Civet de Nuit

I'll admit that the online reviews had me intimidated. But, I'm happy to report that this is a very wearable fragrance. When I hear the words "civet" and "musk", I naturally associate them with ribald and corporeal pungency. Can I wear this around my kids? Can I wear this in a restaurant? Will I scare the cat? But curiosity prods the mind, sometimes, and you find yourself browsing the Areej Le Dore website and saying "oh, what the hell--let's do this." Next thing you know, the blind buy is complete. The package is on the countertop. You're showered and ready to test this concoction, regardless of whatever zoological or scatological fate may befall you. You look up uncertainly at the humming bathroom exhaust fan and utter a plea--"if this goes sideways, I'll be counting on you..." You step into the shower stall and pull the curtain--gotta keep this beast from getting out--and you issue a tentative spritz to your wrist... and it's fine. It's fine! There's no wild animal here. I mean, the civet is definitely present but it plays a steady supporting role, tying the disparate notes together into a unified fragrance that is pleasant, captivating, warm, and (shockingly) unoffensive. There are two distinct phases to this olfactory experience, roughly four hours apiece (on my skin, ymmv). The opening phase reminds me of a gently spiced gingerbread dough that is informed by pushy heliotrope and nuanced by gentler florals (jasmine and ylang-ylang). As the scent profile transitions to its closing phase, the spices and florals recede gradually as the sandalwood inches forward. There are two constants throughout the entire duration: a natural honey-beeswax note and the warm musk of the aged civet tincture employed by the perfumers. About that musk: it's not urinous or feculent in the slightest. It is fairly "mousy" which will likely be the make-or-break aspect of this otherwise uncontroversial fragrance. (Supposedly there are contributory elements of ambergris and oakmoss, as well, but I couldn't parse these out as distinct elements.) Civet de Nuit is *not* an assault on the senses. In fact, I wore three sprays (wrist, wrist, between the pecs) to the family dinner table and nobody mentioned a thing. Same for when we cuddled on the couch for family movie night. (And my family is far from anosmic--they never fail to call me out when I overspray.) I'll try wearing this to work, just to gauge the response, and will report back. But make no mistake, this is not a suitable fragrance for the gym or restaurant. I'd go so far as to say that Civet de Nuit is decidedly not a "bedroom" musk either--this ain't artisanal Kouros. This is an insular fragrance that cocoons you in a warm bubble of scent. This is for a lazy day of reading; maybe it's raining outside, maybe there's a cozy fireplace; maybe your cat is curled in your lap (and, like my cat, is completely unbothered by your subtle animalistic aura); maybe you've got a hot cup of savory tea; and maybe you have a day's worth of Tolstoy ahead of you. Sounds nice, doesn't it? Well, in the right application and with the right mindset, there's nothing better than this. 9/10.

My last fragrantic Eid celebration ended up with beautiful Civet de nuit from the house of Areej Le Dore I have sprayed this perfume before but today on this special day it acted very special. I thought I will pair it with Diwaniya by Sultan Pasha Attars but at the last moment I have changed my mind decided to give it a full wearing alone. I know it’s crazy wearing 3/4 master perfumes in a day and even pairing these with world best attars but trust me it was one of the best fragrant day in my whole life. I was able to decipher way better than I used to be and I am even enjoying perfumes better than I used to be. This is my 5th time wearing Civet de nuit and omg aging above one month it has opened up magically. On my all the previous wear I think I was looking at different direction or time was not right. Now I want to jump into my take on civet de nuit. My take on Civet de nuit!!! We all know the smell of something can so immediately trigger a detailed memory or even intense emotion, immediately after the sprays it took me to my childhood when I was in school. me and my dad used to go for morning cycling after the Farj prayer. I had my trendy bicycle and he had one old school phoenix cycle. we had a night blooming jesmin flower tree in front of our gate we call it Shiuly ful tree. Civet de nuit took me to that place where me and dad preparing for our morning ride where all the Shiuly ful on the ground, a clam environment with harmony of birds singing and my dad. We used to take few flowers with us as we knew these flowers may not be available while we will return back home. We used to ride around 5/6miles, we used to sweat and enjoy the moment that I still carry with me. I can even relate our whole bicycle ride with civet de nuit. This floral aroma stays for over 30mins on my skin, then it start changing like a little green (definitely oakmoss) and powdery aspect. In this stage a mild animalic civet starts playing its role in the background. I was also surprised I was getting hint of a tone down sandalwood and honey like accord at some point. this part played atleast next 2/3 hours on my skin. Dry down is also very artistic more powdery and more musky civet. Oakmoss is no longer green and night blooming jesmin are no longer fresh. I can detect the presence of few other element but it was very hard to detect for my amateur nose. I would love if the heart stayed for few more hours 😅 and on my skin after 4/5 hours civet de nuit was almost skin scent. I could still feel the powdery florals, resins, and musky civet but just near my skin. This is definitely one of the best purchase of 2022. And I am glad I did choose this one to end my fragrantic Eid celebration. I wish I had better vocabulary to describe my feelings. Trust none but your nose! Thanks a lot to Russian Adam and Sultan Pasha for reviving such an magical moment of my life.

