17 Oud Mosaic

I'm not sure where the previous reviewer got the idea that Banana Republic has discontinued this fragrance, or that they've discontinued making fragrances altogether. This frag is still sold online, and is relatively easy to find at rack stores. I picked mine up new at Burlington just a week ago, from a bunch that was on the shelf. Banana Republic keeps a selection of their frags in stock at their stores, and they added two new frags to the Icon line just last year. So I don't think this fragrance is disappearing any time soon. Anyways, the frag itself is nice. It's a pleasant oud, not too challenging. Definitely a cold weather scent. To me the oud does give it an older vibe, maybe too old for me. I enjoyed wearing it the couple days that I tested it, but I feel like I would opt for fresher or sweeter scents on a more regular basis. Still, I like having it in the collection alongside my other Banana Republic Icon frags. The quality for the price though is great, especially if you can get the 75 ml for half price at rack stores. It gets decent longevity. At this price point it's probably all synthetic oud, but it doesn't smell cheap or artificial. If you're an oud lover on the lookout for good cheapies, definitely check this one out. Edit: On wearing it more I've warmed up to it and am actually really enjoying wearing it to work and such. It especially goes nicely on "rainy days", I think.

I was fortunate enough to find 7.5 ml bottles of this a couple years ago at a Banana Republic Factory Outlet store for under $10 each. Not sure what batches are like now, but I've had those two bottles last me since Autumn 2020. At the price point, this is a great value. The Rose is robust here and vibrates throughout but much nicer, in my opinion, than say... Cartier's Declaration d'un Soir. If you're a man who doesn't like the smell of Rose on you, or a woman who wears a more floral Rose, this may not be the one for you. However, if you like darker tones and oriental or incense vibes, this Rose could be for you for here she blooms with spices in a very masculine direction due to the use of an interesting Cardamom accord. Eventually this dries down to a very sensual woody scent especially attractive on clothing. I can't imagine BR using real Agarwood in this blend at the price their offering but what Mr. Dir has done here with their budget is create a wonderful blend of the classic (and often times very expensive) Rose/Oud combination making its way into the Western World. The scent can be quite powerful and pungent at first, especially for those unfamiliar with Oud fragrances, however this is a very good fragrance for anyone looking for something sensual, daring, and willing to make a statement on a cool summer night.

I bought this mostly because there is a discounter in my country selling the 75ml bottle for 11$, which is crazy cheap. I don't have Oud Ispahan to compare with, but I have OudTouch, by Franck Olivier, and I must say I hardly find any similarity between the two. Franck Olivier is way more synthetic in the beginning, and is barely tolerable in the first 30-40 minutes. Oud Mosaic is quite tame compared to OudTouch and it starts much more natural, I do get the oud and the rose, but I also get a boozy feel which lasts for about 2-3 horus. During these 2 to 3 hours the booziness slowly goes away and what you are left with is a combination of rose, oud and fruits. Also during this time it tames down and it gets more animalic, and believe me when I'm telling you I get whiffs of Kuros. It's not as in your face and urinal like Kouros, but tame Kouros by 80-90% enough to doubt the smell is even there and add the notes I described earlier. Overall I love it, more than OudTouch, but only by a small margin, it smells a more natural than OudTouch it is also less linear than OudTouch, but it loses points if you take into account the longevity and projection.

This might be one of my top blind buys of all time. Now I’ve never had the chance to smell oud ispahan so I can’t really talk much about the comparisons to that, however, the note break down intrigued me and I already owned cypress ceded from the icon line and loved it so I actually went out of my way to hunt this down at Burlington. I managed to find it for around 22$ and at that price this is an absolute steal. Too me this oud doesn’t come across animalic or barnyardish in any way. Instead it is a beautiful oud rose combo that have a good amount of sweetness counterbalanced with dark woods and spices that linger around the edge of the fragrance. It’s extremely wearable even as a guy in his early 20s. I think you can wear this casually or dress it up as it has a good amount of depth and sophistication to it. Personally I love wearing this scent to bed as I find it one of the most relaxing scents in my collection. Longevity is good. It’s even survived showers on occasion. Projection is very very good in the first few hours. Overall for the price I paid this is an absolute must own cheapy if you like oud and or rose

This is a beautiful perfume! The rose, though dominant throughout, is dark, almost "jammy" (as has been noted previously), so you need not worry that this is a bright tea rose. The oud wafts out now and then, but this is certainly not an oud dominant perfume. For the record, I am a 56 year old male who works in an office environment. For the office I use one shot to the chest, and I layer it with either one shot of Lalique Equus or Givenchy Vetyver. What I end up with is a more balanced woods and rose combination which I find heavenly, yet not so challenging to western scent wearing stereotypes. Longevity is good: 6-7 hours. Projection is moderate to my nose, probably because I find rose scents so noticeable. This is an excellent perfume by which to add in a rose note via layering. For the price (and because I have a BR store in my city), I can definitely see this being a permanent addition to my collection.

