Al Areeq Gold

* Unique hybrid gourmand and leather fragrance * Unique and imaginative fragrance * Very nice black tea note not found in any other gourmand fragrance * Warm blend of sweet, tea, spice, leather, vanilla, smoke, incense, amber, and vanilla aromas * Drier than most sweet fragrances thanks to a good note balance * Perfect for date nights and social occasions * Good for both older and younger users * Good intro to the leather fragrance DNA for gourmand lovers * Great masculine fragrance * Strong performer * Beautiful bottle presentation * High QPR value * Niche quality for discounter price * Not unisex * Notes may come off as rubber or petrol to some noses * Love it or leave it proposition * Absolutely unnecessary, hard to open and plain looking display case Lattafa's Al Areeq Gold is probably the most masculine fragrance to date I've experienced. It's very unique, a hybrid leather and gourmand fragrance. That makes no sense on paper, but in practice this is unique, imaginative and beautiful. The two standout notes are a black tea note in the opening I have never experienced in any other gourmand fragrance I own. This is followed by sweet, spice, leather, vanilla, amber, smoke and incense aromas. There are comparisons to Mercedes-Benz Club Black, Bvlgari Man in Black, Lattafa's own Oud Lail Maleki (which I also own), Valentino Donna Noir Absolu and Crystal Saffron. Al Areeq Gold is absolutely not a clone of any of these. This is its beast. It's extremely masculine and quite strong. There is a touch of sweetness but it comes off drier than most sweet fragrances due to a great balance of its notes. This is a great intro to the leather fragrance DNA for gourmand lovers, but keep in mind that leather is probably the second most polarizing fragrance note there is, surpassed in divisiveness only by oud. Combined with the other notes here, it may come off as rubber or petrol to some noses. You have to be confident to wear this. Definitely rewarding if you can. This is easily a niche quality perfume for a discount price. Performance is quite strong. Very high QPR value here. The bottle presentation is beautiful. Note that this comes in a display case, but the display case is IMHO completely unnecessary. It's also hard to open and rather plain looking, especially in comparison to Lattafa's outstanding display case presentations for Thouq, Eternal Oud and the Winners Trophy fragrances. Really not sure why they went for this, but if they were going to go for it then I feel they could and should have done a much better job with the case. Annoying case aside, this is an easy high recommend from me to male users.

I wasn’t sure if this would be a safe blind buy, but for £25 I was willing to chance it based on the notes. I’ve worn this for 3 days now and there’s something that’s becoming addictive about it...it opens up with a super rubbery saffron, I get a touch of the tea alongside this, but sadly it’s not a potent enough match for that huge saffron. There is a sweet vanilla all through this, and once the saffron subsides the velvety suede and a touch of smoky incense compliment that lovely vanilla. A strange love for me, I’m glad the vanilla is there as without this it wouldn’t be sweet enough for me, wonderful quality. Actually astonishing for this pricepoint, compared to a lot of hyped up niche fragrances. The presentation is stunning, and the juice matches the bottle - I can only imagine how lovely this will be after a few weeks. Would be great on a man as well- straight unisex to my nose. Dry down is familiar to me somehow, but I can’t place it, kind of along the lines of Amouage Overture woman - but without the boozy fruity opening. Comparisan to Ishq Al Shuyukh Gold: The only similarity is the loud, rubbery saffron - that’s it, Ishq Al Shuyukh is sweeter and with a ton of caramel-vanilla and tonka, giving it a denser, more chocolatey profile whereas Al Areeq plays more on a suede-incense type vanilla. I will definitely keep both in my collection-and the bottles compliment each other beautifully. Longevity and projection are currently just above average- around 6-7 hours on skin, longer on clothes but Lattafa’s will always give better performance after a few weeks/months maceration so am very satisfied on that front. Lattafa is fast becoming one of my most respected houses for the sheer commitment to knocking out banger after affordable banger.

Al Areeq Gold opens with a rubbery, slightly bitter-sour black tea. The opening reminds me a bit of Matiere Crystal Saffron. It quickly transitions into creamy suede that feels like running your hand over a new leather accessory, with something in the style of caramel vanilla. The incense is weakly perceptible, but overall the scent is slightly smoky. If it is clearly noticeable anywhere, it's in the opening, where it can resemble smoked tea with saffron, although in my opinion it comes across quite smooth. It is very oriental and niche. You need to like heavy Middle Eastern motifs to blind buy it. Overall, it develops into something on the edge of a slightly sweet gourmand character that rounds out the industrial, rubbery saffron leather, very well blended and linear. It is somewhat similar to Bvlgari Black, which I miss. Areeq is not a power monster (though long-lasting), so for greater enjoyment of the scent I sprayed it about 15 times. Also fully unisex; if it leans in any direction, it is to the feminine side. It has an interesting effect, because it's clearly a masculine composition but built for women; there is a softness and sweetness that tilts just slightly to the feminine side. I was very lucky and managed to buy it brand new for €15. The bottle is beautiful, with a bakhoor showcase and a fitting color scheme for both the bottle and the juice. In short: a smooth, smoky-tea suede with saffron and gentle sweetness, niche in attitude yet wearable in reality. Opening note: 8+ Sillage/Projection: 7+ Drydown: 9 Longevity: 9 Blend/Composition: 9- Versatility: 8+ Uniqueness: 8+ Value for money: 8 Bottle design/Aesthetics: 8 Overall experience: 9- Blind-buy rating: 6-