Thoughts on a sampling... * An Ylang-Ylang bomb. * Accompanied by Musk. * Smells like the incense section in an ethnic American/Asian or an American/Indian grocery market. * 100% feminine. But only if you're into Ylang-Ylang. * Long lasting with good sillage. * This is done insanely well. It is so realistically authentic . * The quality of the notes seem to abundantly ooze without shame. * That being said it is probably a little bold and daring to be a crowd pleaser or office friendly. * I almost blind bought this. Thou not for me I do recommend for anyone that thinks they might like this scent to give it a try. I consider it spectacular. * HOWEVER... upon trying several more times... * Seems my skin and/or nose have had an adaptive shift. * Now the Ylang-Ylang is tamed and gives way to the Civet. * Also detect a spicy Tobacco that outlasts the Musk many hours later. * All of this making it less feminine and more unisex. * It both, projects and lasts very well. ** Final thought... It is a different kind of scent. If I had to describe vintage I would include Civet de Nuit. Final verdict, I like this, it defiantly has grown on me. Time to splurge for a bottle. *** I was eventually able to get my hands on a full bottle. As time passes and it settles it seems to become more masculine. Sultan Pasha is so evident in this collaboration as it is similar to his Cuirlilas. It is however airier and not as dark as the aforementioned and does outperform it in both sillage and longevity. That being said it is near impossible to wear indoors. If it were not for that I might be tempted to place it in my "top five shelf".

Oh how I wish I could get any of the notes listed. But all I get is sweet, like smelling a sickeningly sweet honey. It’s a lot like Bee from Zoologist. In fact it could be a dupe. And it’s very linear, it’s just sweet all the way thru to the dry down. I’ve heard some ppl say their bottle has crystallized sugar at the opening. What did he do, put honey in this one?. I can’t take it. I should have never blind bought it. I have not liked any of Areej collabs. His own work is amazing, I’ve loved everything he’s released. But his collabs are just no good. Aquilaria Blossom is so bad that just smelling it makes me want to vomit. No joke, I’m not even exaggerating, the smell makes me sick to my stomach. I’m about to sell it and get rid of it. I’ll never ever wear it or even smell it again. I don’t get how anyone can like it. And yes i bought my bottle direct from Areej Le Dore . I always buy all of my Areej Le Dore from the website and not resellers. Even tho I do know of one reseller that I completely trust. I only go to him when Areej is all sold out.

This is very masculine. It smells like a tobacco and amber Oriental. This is quite complex. I have a decant. Each time I wear it, I like it more. Picking up more heliotrope now. It's very good, but for some reason I am not drawn to look for a bottle. I have smelled or have similar fragrances perhaps. The aldehydes are soft. The florals are in the background smoothing things out. There's no oud here. It reminds me of Tom Ford London or Jovoy Les Jeux, Les Indemodables Vanilla Havana. Of these 3 similar fragrances, I easily prefer Civet de Nuit. But it also cost much more. If this is the genre of fragrance you really like. It may very well be worth the purchase. I'm not sure I think collaborations are a good thing... Can you imagine 2 artists painting one painting together? It would look muddled. I know and trust Russian Adam's work. He knows best how to balance and blend his own fragrance. This is a well blended fragrance. But it doesn't smell like Russian Adam to me Rating: 8.5/10 God bless. John 3:16

Civet de Nuit is my first encounter with the house of Areej Le Doré, and I must say I’m thoroughly impressed. It’s a glorious use of natural civet, which can be intimidating to some, and whilst it is bold and animalic, it’s nowhere near unwearable - it just needs the right wearer. The civet is front and centre, obviously, with its intensely sharp and slightly urinous musky nature. I pick up this overwhelmingly thick, honeyed sweetness - like beeswax dripping with honey, which I’m assuming is coming from the jasmine. This is tempered by the dry, earthy facets of tobacco, leather and sandalwood. It’s a gorgeous fragrance, stunning and refined whilst feeling impressively unusual and exotic. Whilst I am thoroughly enjoying this, I feel like you are paying for the rarity of the materials more than anything. I’m not sure I could justify the price of this beauty.