This is a bargain considering the price to quality/performance ratio. Main Accord is Rose, Plum and some faux Oud, very refreshing and uplifting, the oud is inoffensive, there's no skanky or animalic barnyard type oud here at all. The rose is airy and light, the rest of the notes are quite subtle as well. You could literally douse yourself with 30 sprays and not offending anybody with this one. I would wear this in all seasons at any time, casual or formal. Respectable performance with moderate projection and sillage. Blind buy safe and highly recommended for Oud beginner. Make no mistake this is an entry-level synthetic faux Oud, if you want to know what real Oud smells like get some samples from Feel Oud or Ensar Oud. Real quality Oud oil cost a few hundred of US dollars for just 3ml, Don't kid yourself thinking you're smelling real Oud from this stuff.

I bought a 15ml bottle of Oud Mosaic at a Banana Republic Factory store in Little Rock, AR for all of $10. This was not a sophisticated setting or luxury shopping experience. This was me wasting a few hours walking around the outlet mall within walking distance from my hotel. None of this matters as this perfume transcends the sad little shelf it was displayed on next to ugly scarves and questionable costume jewelry. It is beauty amongst dreck and I regret not springing for the bigger bottle. How does it smell? On my skin, it starts out with a blast of Oud followed by a soft skank with rose and spice floating in the background. After a few minutes I can almost taste the saffron. It dries down to a lovely rose and musk skin scent. I don't detect the plum at all. If you like Oud, definitely pop into Banana Republic and give this one a spin.

I snagged a compliment from the first person I passed when wearing this fragrance. It has a very interesting fresh/soapy feel that leans feminine mostly from the rose to my nose but then drifts masculine from the spices and oud. This is similar to what TF Ombré Leather does with Leather & Jasmine only with Oud & Rose. This is the kind of stuff where the feminine qualities make it sexy on a gentleman yet much easier to pull off than Black Orchid. This could easily be worn on date night by a gentleman coasting into his thirties and be quite the eye opener for the confident mature dude in his twenties taking out an older woman. Honestly, I even think a woman could lure a real man in with this wear. BR, y’all doing some good things lately at this price point. Hats off to youse.

A very pleasant rose/oud. I have to be honest that I did not have great expectations for this one, but have been pleasantly surprised. Very nice oud and spice opening. Very interesting for being "just" a BR perfume. Then, in the heart it develops with a strong turkish rose that takes the lead, the part I like the less. Afterwards, I start loving the drydown again, with amber, oud and plum making an interesting combo. It has similar vibes to other rose/oud designer fragrances, and I already have a couple of them quite similar (Varvatos Oud, that I like less than this one, and Charriol Royal Platinum, that I like more than this one). If you don't, and can find it around $20/30 online for a large bottle, you should go for it! Fall/Winter evenings, 25-50

After reading all reviews I have decided to buy 17 Oud Mosaic blindly as it was 14 EUR at a local discounter. What a surprise! Above my expectations. I see why people say that 17 Oud Mosaic is inspired by Dior Oud Isphahan, but of course there are more differences than similarities between these two. The Oud note in Oud Mosaic is very friendly. At the dry down it becomes covered by other ingredients like plum and rose. While funkiness of the Oud in Isphahan takes the front line and stays there till the end while other ingredients mutate. It is a very beautiful fragrance, definitely niche quality. Really great choice for oud beginners. Thinking about the price and quality ratio, I find it as an insane deal.

Just got this. Will be great for winter. Definitely not abrasive oud like in Lancome’s Oud Bouquet which I really wanted to love. Unisex. But male forward. However it’s been done already. I smelled something like this in stores, on men, while in Istanbul, in Casablanca, on my dad’s friends when I was a child. I smell oud (not stinky type), some sweets (almost vanilla like dessert), no rose really. It is soft and not stinky oud with cloying sweetness which is frequently in oud fragrances. Do not think it smells like TF Oud Fleur. That one is more flowers, more spice, better longevity with that TF DNA that he has in “dark” fragrances. Oh yeah and I smell leather in this. Anyone else? Overall, I recommend it.