Over a year ago I purchased this for the man, to help him get over Amen Pure leather. As soon as it arrived I tell him he's "going to love it", we spray it and he's saying "nope, no, nope". I didn't mind it, but he said he didn't like it at all, so I put it up for sale on eBay but it never sold. Today, over a year later, I decided to try it again and see if maceration helped. Boomshakalaka, there it is 😍 A beautiful suede, leather opening with a gorgeous powdery, vanilla, suede, leathery dry down. I decided to try the man again 🤔 "Hey check this out, a new fragrance for men into leather gourmands" I said, didn't mention he'd tried it before.... I sprayed he's arm and he said "fkyeah I'll have that" I said "Yeah it's great" and placed it on he's shelf 😁

Veo muchos comentarios refiriendo un olor a gasolina o goma, en mi caso esto es algo muy alejado de la realidad, el perfume irradia clase, a la primera atomización sentí un olor a gamuza lujosa envuelto por un vainilla oscura, puede ser que el te o el incienso le den este aspecto a la vainilla, pero es genial! ya que genera una vainilla oscura. Una vez que salen estás notas casi al mismo tiempo son envueltas por un cuero, que se percibe como un cuero lujoso. Creo que estás tres notas de Gamuza, Vainilla y Cuero son las protagonistas de esta estupenda fragancia, las cuales se mezclan en una armonía perfecta que es apoyada por un almizcle. Desde mi punto de vista es una fragancia totalmente unisex con un aroma lujoso y un estupendo performance.

Couldnt picture myself without this... it has such a transparent quality to it, while being extra extra performative and lasting. I dont know, it’s so simple yet so transformative. Its unlike most leathers in that quality that its almost a solinote saffron heavy scent while being transparentized by the incense and other listed notes. It kinda reminds me of dip it low by christina millian. Those plucked strings and the sweet tone with the grimy dancehall beat and the oil dance and the tan color. Addictive and a hit but kinda underrated and under the radar at the same time, but if you know you know!

After a short maturation this smells heavenly for people that like leather and vanilla. I was also disappointed when I first smelled. Only have their plastic tester 20ml version. Should be enough for my needs. Update August 10 2025: Wait 5 minutes for the fragrance to settle each time you spray it so you can smell its full potential. This stuff is soooooo good. But sometimes the opening is harsh, maybe the smoky saffron/black tea combo with the incense from the middle, but as soon as they settle the composition becomes clearer and it shines. Leather gourmand

Bu fiyata bu düzeyde bir deri-süet parfümü bence harika. Tütsü deri-süet arasina sıkışmış. Vanilya ise var-yok gibi. Ilk yarım saat sonrasinda ise süet- tütsü baş başa kalıyor. Deri süet sevenler bayılacaktır. Parfümden anlamayan bebeler ise berbat diyecektir. Kalıcılık kuvvetli, dağılımı iyi. Bu parfüm ün ter ile bir araya gelmemesi lazim. Yani kesinlikle serin havaların parfümu. Ama ben at gibi kokmaktan rahatsız olmam derseniz yazında olabilir tabiki!

Very nice sweet leather fragrance. Love from the first sniff. This fragrance is very strong en last long time on skin and clothes. Its a uniseks fragrance that leans feminine to my nose. The leather here is very smooth. The tea in here is sweet tea. If you like leather fragrances you will love these one. If you don't, stay a way From it.

LOVE LOVE LOVE This is a gorgeous tea scent. Sophisticated, clean, crisp but smooth and sleek. Extremely suitable for the office, non offensive and just an all round good everyday wear. Leans a drop masculine. Think a hot nerd with glasses sitting on a soft leather couch sipping black tea in a library on a spring day.

This one is not for the meek. This is a strong incense tea with a touch of sweet perfume. It lasts an eternity on clothing. I personally love it but do not try wearing this in anything resembling a warm day! Keep it for the winter months.

A moderately sweet and leathery fragrance, that leans feminine and performs very well. Incense plays only a small role. A fragrance that will help you garner many complements.

