Les Absolus d'Orient Oud Essentiel

So here we have a Guerlain Oud ! No Guerlinade, no Gourmandise, no Compromise, kind of a revolution for this house ... I was surprised by this new frag, though Amber Eternel & Santal Royal suggested that something like this could come someday. Other surprise: this one is already available abroad whereas it's not yet available in France, even on the website ... i needed to know well enough an AS at Guerlain's flagship boutique in Paris to get my hands on the ordinary 125 ml EdP bottle.. HackerX's comments are quite accurate but IMHO saffron takes a bit more time to come than half an hour. Is it natural Oud or not? I don't know, but it doesn't leave the typical oily film on the skin like Montale's ouds do, though it does have the power of Montale/Mancera's, Ford's and ADP's ouds, so maybe or not ... I'd be surprised that Wasser, who spends 100s of k$ to get a fantastic natural Ambre Gris, would play that kind of game. Anyway, for those like me who like Oud, this is a must: not aggressive but still not light, soflty enveloped in roses, leather, saffron, olibanum & cedar, oud at it's best ! Longevity is more than 12 hours: not sure that girls will like this as once sprayed in the morning, they can't wear flowers until late at night. Nice twice a month for me, like Ambre Eternel, maybe I'll go for a bee bottle once it'll be available in that form, but the ordinary flacon will last more than a year. BTW it's not a Harrod's exclusive as suggested by Q80, but at Guerlain they take their time to make it available everywhere ... a new strategy or a lack of ingredients to start full production ?

Exquisite! That one word could easily be the sum total of my review, but it wouldn’t be like me not to waffle on. The Santal royal in this collection has a very prominent, sharp and skanky, resinous oud note which is completely in contrast with this stuff, a pure tonepoem of luxury and perfumery excelllence. This is a purely indulgent smell with no one one note dominant, but a smoother resin, saffron and leathery oud smell of giant proportions but delicate and modest execution. I was told by the SA that sprayed me(with perfume;) at the Guerlain counter that it was made with access to ingredients other houses don’t (which I’m inclined to believe as it’s guerlain) and also he was big on the fact that I could keep it for years and years and it won’t spoil (again which is my experience of most perfumes ...kept correctly of course) Oh and also he was encouraging me to layer other scents on top of this, which I don’t do but I see how this emorphous, classy bed of woods and resin would enhance even the worst fragrance you sprayed on it. I love it. I think it’s incredible and an oud to get excited about, it’s not groundbreaking and I’ve smelled similar before but I think it’s a perfect storm this one, a perfect oud for ANYONE to wear and enjoy. It’s soft and retreats to a skin scent after hours of solid projection but then easy lasts 10+ hours and probably weeks on clothes. I want this.

WOWIE !!!! OUD HEAVEN!!! Had this thrown in as a sample vial and gave it a try at work!!!! OUD AND WOOD BOMB!!! I had to try it a few times before it grew on me because it was soon strong it was almost too pungent. It inspired me - I went on an Oud spree and hunt and tried about a dozen including Commes De Garcon WonderOud (CDG never fails me), Cartier, Creed et al and they were either too weak or went on tangents on the dry down presenting a layer or note that was just as prominent (except I think Wonderoud). I'm not sure what constitutes a technical Oud scent but for me this one won me over. It smells like strong damp OUD WOOD - thats it! Its linear, the smell combined with cedar given body with JUST ENOUGH leather smoothly blended (not so as to make the leather a discernible scent of its own) and sweetened with Rose JUST ENOUGH to round the smell rather than present an actual rose smell and take the dryness away and a touch of spice to add a tiny kick at the end. Now I see it as perfect - damn hard to find - I've been buying all the samples I can get - what a shame. Seriously don't get powdery, rough or frankincense references as per some reviews. Perfect, bold, strong, long lasting and smooth. Buy it and smell GOOD!

Les Absolus d'Orient is currently my favorite line of fragrances. Oud Essentiel is my fourth bottle joining Patchouli Ardent, Cuir Intense and Bois Mysterieux in my collection. This is surprising to me. For a while I couldn't justify buying OE as well. But I just spent a month abroad, and on my spare time I tested closer to a hundred scents. Then there was this one fragrance that I had tested on the airport on my flight there. I had kept the tester strip and it lay on a coffee table in my temporary flat - and that was the one my nose and my heart kept getting back to. It was Oud Essentiel. It's surprising because I never was a lover of oriental scents. I couldn't relate to them: maybe they were too far removed from my olfactive memories and surroundings. So admitting Les Absolus d'Orient is now my favorite line is a revelation for me. I guess one could say they are, at heart, French perfumery, just inspired by oriental notes and style, but for me Les Absolus is a game changer. Thank you Thierry Wasser for expanding my horizons. About the smell: I get why the flacon is dark green. OE has a dark green, almost camphorous forest breeziness to it. I even wear this beauty in the summer!

