a very tight line between chypre and amber, while the rerelease more noticeably leans over the line to the amber territory. This is thanks obviously to the difference in oakmoss, but also to the musks where in the vintage there is more of sweet civet/animal musk of the good ol’ stuff where the rerelease opts for the newer synthetic musks that are convincingly less fecal. The chypre-amber dry down is otherwise virtually the same, save for the real sandalwood in the vintage but the material in the rerelease is exceptional. Labdanum, woody and sticky and slightly vanillic, patchouli, loamy and sweetly earthy, and vetiver, smoothly green and woody, are basically identical. So, yes, there are differences, but both are unequivocally Ubar. Do not ask me if I have a preference because I don’t. Nor does it seem does anyone else who happens to be in my presence when I wear it. Whether vintage or new, I get asked without fail what is that amazing perfume I’m wearing. One of the last times I wore this on a birthday, I was at a restaurant with my partner and no fewer than three people at the nearest tables asked “very sorry to interrupt, but which of you is wearing that gorgeous perfume and what is it?” That’s the other thing about Ubar. I said at the beginning that its vitality and joy is unrestrained, and it is; a perfume like this is meant to fill a space like the life-giving golden hues of the sun, and so it does. You will get noticed. Don’t wear it casually. Don’t be aloof. Be confident, be joyous, project an energy that says you are overjoyed to be alive and that life is a beautiful thing - an otherworldly and mythical experience, just like Ubar.

A mission impossible completed. 💛 Discontinued Amouage Ubar is finally in my hands. (Creations Aromatiques 1995) This is very unisex. So beautiful vintage style white floral. Nothing like white florals nowadays. Very sensual. Intoxicating. Elegant. Very oriental with balsamic and ambery base. All those flowers are dipped in them. As glorious as I was thinking it is. ✨✨✨ Thank you @profumeriezanon in Udine, Italy making one of my dreams come true. They had amazing collection of Clive Christians btw. Top: lemon, bergamot, lily of the valley, tangerine, orange, litsea cubeba and violet leaf Heart: jasmine, damascene rose, orange blossom, ylang-ylang, tuberose, freesia, and palisander rosewood Base: civet, vanilla, sandalwood, patchouli, vetiver, copahu balm and black amber In-depth review later. 06/24 Unfortunately I haven't smelled the original perfume, which was released in 1995 and discontinued later. It has been described to be even richer and woodier than the version which was released in the new bottle in 2009. Mine is the new version which has a magnetic cap and therefore it differs the most from the original being anyway more floral and having less incense in it like non magnetic cap version as well (what I have red). Ubar is an amazing beautiful vintage style white floral. It's nothing like white florals are nowadays and it can't be compared with them at all. I do see the point why it was discontinued since it's challenging, it's not crowd pleasing at all and it smells a bit outdated even if it was reformulated already into easier version. But for me all that complexity makes it so special. It's so multi layered, it's so amazingly blended and every time I wear it I can find new things, small little nuances, different kind of emotions. I love the fact that I can't separate first that overpowering Tuberose which has been made in the same kind of ways in too many perfumes and that heady Jasmine which has nothing new to offer. This is like a time machine to the past. It's very sensual. Intoxicating. Elegant. It's passionate and somehow sinfully lustfull. It's deep and it's strong like many perfumes before mid 90s and it's even a little bit more of everything. The scent is very oriental with balsamic and ambery base. All those flowers seem to be dipped and soaked in them, for a long time. Uber is as glorious as I was thinking it is but I can't stop thinking about the non magnetic cap version, or even the original one. Regardless, I will enjoy my journey with this one since it's stupendous. I just have to be careful with it, no over spraying like with most of my perfumes. Some day when I'm in the right kind of mood with her, I will analyse more the scent itself. She deserves all my attention. 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. 🤗