Fantastic cheapie. Very solid performance and projection, doesnt smell cheap at all. Presentation is good.

This perfume is so good and it projects very well..

Sensational masterpiece 👏✨️👌 10/10

Opens like sweet tea spiked with cheap bourbon, the saffron’s there, but it’s cheap. The softest incense accord, like leaving an unlit stick in your bag. In five minuets milky ice-cream vanilla shows up, and a sneaky freshness turns the faint leather into suede before you blink. First hour has great projection. It settles fast: clean, light suede with that felt-back texture, vanilla intense, and a light amber The rest of the notes are background dancers and could be hallucinations. Unbalanced, compared to the listed notes, but the suede-vanilla duo is very smooth, so it doesn’t matter. Tea-dusted ice-cream jacket. Really decent. Winter comfort lazy day spray.

You only have to wait a few seconds for the rubber smell to give way to a sweet and very elegant dry down. But you have to like vanilla, because it stays until the end. It doesn't have the hype it had a couple of years ago, which is understandable given the number of dark and sweet offerings. Three or four years ago, saffron was mainly a niche note. Today, saffron-vanilla is a standard in Middle Eastern winter fragrances. I still enjoy it, mainly as a scent for sleeping in winter.

This is not a dupe for Valentino Donna Noir Absolu. On my skin Al Areeq Gold radiates suede, vanilla and incense. I don't get any tea note yet, maybe it needs to sit for a while. It's unisex, but on the masculine side. Longevity on my skin around 10 hours, sillage is only moderate. Donna Noir Absolu has more of a boozy plum note and sandalwood, which makes it more unisex. This is totally missing here. Still a beautiful leather scent, similar DNA as Lattafa's Oud Lail Maleki.

A linear variably amber-y, leather fragrance topped with smoky saffron and herbaceous black tea. On skin the aroma has lasting power for some time although when sprayed on clothes [that are not white and or likely to be stained] it can last for several hours. Anyone that likes sweet leather scents should check it out. Rating: 7.6/10

In the beginning the vanilla and leather mix gives off a rubber smell, but as it dries things change for the better. The smoky Incense and Vanilla come together to form a holiday desert dish (banana pudding like). I have come to really like this and would recommend no doubt.

Leather goodness with an underlying sweetness Love this for cold rainy weather, especially the drydown

I don't think this is a perfect clone of Crystal Saffron, if it's trying to be... It's got more of a suede feel to it by comparison, whereas Crystal Saffron is a superdose of saffron. A very nice unisex scent for cold weather. Tea, amberwood, suede and leather with a touch of sweetness.

What are these reviews even about? This fragrance smells like a cheap car air freshener at best leather scent car freshener

As part of my big mistake of letting myself get influenced by the online hype and acquire Khamrah Qahwa, I got a bottle of Al Areeq Gold as a gift alongside. Sure, at the time, I was extremely excited about it, this being the first leather fragrance that I got my nose onto. Given that, it's no surprise that I found it very interesting. But now, with more experience in my pocket, I realize just how blind and inexperienced I was. Being a Lattafa fragrance, the extremely rough and synthetic opening is more than expected. For like the first two minutes, all I smell is alcohol. Afterwards, it gets worse, with a very rubbery and artificial smelling saffron, accompanied by undertones of leather, mild spices, and a subtle sweetness. The black tea is held at bay, adding some herbal warmth with an earthy edge, but also a bitter accord in the background. However, it doesn't take a lot of experience to tell just how low quality this composition is and just how bereft of balance it is. The saffron is rubbery beyond acceptance and synthetic more than leathery. After a good while, it does settle down, making way for a basic leathery scent, with warm smokiness and continued faint sweetness. The suede tries its best to add a more distinct leather smell, adding a slightly musky, velvety, and powdery tone. However, once again, the lack of balance just throws everything completely off, smelling more chemical than anything else. The frankincense is... well, hard to pinpoint on its own (no wonder), but I do get some hints of spice and a balsamic undertone for which I hold it accountable. I will admit that after a couple of hours, things get borderline decent. The rubbery, artificial aura is mostly gone, leaving you with a mild and warm leather, paired with rather strong muskiness which cover some vanilla sweetness and warm woodiness. Still, it's not enough to save the composition. There's simply no balance whatsoever, with the best examples being the rubbery saffron in the opening, the synthetic leather afterwards, and the strong muskiness at the base, overpowering everything else. It is also a pretty linear scent, and it takes forever for some sort of development to show. Overall, everything here screams "oriental", just the kind that says, "Habibi, don't come to Dubai! Stay away!" It's a real curse that fragrances I truly enjoy often leave me wanting in terms of performance, but scents I'd rather flush down the toilet stick to my skin like ticks. Al Areeq Gold lasts for nearly 12 hours on me, while also showing decent projection performance. The first hour, I get close to 2 feet of projection, with a very prominent trail being left behind. For the next few hours, I get a very solid and consistent bubble around me, which starts to diminish around the 4-5 hour mark. In the air, it also seems to smell significantly sweeter, as per my cousins' statements. Regarding versatility, it's a bit difficult to pull a conclusion, primarily because I just wouldn't wear this anywhere. But keeping in mind that in the air it doesn't smell AS synthetic/artificial/rubbery, I'd probably say it's mostly suited for dressed-up events. Definitely not a daily driver for school or work, but again, if you ask me, this is best suited for gathering dust on Lattafa's storage rooms. If you couldn't tell already, I think I'll skip this one. And so should you. The attractive $20-$30 price tag (even $40 in some places) shouldn't excite you, for what you're getting here is anything but bang for your buck. Sure, if you don't give a damn about perfumery as a whole, and just want a rubbery, oriental, leathery fragrance for pocket money, then knock yourself out. But otherwise, make an effort, invest some more cash in a proper leather fragrance, and I promise you that the difference will be significant and worth it. Presentation: 8.5/10 Scent: 3/10 Longevity: 10/10 Projection: 7/10 Versatility: 6/10 Value for Money: 3/10 Overall: 6.25/10