50 degrees, dry mountain air in Lake Tahoe. Civet de Nuit cut through the crispness like an Armagnac-soaked aria. This isn’t polite perfume—it’s a feral mix of civet, leather, smoke, and velvet, with a boozy plummy depth that clings like silk and fur. Most perfumes vanish in dry air; this one thrives. It doesn’t try to be pretty. It makes you the kind of person who slams the door on Pinot Grigio and orders Armagnac neat. Don’t wear Civet de Nuit to be liked. Wear it to be obeyed.

As a collaboration with the brilliant Sultan Pasha, I was very excited for this one and it does not disappoint. A fantastic neo-classical warm and furry resinous thing with a touch of florals and great vintage civet. Aldehydes are briefly felt at the top. Not a world away from vintage Bal-Al-Versailles but the voices of both collaborators come through loud and clear. Russian Adam’s powdery musk top notes and Sultan Pasha’s warm glowing civet/incense base. Fantastic stuff.

I just dropped in here to say that the late heart and early base of Civet de Nuit is just... wow. It's hypnotic. I could stay there forever and be a happy man.

Sweet ambery tobacco fragrance, not too much animalic, it smells like dirty animalic honey + tobacco with great performance, lasts 10h+

There's a distinct chocolate note in this that nobody is mentioning.

This is the first ALD I've sampled and I think I built up really high expectations that haven't quite been met. Civet de Nuit is good, but I've smelled almost the exact thing before--it's nearly a perfect representation of pipe tobacco (the tobacco itself, not the smoke), which is itself photorealistically rendered in Theodoros Kalotinis Tobacco Maniac (among other nearly, but not quite, as good fragrances). I'm but a simple person with a simple nose though and my brain is probably interpreting it more flatly than people with more developed noses might. It hasn't put me off trying more ALD fragrances, but I think now I'll go in not expecting some sort of magic elixir but just another fragrance that may or may not be to my taste.

Less honey sweet and floral than i was expecting. I mainly get ylang and even then its definitely outshined by the animalics. Aldehydes are barely noticeable. The musk in the base is really nice, giving some of that sweetness, but something about what i assume is the civet reminds me of walnuts strangely. Really offputting, also not a big fan of the tobacco note that sticks out alongside the Musk in the base. The Walnut seems to be a me thing and the rest of the perfume is very pleasing. A more serious, aged and slightly disheveled partner to Musk Khabib by Bortnikoff perhaps.

I have 20+ full bottles of ALD fragrances (my favourite brand!) , including his other collaborations, but this is the first I tried that I do not want to own. This isn't because I don't like it, but more it seems a bit confused. It opens like a super sweet Roja Pierre de Velay 23, all aldehydes and vintage florals, and many notes, including those in the base such as civet and tobacco are common between these fragrances. But is as not as soapy as the PdV. But similar - very dirty floral and extroverted. Then it starts to smell like Atelier des Ors Musk Immortelle in the early dry down, like a walk through a floral mountain glade––even smells like there is immortelle in this vegetal brown sugar vibe––before becoming more powdery, almost lipsticky. It is a real vintage floral roller coaster ride, but given I have PdV 23 and Musk Immortelle I have no place for this in my collection. It is a very complex vintage powdery floral with animallic undertones but has been done better before and lacks focus - maybe collaborations always end up in compromise? I can see why it has sat there unsold for 2 years now when everything else seems to sell out in days to weeks. It is a very high quality fragrance, don't get me wrong, it just lacks focus. Of his three collaborations this is the weakest offering, and I own Manly and Aquaria Blossom and love them both.

My timid, gentle female cat is afraid to come close when I am wearing Civet. She looks at me suspiciously and recedes from view. I feel like a big, fluffy wild cat in its natural habitat. The musk here is scandalously realistic and loud, it pushes other notes deep to the background. I believe, Victor Wong could extend his collection with this fragrance under the name "Panther" or "Linx". The fragrance describes not only the furry cat, but talks a lot about its environment with all the range of rancid and alluring elements: here the animal pissed under a bush, and there it rushed passed some jasmine and ylang-ylang flowers.