OK, so I should probably start by mentioning that this review is based on a sample I got recently, from Notino. As there have been some concerns over the authenticity of their perfumes, lately. Hopefully it's authentic - it's certainly powerful in the opening, lasts a few hours and smells of real ingredients. So, without further ado: On first spray, it's simultaneously unusual and yet, strangely familiar. Boyfriend said he had smelt something similar before, too (as a child). It goes on super-rich, strong, oily (leaves a visible shimmer on the skin and a slightly sticky feel), with intense amber, tangerine/orange, jasmine and spice notes. It smells like something someone would wear in one of the hareems featured in old films. Laurence of Arabia type of thing. After a while, the ylang ylang becomes more noticable, but the top notes still seem to remain in play until, or even into, the drydown. Which probably begins about 3 hours in, on me. The other notes are all there, too - it's just that the aforementioned ones are, by far, the most intense. Exotic is the word I would use to describe this perfume. I think, if the tuberose was more powerful, it would be even more amazing. It would appear I'm a big fan of tuberose and it is a little underwhelming, in this. As it is, though, it's still very nice. It was, perhaps, a little too woody in the beginning of the drydown, on me. It seemed to go through an almost totally woody (rather masculine) stage, for some reason, before the vanilla and fairly vague vestiges of the other main notes, fortunately, kicked back in. That stage was certainly not ideal. ...and in fact, that probably sums up the whole thing - very nice overall, but maybe not quite ideal, for me. So, I probably won't be purchasing a big bottle. I don't know what the other Amouage fragrances are like, but I will be trying a couple more samples over the next couple of days. I'm hoping for a bit more tuberose... Even though this probably wasn't quite right for me, it's still really nice to smell something you can tell is made from truly real ingredients, for a change.

Ubar is Amouage at its best - a huge, opulent floriental, old-style and made from the highest quality ingredients. Beautifully composed, Ubar is a complex-yet-cohesive beast that smells of vintage glamour while staying true to the Middle Eastern heritage of the house of Amouage. Luxuriously elegant and richly textured throughout, Ubar is near-perfect. I am reviewing a sample of the 2009 reissue. Ubar opens with orange notes - my favourite citrus - complemented beautifully by a softly spicy undertone. I get a brief hint of violet in there too. Before it can become potpourri-like, the rich white florals that form the heart of Ubar emerge. Heady, creamy, realistic and sweet, they form an opulent and addictive bouquet. Clean jasmine and bold tuberose lead the way, but remarkably, neither overwhelm the other notes. Ylang ylang adds honeyed sweetness, while orange blossom makes for a natural progression from the citrus opening to the floral heart. Green and woody in places, it is absolutely beautiful. The smooth, rich sandalwood note comes to the fore as it develops, grounding the florals to perfection. The balsamic amber accord in the base is sublime. Initially sweet, helped by the smooth vanilla note, it makes for the perfect counterpoint to the celestial bouquet. The vanilla also adds sweetness to the fading florals at the drydown stage. The amber accord becomes more animalic as it dries down further. Resinous and salty in its later stages, it puts Ubar up there with vintage greats such as Shalimar or Opium. A hint of patchouli adds earthiness as it fades, becoming a musky amber skin scent. Sillage is strong and longevity is day-long. Best worn during autumn/winter evenings/special occasions. Richly feminine, opulent and regal, Ubar is one of my favourite Amouages. It is better even than some vintage oriental classics. To discontinue this masterpiece would be madness - I hope the rumours aren't true. Utterly beautiful. 5/5.

bright monday morning streaming through the windows, threw a load of laundry into the machine, left breakfast for the jackdaws on the terrace, read emails, and it's not even 7:30, listening to a symphony by bomtempo from 1809. a couple of hours ago, when i got up, i decided to try my original bottle of ubar. somehow the floral bomb works. while i own 9 different bottles of amouage, this is my only "woman." big and blousy. i am not sure everyone would find this comfortable due to the overwhelming overload of flowers. however, for me the flowers are well grounded in the resinous old school base. boudoir cum hothouse. creeping nostalgia for a world i never knew of the parisian demimonde, champagne in private dining rooms, pate, oysters, lobster thermidor, flambe dishes, silk, perfume, huge piles of sweet desserts, candied violets, monumental vases with dozens of odiferous flowers and lots of "forbidden" sex. hmmm, monday morning reverie. 29 JUL 20: hot day, heavy flowers of ubar are a hyponotizing knock out.during the day this comes off massively clean as a highly perfumed soap. the fragrance stomps on one's nostrils, croce e delizia from traviata. so heavy and good it hurts, but hurts with the delicious force of unrelentlng flowers. whap, whap, whap. 9 DEC 20 baby it's cold outside, temps have been playing tag with 0. gray skies. and ubar comes through with a flourish of flowers. decidedly one of the few floral florals that i like and enjoy wearing. it is a huge bouquet in a marble foyer of a palace, even though lots of flowers, it is stately. i am not sure whether the new bottles have a different formula, but, for me, there is nothing cloying sweet or "cheap." the rich floral is reminiscent of great old french houses, base notes are sensual and bring a sexy side to the poem of scents. if you know zeffirelli's "la traviata," you have seen the gorgeous luxe and melancholia that distinguishes ubar.