This is as close to a single note oud that I have ever experienced. There are many oud/rose scents, which create the olfactory equivalent of a wall of sound, but this one is refined, as I would expect from Guerlain. The other notes probably soften the overall impact of the oud, but are not discernible to my nose other than a mild hint of leather. Guerlain also has a Santal in the same collection and the leather overwhelms that scent. Longevity is all day and sillage is strong which is why lighter application is very important. I would never wear this to the office, to dining out, nor to any social indoor gathering out of consideration for others’ sensibilities. You won’t find oud based scents at fragrance counters. It is very unique and comparatively far fewer people will be wearing this than wear florals, citrus, marine or fruit, at least in the US. This will definitely attract notice which is fine with me. This is one of those scents which require personal presence; a confident demeanor. Having said all this I love it and would wear it to outdoor venues where I am walking about.

This is a beautiful scent for lovers of wearable ouds. It's not harsh or challenging as some synthetic or higher-end real ouds can be - no 'Barnyard' or 'Skank' here, to my nose. It's not cheap (but not exclusively elitist) so there may be some real oud in it but this is tempered by a touch of rose, saffron, and resins. A reasonably strong leather note reigns in the harsher elements of the oud also, as well as the presence of Cedar, another wood note perhaps diluting the potential of Argarwood to overwhelm. I love Guerlain's perfumes. This particular fragrance's sister, Santal Royale, is equally good, but quite similar in many respects, but I ended up going for this one out of the two. It lasts for a long time on my skin and has a continual billowing energy wafting it around, although this does not fill the room or cause folk to edge away, at least not in my experience. Having said that, it would be easy to overspray with this. Overall. a lovely, quality blend for the cooler months and/or special evenings. Captivating.

Notes from Guerlain website: Top notes: Saffran notes, Pelargonium. Heart notes: Agarwood, Rose, Atlas Cedarwood. Base notes: leather note, incense, Gaïac wood. I like this one pretty much. It hits most of my favourite notes and is blended intricately as known with Guerlain perfumes. Incense is quiet heavy here and lasts throughout the perfume life. Saffron is very prominent on dry down, and rose is there to add sweetness. Oud and cedarwood are very prominent as well. This leaves the leather accord, which is overshadowed by all the above. Its very Eastern type but the edges were trimmed, making this western-nose friendly. This type of perfumes have been done for decades, so its nothing new, but Guerlain manages to re-do it elegantly. Excellent performance and I cant complain about longevity or projection.

After getting card strips of all the Absolus d'Orient from the Guerlain boutique, I found myself obsessively sniffing the oud essentiel (but not exclusively). So I went back for a sample... I am torn between loving it and feeling like it's impossible to wear. I think I love it. Here's the thing... The opening is a horrible, agressive dusty old church lamp bashing you in the face, but then after about five minutes the rose starts to come through, then the whole thing softens and becomes a beautiful, warm envelope of charming oud and floral notes with a lovely leather spine. I'd say this is old school in terms of strength and performance, i.e. you barely want to spray it on your skin. Instead, spray in front of you and walk naked into the cloud. You don't want to gas everyone around you when in public.

My one and only Guerlain - The bottle is dense and dark, hinting at what’s to come. It starts off in medicinal fashion as most natural ouds do, yet in my opinion nothing uber skanky like Silver Oud as an example. Pungent is how I describe it. Some might find it too much or offensive; but you have to be patient with it. And oh my, it’s worth the wait - the dry down is so enjoyable and complex, constantly evolving into a beautiful finish. Stays on clothes about a day, and skin for the most part of it. The leather/ saffron combo works wonders like salt and pepper, with the rose lingering in the background without being too much - giving it a sophisticated softness that balances the dark resinous oud. Good any time of the day any weather but it’s gonna slap hard and long in the winter nights of course.