I'm selling my bottle, only used 3-4 sprays. Sold.

(Note: The actual review for the perfume starts from the fifth paragraph.) Some have already remarked on the stark deviation from previous Areej Le Dore themes, for this isn’t centred around the famed Ouds or the knowing Musks that seem almost characteristic of Russian Adam’s more famed creations. This endearing deviation at the hands of Russian Adam and Sultan Pasha is precisely why I’m so joyously penning this review today. This is what I’d been waiting for. To give you context as to why this is the ALD that has gripped my senses, I love everything that harkens back to classical vintage-esqe French perfumery, some may cheekily point out “Oh, you mean old lady perfumes?”, to that I say, “Come, why don’t you say that to my face!”, and if you are foolish enough to take me up on that, I shall spray you, right in the face with an Oakmoss-laden chypre that is well out of IFRA regulations, so take cover and speak not heathens. I have always been an admirer of Sultan Pasha and his creations, the notes of his creations read like olfactory poetry from La Belle Epoque (which I believe they are), yet I’ve never been fortunate enough to try out his concentrated elixirs, dreams of owning Irisoir still make smile in my sleep. ALD on the other hand I’ve been lucky enough to sample from time to time, my last favourite hailed from the 6th collection and therein is a revelation. It was Grandenia that emerged as a favourite because it’s another step towards floral, resinous orientals, and that has and always will be my foremost olfactory category of choice. We now come to Civet de Nuit, a perfume that lives up to its name, the reputation of its creators and is an ode to the olfactory glories of a perfumed past that is no longer. This is why I must ask of Russian Adam and Sultan Pasha, my dear sirs, never stop creating these wondrous time capsules, they speak to so many of us who do not give into gimmick but yearn for perfumery to return to its age-old French roots. CdN opens with my favourite purple flower, the Heliotrope, which to my nose balances itself on the aldehydes to give you an opening that feels less-almondy and crayon-powder like say had this been overdosed with Heliotrope, which I believe it isn’t. It feels mildly sweet, slightly anisic and strangely a bit airy somehow. Now what happens next, in the five minutes past the opening is a well-blended melange, it feels difficult to pick apart notes by I do find myself recognising the Antiquated Civet Tincture, but it doesn’t seem to come through alone, there is a floral element guided by the Ylang-Ylang and the Night Blooming Jasmine, imparting what feels like an indolic floral nuance to the whole composition, this phase reminds me of the heady perfumed hair oils that were once often used for scenting the hair, an ancient South Asian grooming ritual, these concoctions were the guarded secrets of the boudoir of many a woman of stately homes and estates. This also strangely reminds me of the floral components of perfumes like Chanel’s Cuir de Russie, not to say these share any similarity, it is only the floral components that seem done up in the same style. Now the Antiquated Civet Tincture which this is built around, that is where the words don’t quite do justice, but first I must tell you, this is not the shower of golden, the mildly warm urinous rather pungent Civet we’re all familiar with in more common perfumery. This is not remotely ‘fluid’, this is ‘thick’, ‘paste-like’, ‘mildly resinous’, almost like a creamy concentrate/butter. This makes for a resilient but softened animalic hum, almost as if you have donned a fur that is seeped with a Civet-laden vintage of Jean Desprez’s Bal a Versailles, and the sprays of the perfumes have aged on the fur losing their ‘tang’. Again the comparison to BaV is only to give you a reference point for the Civet in this, they aren’t really similar. I have a vintage of the aforementioned BaV Parfum/Extrait and it has aged over the years and the Civet in that has a passing similarity to the one here, though this is smoother, sweeter and not at all ‘pungent’ surprisingly. The base is an amalgam of a muted Castoreum, backed by a soft Mysore Sandalwood, all of which is wrapped up in a resinous medley of Benzoin, Styrax, Labdanum, and an Olibanum which minutely remembers ALD’s Grandenia in the passing. The Oakmoss is not prominent to my nose, neither can I tell apart the White Ambergris nor the Tobacco, the signature Areej Musk doesn’t hijack the composition either. The dry down feels far too blended to pick apart individual notes, but it is a hovering beauty on skin. This is not a wanton perfume that inspires debauchery. This is regal, this is noble, it is a beautiful balm to the senses, and a fond remembrance of a past that it pays a worthy tribute to. My salutations to the perfumers and thanks to anyone who takes the time to read this, Your very own, The Perfume Vigilante

