Wonderoud

My signature scent, all time favorite. One of the best sandalwood frag out there. Not sure if anything can beat this. It is heaven. I'm on my 4th Wonderoud bottle, and I've used 2 bottles of Wonderwood in the past. Yes, Wonderoud is very similar to Wonderwood. The biggest difference for me is Wonderoud is more creamy compared to Wonderwood but they are both amazing full throttle wood scents. It is also similar in DNA to Floriental from same house. I think they just multiplied an amazing formula, according to slight differences of taste. Wonderwood is for clean/super dry cedar-pepper-vetiver-leaning, Wonderoud is creamier, warmer/richer version, Floriental is plummy floral and slightly powdery. This is also the top compliment getter, I've never been complimented more by strangers (most being females). I'm not a fan of dark, heavy oud, so contrary to the name, oud is so muted, pepper and other woods prevail. You will definitely get sandalwood, some black pepper, cedarwood, vetiver before oud. If you feel it's too dry, try layering with a little Azzaro Visit, to have a bit nutmeg. It works great in winter! Projection and longevity both are great with this one. Sillage is normal to me, but colleagues tell me they can find my exact spot in the building (Pretty sure it's Javanol/Pashminol combo). It is also one of the rare scents that I get olfactory fatigue (again, culprit Javanol and most likely Iso E Super). I've tested it so many times in my daily life, so many nights, with so many noses. I can clearly say that Wonderoud has 2-3 times better performance than Wonderwood. There's nothing better than Wonderoud lingering on your winter scarf, jacket even after a week... Ingredients I can pick are: Javanol (sandalwood) that lasts to eternity, check out EM - Molecule 04), Cashmeran (musky velvety wood, check out EM - Molecule 05), Iso E Super (airy radiating light cedar and musk, check out EM - Molecule 01, not exact but very close as Molecule 01 featuring the captive Iso Gamma, not Iso E) Pepperwood (captive black pepper molecule, used in CdG Blackpepper too and likely in Wonderwood, Blue Santal, Incense series etc) Vetiver, likely Vetiveryl Acetate (check out Molecule 03) p.s. It has very little similarity with Encre Noire IMO. As I said, you don't get burnt/dark wood/oud feels with Wonderoud. It is rich, subtle, lasting, and boosting confidence with a clean feeling. IG: @talkaboutscents

I adore this stuff. It has the supremely woody DNA of Wonderwood with its aromachemical cocktail, yet with a sublime, somehow mellow, "oudy" dimension that will be familiar to any aficionados of traditional Arabian perfumes and ouds. For almost seven years now I have been collecting oud and have been extremely fortunate to find some incredibly rare vintage ouds - the crowning glory is an Arabian Oud special edition that was matured for 25 years and came in a beautiful gold-plated bottle with a serial number. The recent obsession with Oud as a theme in Western perfumery always baffled me considering how incredibly rare and expensive authentic, quality oud is. And it is becoming ever scarcer. However there have been moves in places like Vietnam and Thailand to produce oud in plantations - however the techniques of manual infection do not yet result in anything close to the quality of oud produced by natural infection in the wild. Even most Arabian perfumers use either cheap, plantation-grown ouds or synthetic ouds these days and in the West, most of what is marketed as "oud" smells nothing like the real thing, which can range from a seductively sweet fine woody-floral bouquet through to a pungent blue cheesy-ness. Wonderoud reportedly contains some genuine oud, sourced from Givaudan, which makes sense since they are manufacturers of the Swiss Arabian perfume line, and the natural oudiness comes to the fore as the fragrance evolves on my skin and the "sharpness" of the initial ouverture diminishes. However, it also contains an obvious synthetic oud, which has a smell somewhat reminiscent of petroleum. Overall I love Wonderoud, and it features prominently in my current rotation, as does Wonderwood, as a staple for smart-casual occasions and informal events. Longevity isn't as good as I had hoped, although it is definitely a crowd pleaser and even elicits curiosity and compliments from strangers. I loved Wonderwood and I still do, and I find Wonderoud to be a beautiful complement to its woody awesomeness. Sometimes I prefer one, sometimes the other, but I love them both. Wonderwood for me answered a need for the superlative woody fragrance, and I have always found it to be supremely elegant in its simplicity. While far from the perfect oud fragrance, Wonderoud is a hell of a lot better than most of the other trendoid scents out there jumping on the Oud bandwagon.