I don't know if I have got a wrong sample or my batch is spoilt - I read all of the positive comments and they totally do not correspond with what I'm smelling. For me it's a very harsh leather + gasoline, no sweetness, no vanilla, nothing except this strong awful smell. I wouldn't like to smell it on anybody. I see comparisons with Lattafa Ishq Gold which I have and I really like it but these are two totally different scents.

The beginning is quite fresh and leathery, but the drydown.... it reminded me of Bade'e Al Oud Honor & Glory. Very sweet, super artificial, typical Lattafa drydown which I cannot stand. The beginning was very promising though :(

Smells like smoky metallic pesticide. Good thing I only blind bought the 20ml sample to try. This is easily my top 10 from the bottom. Total scrubber.

This fragrance is disgusting, worst Lattafa I’ve ever smelled, it’s so bad I can’t even explain it. There’s nothing good about this fragrance.

All the notes do not belong together, awful smell. Like milk mixed with pepper.

I just got it in the mail today, so it hasn't had any time to mature after first spray which is usually relevant with this brand. I love it, what a beautiful fragrance. It's such a clean and high quality smelling blend of leather and vanilla. The musk provides depth and a softness to the scent. The smoky incense complements the profile so well and doesn't smell out of place at all, in fact it smells essential. The black tea note isn't dominant, but it's the real star of the show because it gives the fragrance character and a uniqueness that differentiates it from others in this category. I have a handful of leather dominant fragrances and this does not smell like any of them. Al Areeq Gold smells high quality and well blended. Considering the price, it's a must buy if you like this type of scent profile. The longevity is great and the projection is a moderate but consistent scent bubble. The sillage is classy with the perfect amount of heft.

This is written off a tester strip. I don't know whether I will wear this on my skin. Right off the sprayer, this starts off very synthetic for about a minute or two. From then, I detect the sweetness coming from Vanilla and resin/saffron and I sense the suede/leather and incense as a key player. I could see how the other person think it leans feminine due to the sweetness, but I think it is truly unisex as the sweetness is grounded by leather and incense. I personally cannot detect the tea accord. Could probably shine in the colder nights, and one can probably pull this off formally. I don't think I will wear this in any casual setting. I can't comment on any similarities with other suggested fragrances as I am not familiar with them.

QUESTION: Ishq Al Shuyukh Gold started off with a very rubber (almost burnt rubber) leather smell. But after 4 months of sitting that has completely gone away and the fragrance is gorgeous now. But it took the entire 4 months, I had checked about once/month after getting it and it still had that note until just recently. Pleasant surprise - I thought I would have to resell it. So the actual question: does this fragrance have the same thing going on? Does that rubber note go away after a good amount of time?

This is definitely not a safe blind buy. You really have to enjoy heavy Middle Eastern scents like bakhoor and incense to appreciate it. The notes come off a little cheap at first, although they do blend better as it dries down. If you’re Middle Eastern, this honestly smells like the kind of perfume your grandma back home would wear.

This is really great! Totally addicting smoky black tea, saffron and Incense all covered in suede and with just enough vanilla. Every time I put this on it's like coming home. It's a love for me.

This pairs so beautifully with Devotion by DG. Initial spray has a gasoline type note but after 5 mins it's magical

Could this be a spin on Bulgari Black? I've never smelled Black but the notes are similar.