& digging it again !!️ SOTN : civet de nuit by ALD & SP Coming to the above i may be a novice commenting here around the biggies and super pro bros and hard core trained noses... 🙏🙏 I'll try my best to describe with minimum i can 🙏🙏 Being honest I'm not much into attars ( Not because i don't relate / don't like Just that I believe it's an different ocean all together and once you're into it , there's no coming back lol 😆 , so try to refrain from a deeper Rabbit hole 😁🙏 ) but always wanted to get SP bhai's stuff since forever... & Then as i Heard about the collab between the legends I was like whoaaaa 🔥🔥🔥🔥 this is it !! I'm getting my sprayer with SP & ALD aka RA.... Coming to the scent profile.... This is one of the best recent releases by ALD ❤️❤️ The perfume opens upp with heliotrope and slightly airy kinda elements... ( Don't know what's causing it though ) Soon this gets its floral magic of Jasmine + ylang ylang ( ufff this ylang ylang alongsides the slightest of animalic character and plus the slight powdery vibe of violets / heliotrope is simply magical 🪄✨ This then slowly walks to its basenotes Where the magical spell is still around With the slight sweetness of Benzoin + vanilla ( may be my nose ) + sandalwood There's this balance of muskiness and slight animalic touches And yes the notes symphony here is done so well that one can actually distinguish amoung the rest and all the notes can actually be feel while every breath you take ( every sniff ) Overall this stuff is a MASTERPIECE !! Coz this has some darkness at its base but yet it's so well rounded and balanced by rest of its accords !!️ and undoubtedly / hands down one of the best releases by ALD in recent times IMO Don't you sleep on this one ❤️ This stuff is 🔥🔥🔥 Thank you for the long read And thank you SP bhai and RA sir for Civet de nuit This is pure bliss ❤️❤️ God bless 😇🙏

Civet de nuit: This was a blind buy only for the ingredients and the fact that I trust that these two perfumers only use the real deal. To me this smells of a combination of ADC and Al Majmua from Areej Le Dore. Some people raved about it for not smelling all the notes and for being a sweet scent, and I think they miss the point of this perfume (and I think houses should only really list the main player notes in their perfumes to avoid confusions). Yes, I do get some sweetness, but only very short lived in the beginning. To me the main players are: Castoreum and Sandalwood. The other notes revolve around those two ingredients and accentuate them. Clever choice of notes and very well crafted together. If this is your first ALD: this is a unique one of a kind scent. But if you smelled ADC and Al Majmua, then this borrows from both (and nothing is wrong with that). A few hours in, and the base is as at full blast with ambergris, tobacco and resins doing most of the work. It is somehow reminiscent of Amouage Gold signatures dry down. Personally, and it is my own opinion, complex perfumes with a lot of notes should be left to the master classically trained French perfumers and I feel that the two territories should not cross. i.e houses like ALD and S.P should focus on what they do best: masterful use of rare classical oriental (and otherwise) ingredients to produce long lost olfactory gems. While the professionally trained French perfumers should focus on more widely pleasing scents. Overall, this is a very warm “night” scent. The animalic and woody notes are seamlessly crafted. I would go further and say “This one is a masterpiece”. Well done Sultan!

Delicious used clothing sitting in piles that got delivered to my grandmother's store after traveling cross-border to South Texas. Washed out denim, leather mini-skirts from the 80s, human and laundry musk compressed into "pacas" weighing close to five hundred pounds delivered by forklift. Savvy, repurposed aldehydes create a slightly medicinal touch to this scent memory, also reminding me of a teaspoon of perga. The morose aura of Civet de Nuit primarily comes from what I imagine is Sultan Pasha's concept of beauty in perfumery: a love for classics, lush florals, and his mousse—moss—signature of powder, ambergris, and tobacco. As a concept referencing the night, I smell alleyways and pool tables kept in check by a banana note that I can even see as a cheeky nod to how Aventus' smoky pineapples turn the air lighthearted and juicy, maybe even sporty. Over the two years I've owned a bottle, I've only worn it out to social functions, like parties and poetry readings, in the joy of my friends.