I love how this starts out woody on me before turning sweet and jammy thanks to the rose and plum. The other florals do a great job keeping the sweetness from getting to be too much. This is a wonderful introduction to oud for me- instead of the fecal barnyard smell other posters warn about in reviews for other scents, I got a pleasantly musty woody smell which works wonderfully with the powdery musk and amber in the base notes. This is a great all-around scent for colder weather; I can see the plum and oud being too much for hot weather. If Banana Republic doesn't reformulate this to death like they apparently did Dark Cherry and Amber, I want to get a larger bottle once I use up the last of my sample.

Banana Republic fragrances are generally well-made and cohesive; oud music is no exception. In the world of "Barnyard" ouds and "Americanized" ouds, Oud Mosic accurately represents what oud should smell like in a fragrance without making abrupt shifts in direction. The full dry down is a delight as you can noticeably detect the labdanum and a fruity accord. I would also consider this a great introduction to oud because it utilizes the trinity combination of oud, rose, and saffron. The scent is linear and works well in almost any occasion or environment, the critical point being that you feel comfortable wearing an oud fragrance. Performance is a solid 7+ hours on the skin.

Beautiful, middle of the road, Oud fragrance. I am pleasantly surprised how good this is...well done BR. The Oud is more so than TF’s Oud Wood or Versace’s Oud fragrance, but not enough that those getting into Oud’s can’t handle it. Plum/cardamom opening helps balance the initial blast of the Oud. Dry down blends a dry (not skanky or syrupy) Oud and rose combo. Extremely seductive fragrance. Longevity is monstrous. About ten hours on my skin and over twelve on my clothes. Projection is moderate, which I prefer w/Oud fragrances. Overall, this is an insane value for your money. Good thing is, you can spray down in a store and live with it for a day before purchase.

I assume I'm going to get a ton of flack for this, but here it is: If you love Portrait of a Lady, but don't have the $350 to shell out (or don't want to shell out), THIS is a close scent for a mere fraction of the cost. It's not *the same*, but it's 90% there. It's perhaps a tad more incensy - and I can see how it could evoke Oud Isphahan (in a review below). I've had my nose on POAL, and you can find my review there (it's a favorite). In a nutshell, it's a gorgeous gothic frag reminiscent of stepping into a cathedral. This is one of the best value frags I've ever seen! It may not last as long, but for the price, you really can't beat it. Just respray.

Very well done composition! I agree with those who said the oud is a bit skanky but it doesn’t stand out too sharply... still I can see the oud accord turning some ppl off. I bought a 15 ml bottle because I really like it and the fragrances were buy one get one free. Edited: Honestly guys after 3 days of sitting on this fragrance .... I’m freakin’ blown away. I guess because it’s Banana Republic I naturally dimmed the light at first impression. It’s so natural and so well blended. I’ve never smelled Oud Ispshan by Dior but if this is a clone or inspiration then I must get my nose on the real thing.

if you're familiar with oud and its depth, this one is reasonable and not too overpowering compared to others! a fantastic mix of oud and spice that tones down and blends with touches of rose and incense in the dry down. I don't get the "barnyard" scent as others are saying, the oud is very moderate yet present, especially combined with the other notes. honestly a perfect intro for those getting into oud fragrances. great sillage and above-average longevity for a "non-designer" and the price. I blind bought it and love it, and if you're familiar with oud, you'll love it as well.

This is an excellent buy if you are in the market for an affordable (synthetic) oud-centric fragrance. I find the rose note to be totally uninspired and borderline irritating, but the rest of the composition is shockingly good for the price ($35/75 mL). It’s an “east-meets-west” fragrance with a proper sharp, rotten, woody Oud that smells expensive. If I smelled Oud Mosaic blind, then was told it was a soOud composition by Stéphane Humbert Lucas, I’d believe it... This is a one spray to play kind of fragrance—anything more and you’ll be choking.

I'm not the biggest Oud fan per se,but this one is lovely.It is strong to my nose but still within my range of acceptable Oud.The Rose is strong at first then settles into a smoother juicier frag.It has great longevity on my skin anywhere from 8- 12 hours. For the price it's very nice,I have the small bottle but would consider buying the larger one. I also have Al Harmain 'Excellent Man' another Rose Saffron frag but it's so strong it nearly does me in,one spray will last 4 days.It's for sale within Canada if interested!

Simply, a masterpiece by the great master perfumer Claude Dir. Elegant, sophisticated, expertly blended, intriguing, complex, lush, addictive scent. Beautifully & stylishly presented box & bottle. Truly amazing value for niche quality – I can’t quite believe how cheap it is considering its obvious excellence. Sadly now discontinued – getting harder to find. No doubt the price is going to massively escalate once you can’t get it any more. I feel this one will go down as a classic