Very nice refined woody fragrance. Start with a peppery/fresh cedar note, then transitions into a creamy floral oud note supported by patchouli, and will end with a nice spicy guaiacwood note supported by sandalwood. It gives gives a vague impression of soft dry tobacco and the drydown reminds me of OP Stercus’s drydown. The late drydown (8/10hrs+) will have a dry vetiver/cedar combo shine, with citrusy undertones. I am surprised that all these "expert noses" in here (who can usually detect unexistent Aventus or Fahrenheit batch variations) do not spot the refined floral papua oud (aka white oud - a different species of tree) contained here, even if not a screamer - but clearly noticeable - , probably because there is not much in here (CdG states to use "100% natural oud", and it's very expensive). Most are used to loads of synthetic oud-like note of cheap fragrances, or the natural (but way more expensive) bulldozer/barnyard-smelling indian oud. Anyways, a beautifully crafted woody fragrance, that inspire exactly the colour of the bottle. Moderate projection in the first hour, and then soft after that, with great longevity. Simple, but very refined: the Comme des Garcons "simple but avant-guarde" signature. Cold-ish days, 20+, unisex. PS: the full list of notes is as follow: Texas Cedarwood Fraction OrPur, S-E Asia Oud, Indonesian Patchouli, Australian Sandalwood, Haitian Vetiver, Guaiac Wood, Pashminol (synthetic sandalwood).

Beautiful wood but far from pure oud. Wonderoud is a beautiful woody scent the treads the line between designer and niche. It starts with a wet wood smell that lasts and dominates to the end. This woody oudy accord smells like driftwood mixed with sandalwood; not your typical oud oil. This wet woodiness is accompanied by a green and grassy vetiver, a dash of spicy-and-tingly black pepper and cloves, and a touch of green citrus note to freshen up the scent, preventing it from becoming 'inky' like Encre Noire. The resultant smell is deep, woody, green, with touch of pepper and citrus. The name here is definitely deceiving. There is no strong, perceivable, classic oud smell in Wonderoud. In fact, the "wet wood" accord it has is similar to the wet wood accord in Tom Ford Oud Wood that Tom Ford presented as oud, and those not familiar with oud believed it. Read (Andy the Frenchy)'s review on the Oud Wood Fragrantica page. Nonetheless, Wonderoud can be taken as an Oud Wood-inspired fragrance & frankly it surpasses its muse smell-wise. To further clarify; the oud accord here is atypical & I can see why it can divide opinions on its existence. Overall, Wonderoud is a beautiful woody fragrance, suitable for the mature and cold weather. Quite intimate rather than formal - lovely! Took me a while but I've come to "Love" Wonderoud.

Okay so I tried this today and brought some samples home. I really enjoyed the original wonderwood but felt it was a great but a little similar in spirit to Lalique Encre Noire to add it to the collection, still it's very nice indeed. Now the addition of Oud to this mixture of woody aromas and vetiver is either a bandwagon jumping one or a stroke of genius. I'm pleased to say I think it's the latter, this being CDG I have to say that generally they get it right and usual blaze their own trail. To begin with I wasn't sure, the opening is very similar to wonderwood but now with a feel of two stranger Oud fragrances one being AdP Oud colonia concentree and Tom Ford Oud wood (of which I'm not very fond.) that's my initial thoughts anyway. As wonderoud dries down though it reveals a very beautiful aroma which compliments the already excellent peppery vetiver of wonderwood. The lasting power is great I only tried it in the shop and can still smell it strongly now but I will update tomorrow when I wear it properly. Where as I'm not blown away by wonderoud I'm pleasantly surprised. Not a typical Oud to my nose but who cares?