Oud Essentiel is basically Santal Royal's image in the mirror. Instead of a blast of rose and sandalwood supported by a medicinal oud, here you have a blast of barnyard-ish oud that always stays on the clean side, with a subtle rose as support. Despite its predominance and quality, it is very well balanced and very wearable in public. While both are labeled as unisex, Santal Royal is the most feminine-leaning of the two. Depends if you look for a fragrance with oud (SR), or an oud-focused fragrance (OE). Both beautifully blended, and my preference goes to Oud Essentiel for its masculinity. 30+, cold evenings, in formal settings Edit: one Paris stay and 200+ sniffing later, this one seemed nearly bland. Out of my to-buy list, but still, an ok frag now decently priced at ~$100

First sampled this on paper at the airport & it quite literally is eternal - the perfume remained on the paper tester for a solid week & all that time I was addicted to smelling it, so much so I went & ordered a bottle when I got home. When you first spray this, it’s dark, sensual, smoky & screams luxury. Heavy on the oud wood & spice, it then lightens up for the middle & base with rose to become a bit more feminine. It’s definitely an evening & winter/autumn fragrance, you don’t need a lot & it’s powerful. This is my first dabble into the oud fragrance world, which has so much choice, but I’m very happy with my pick!

I got this today and it's blown me away. 4 hours after the first spray I'm sitting here sniffing my wrists - not because I need to get up close, it still smells as strong as it did at first, but because I can't get enough of it and want to be wrapped in a cloud of its magic. I adore fragrances on the dark side and often buy men's to avoid the cloying sweetness of some women's. For me this is the best combination of oud, leather, smoke and spice that I've found so far. It will be perfect when I prowl through a goth club in black velvet; it conveys exactly the right impression.

I was so in love with this I almost bought it on the spot as I am into woods in my perfume journey. But sensibility and practicality took over as it leaned more on the masculine side, although the SA said it is unisex. Imagine this, your guy working in a wood shop with all the wood shavings, right next to cade oil, turpentine cleaner and gas fumes wafting somewhere in the room and his leather apron or tool belt gets warmed up and still gives off that leather smell. Add a touch of flowers just for a contrast and bottle this and you got Oud essential. Totally manly and sexy.

Oh this is a gorgeous creation. In the top with my other oud fragrance (batch from 2017). Unisex. I am a woman and love this one. Shares the throne with Oud immortel byredo, MFK Oud velvet mood, Sisley soir d'Orient, Gucci intense oud and Dior oud rosewood. This one is the most lethery oud compared to others I mentioned. But also without any rose sweetnes, which I prefer. I don't like sweet rose sents, they give me a headache. Oud Fleur from TF is also nice, and the only one I prefert to use during summer months.

This fragrance makes me happy. It is a frankincense smoky leather rose saffron oud which most definitely leans towards the masculine side. Forget the tired debates about the fact that this isn’t traditional Guerlainade, about whether this has too many aroma chemicals, about whether it’s too harsh in the opening, about whether it has enough oud in it to be called an oud fragrance and all the rest. Bottom line is this is an exquisite powerful fragrance worthy of its name. It just makes me happy when I wear it.

This fragrance requires that the person wearing it have personal “presence” as it is so unique and out of the ordinary zephyrs of currently best selling perfumes. You can’t get away with wearing this if you have no self regard. You have to wear this or it will wear you. The projection is very good and longevity is 8 hours with two sprays. I think it would be suitable for men or women. I like Habit Rouge and Yatagan and this is a member of the same memorable, unusual tribe.

Woooooooooow punch of oud & wood in your face surrounded with rose and saffron Makes you smell really EXPENSIVE around people and gives you 10h+ longevity (so u r good all day) Reminds me with gucci oud which i have already but without raspberry that gucci have (give it a sweet touch) The only thing that you smell is oud/wood/rose really perfectly blended by Thierry wasser (god i love this man) Rating 9/10 I also have santal royal which's 10/10

Powerhouse blend from Guerlain. I love an oud fragrance that actually showcases the oud instead of just having the name on the bottle. The oud is front and center, but never overpowers the rest of the ingredients. It's just masterfully blended. The ingredients are high quality and it shows. Really strong performance. Longevity is 10 hours-plus. Projection and sillage are high average. This one is a love for me. 9.5 out of 10.

I smelled this on an Arab neighbor of mine, a good looking, very masculine guy. Hairy and muscular. Just walking into the cafe I could smell this gorgeous perfume around. He didn't know what he is wearing, said he got it as a gift from a friend and just keeps the bottle in his motorcycle. He was nice enough to let me try it. It's a very good Oud, well balanced, elegant, not too harsh and not too sweet. A very good perfume.

Love this rose oud. If you look through my listed perfumes on Fragrantica i have alot of rose ouds and this one is right up there with the best. Really quite similar to black oud by Montale but Guerlain version is a little more smokey. I was originally wanting Santal Royal by Guerlain but prefer Oud Essentiel. A real strong rose oud that doesn’t disappoint. Performance is solid 8-10 hours and sillage moderate.