Safwaan L'autre Musk

people are so hostile and all over the place about this one i cracks me up lmao. I've had totally the opposite experience, maybe i lucked out and got one that didn't need to mature/oxidize -- the production date on the box is from the year it came out and the liquid is a little darker than it looks in a lot of the pictures so maybe it's pre-aged? It's definitely a unisex, somewhat zesty scent, but I find it really compelling. I don't think it's a dupe of Gris Charnel or Liam Grey exactly, but it's in the genre of a lot of the niche and wanna-be niche scents of that type; spicy, woody, powdery and creamy with synthetic amber-musk. I smell ceder and something zesty in the opening, like tellicherry peppercorns (they have citrusy, piney and almost floral aromatic notes) and maybe a touch of cardamom, and then i smell a lot of cold, fine, silky iris powder with an almost tactile musky presence, probably supplied with some ambrox relative, and then the dry down is coconut and sandalwood. It's a dry, aromatic coconut and a creamy, sweet sandalwood, which makes a nice change from the scratchy, sickening quality of the scents that go with 'syrupy coconut, dry sandalwood.' Honestly, it's the best sandalwood I've encountered in a 'budget' perfume outside of something in a roll-on oil from an import and crystal shop i used to get as a teenager. Honestly i'm kind of obsessed, and would be happy to suffer through a 'cheap and nasty' opening to get to that warm coconut-sandalwood dry down, but i do personally love the peppercorn, fresh cedar and lipstick iris opening and all the powdery amber musk in the middle. It doesn't read 'cleaning' product to me, and I'm too familiar with both cedar and peppercorns as raw materials to have a particularly strong 'men's cologne' association. I do think the listed notes give a mistaken impression, this is not a typically sweet perfume or a traditional women's musk. They probably should have listed synthetic ambergris instead of 'amber' because it's definitely not resinous. There is no heliotrope or almond, and no vanilla that I can detect beyond a general sweet-creaminess in the dry down. but I wouldn't say that it was masculine exactly either, with the makeup iris and the smooth, almost chocolatey quality of the woods and musk.

This is a beautiful musky, spicy and slightly floral gem, unisex, but leans feminine. The earthy, pepper and muskiness all remind me of Xerjoff’s Accento, perhaps a little creamier and not as harsh and in your face as the Xerjoff. Another Middle Eastern version similar to this is Maison Alhambra’s Philos Centro. Presentation, longevity and sillage as usual from Lattafa are top notch. Another home run from Lattafa!

It feels like a niche but it also packs that Middle Eastern punch. I think the musk will get smoother with maceration though. It's rough enough right now that it reads like ambroxide so I can understand comparisons to Superdose. It has something almost gourmand happening that sd doesn't have. It's intriguing. It's one of the rare fragrances I backed up - but at the price, it was irresistible.

My first Lattafa. A very simple and lasting fragrance. It has a powdery almond vanilla vibe throughout. None of the notes are overpowering. To me, this is a slightly sexy daytime/office sent. There is a slight almond/spice feel that keeps it grounded. It’s just enough Amber/vanilla...without being immature. Relaxing, professional and rich feeling.

I've only had a sample of Gris Charnel, but I have a bottle of Liam. Gris Charnel & Liam have a distinct Sandalwood note that is not present in Safwaan to my nose, instead there's a more mineral, earthiness to it. I can see the similarities, but this is not a Gris/Liam dupe in my opinion.