Oud & Bergamot

I get the hype. As soon as you spray this on you're hit in the face with juicy, sparkling bergamot squeezed over a smooth and woody western style oud. Simultaneously fresh and easy to wear, but woody and actually interesting to wear. As it dries down, the oud takes the spotlight and breaks down into a multitude of different woody aroma chemicals and essential oils; Virginia cedarwood essential oil & iso E super are the two most prominent to my nose, but the nuances will be your own. I recently got a 9mL of this at the Jo Malone store when I picked up a 50 mL of their new "Hinoki & Cedarwood" cologne intense, and man this has grown on me so much that I've almost worn through half of my bottle already. It's simple: sure, but this walks such a great line between being a "dumb reach" kind of fragrance while still having depth and a slight nuance. I wouldn't be surprised if I scoop up a fb once I finish my 9mL, but only time will tell. The cologne intense collection from Jo Malone is one of the easiest "niche" lines to get into if you're just starting into the niche world, and I cannot recommend this enough. Moderate performance of 5-7 hours depending on heat and activity level, with arms reach projection for 3-4 hours, and then intimate for the remainder of the scent. 9.2/10. Signature scent worthy. Song vibe - Tom's Diner - 7" version by DNA, Suzanne Vega TLDR - Super fresh and juicy bergamot squeezed over smooth, woody oud. Supremely easy to wear, but interesting enough to appease even the biggest niche snob. Huge recommend to anyone who likes woody/western oud fragrances, and it's easily one of the best from Jo Malone. Side note - If you like this citrus/oud combo, I'd highly recommend trying "R'oud Elements" by Kerosene, it's a super good and powerful bitter orange/woody western oud combo!

Beautiful combination that I had never thought of blending well but felt immediately attracted to due to its notes. I’m a big fan of citrus notes that are blended in a way that is not expectedly summery, fresh and meant for hot weather only. Contrastively, I’m also obsessed with oud when it is softened in a way that it is not overpowering and heavy. This is it – though as I have read many times and am now experiencing myself, Jo Malone London’s colognes, even the intense ones, perform quite poorly by comparison to other brands which have similar price tags. Having said that, I would still buy this fragrance because it just makes me feel good about myself, its unique and unexpected composition, and it just smells damn good. Top note is bright and fresh with Bergamot standing out beautifully but being embraced by a comforting, well-balanced oud. It sits close to skin within the first hour. Weak in projection but still present as an intimate, personal scent to be enjoyed by yourself only for a few hours. Somehow, even though I try and smell it on my skin with no success after, let’s say, some 4 hours, I still get a whiff here and there, out of nothing, as beautiful and pleasant surprises even after 6 hours. It reminds me a lot of Fuggazzi’s Orange Crush once it dries down, with a very present orange note slightly synthetic, but, again, toned down by the cedar note, making it a bit more incensy and slightly woody. I get when people say it is not worth the price because of its performance. But it is what it is. You won’t get anything like it so if you like it, it is worth the investment. I am getting a bottle for myself.

this is my new signiture scent. it has citarusy mildly sweet opening, later the sweetness and citarus settle down, and the woody notes come threw. dried down all notes mix in a perfect balance and you can smell all notes at once with no one being dominent in my eyes, creating a new uncategorized scent. AMAZING. there arent many notes, but the balance is so accurate its genius in my eyes. this is a true unisex. it smells natural, like this was made of natural extracts. i dont like sweet scents at all, they usually throws me to a chimicly cheep place, and this is a tad to sweet to my liking but i truelly dont care, the sweetnes is so mild i find it forgiven, and if i dont look for it i cant sence it. after a few hours i cant sence it AT ALL. it has a little musty? feeling? idk you wont feel fresh wearing it, its not a walk in the meadow. its more like a cabin in the woods, and you havent left for days becouse its raining. which gives me dark mysterious vibes. its mature, (not old), sophisticated, serious, scent. not a ppl pleaser at all. the price... is high. which is a shame since i could really love some more sillage, and even though to me it lasts quite some time since it is so close to skin its hard to notice after some time. but i find it so wonderful i just pay the price and try to make the bottle last for as long as possable. i find it so difficult to find not sweet female fragrences. and unisex scent usually just smell man to me. so even though its pricey, to me its worth it.

I often come across criticism regarding the performance or longevity of Jo Malone fragrances. However, I already own English Pear & Freesia in the standard cologne concentration and have never experienced any issues with either projection or staying power. With this Cologne Intense line, my first impressions are even more positive — Oud & Bergamot in particular feels richer and more tenacious right from the start. What stands out immediately is the high quality of the raw materials IMO. There's nothing synthetic or flat about this scent; it smells refined and expensive, with a certain natural elegance. On my skin, the fragrance opens as a surprisingly warm and cozy blend — almost like damp, sweet tobacco, enveloping and atmospheric (even if I see no tobacco in the pyramid). Yet it’s also laced with a fresh, uplifting twist that adds a peculiar contrast. It's weird: while the scent profile would typically evoke colder months, there’s something unexpectedly breezy and luminous here — surely thanks to the bergamot. Still, I don’t detect the citrus in a direct or prominent way beyond the very first couple of seconds; instead, it seems to gently lift the composition without overtaking it. I was fortunate enough to purchase it during a promotion, which allowed me to get the 50ml bottle at half price. Considering the perceived quality and the richness of the blend, I find that a very fair deal — and it makes the value proposition much more appealing.

Apologies in advance to all those who are getting poor performance out of this. I guess this goes to show that skin chemistry plays a big role in our fragrance journey. This thing lasts a good 12 hours plus on my skin, maybe even longer. Personally I become nose blind to it after a few minutes, but throughout the day people give me compliments on it. I even get compliments from people across the room from me, proof that the sillage is strong with this one. But this is not a strong or harsh fragrance. It's just very noticeable, yet subtle. My second thought that will likely get me thumbs downed to hell, I do not smell any oud in this thing. I get the bergamot, and I get the cedar, in fact that's about all I get! Blast of fresh citrusy woody goodness! The driest woods I have ever smelled in a fragrance, and I love it! The more I wear this thing the more I fall in love, and the more sad I get that I'm running out. In case you're wondering, I wear this to every occasion; going to work, going to the gym, going on a date. I will wear it here or there, I will wear it anywhere! There isn't really much else like it out there, but I would say it has a similar woodiness to Creed's aventus, but it doesn't smell like aventus. Also, when it becomes a skin scent, it weirdly reminds me of BR540's dry down. Again, this does not smell like BR540, not even close. It also has a similar opening to By Killian Straight to Heaven.