Sur Mesure Noir

Hmmm... I have a feeling this was inspired by Outlands (given the notes), but I am not sure, though. But the opening has a sweet cola fruity smell with Elemi and heavy spices from the nutmeg and Pimento coming in after a while. The resins and something that smells like banana leaf comes in at the mid. Then it gets very ambery in the dry down. This is a lovely one. It also has this metallic accord that makes this smells a bit off at times. It's quite an interesting experience, to be honest. My initial impression when I got it was that it smelt like Althair, but after a while, I didn't get that feeling again. I started to notice more of cinnamon cola smell with sweet orangey citrus in that opening. Edit(8th December): Okay, maybe not Outlands, but this is good. I get heavy cola vibes. Like a cinnamon spicy nutmeg with a heavy citrusy mix. This one is growing massively on me. I don’t get that banana leaf vibes again. Beautiful smell. Date night approved! Edit(2nd January 2026): Okay, this might be one of my favorite Lattafas in a while (Dynasty included). I just love how the whole juice was blended. Resinous, sweet, a desert-like(dusty) ambery feeling, all on a green(definitely Vetiver and cedar) citrus aroma! I'm tempted to think this is Lattafa's take on Outlands by Amouage (looking at trends in the dupe world), but I'll look forward to confirming it, starting with Amouage. Also, Arabiyat Ramad Oriental and Rayhaan Terra has been on my list, so this might be the right time to pull the trigger to compare! Update(6th March 2026): New reviewers are saying it’s Amouage Purpose... well, I just knew this had that Quintin Bisch style DNA that is strange and metallic. I’m suspecting Jordi Fernandez is the perfumer for this frag, since he’s been doing lots of Lattafa fragrances lately, as he also does this same style, too.

First impressions after receiving it a couple of days ago - this was a blind buy motivated by this one being supposedly a Purpose/Purpose 50 dupe. I find Sur Mesure Noir actually very good. When compared to Purpose (of which I only have a sample, in addition to having tested it several times at Jovoy's) : close enough, and certainly enough that I can be satisfied with my purchase. I would agree with the previous reviewer that it's less dark or smoky or sharp than the OG, also performance is lower (no surprise there), but it definitely has the same scent profile. Sur Mesure Noir develops some kind of light sweetness / warmth in its mid phase, which IMO brings it closer to Purpose 50 and its slight sweetness created by the vanilla note (the addition of which I find regrettable). In the drydown and far drydown I find it extremely close to Purpose (not Purpose 50 there). I would agree that there is some similarity with Majd Al Sultan in the very early stages, but Sur Mesure Noir does not develop the chocolatey warmth that Majd Al Sultan creates on me (and which I'm not a fan of as I prefer dry and cold scents). I would agree also with those who felt Sur Mesure One reminided them of Annick Menardo's Visit for Azzaro (a fabulous cheapie, sadly discontinued) : it's actually very close to my nose, only less zingy because it has less vetiver. Will update after maturation. EDIT after a two month maturation period : definitely very close to Purpose 50 to my nose (always somwhat tricky to try to quantify : 90% ?) - same scent profile, just less well blended and heavier, a bit in the same way that Purpose 50 is "heavier" than Purpose (that damn vanilla).

Explanation of the bottle design: The bottle appears to represent the boiler component of an alembic still used in steam distillation. I had to ask an AI and do image searches, so if I got something incorrect, please correct me. Anyway, an alembic still is a distillation apparatus in perfumery (and alcohol production) made of two vessels (boiler and condenser) connected by a tube (the swan-neck pipe at the top) that channels the oil-rich steam from the boiler to the condenser. The Lattafa bottle is only the boiler. The hatch on the front of the boiler body on the Lattafa bottle is quite small and positioned high, hence it's probably a liquid-only boiler that accepts liquid oil extracts rather than bulky raw botanicals (like roots, wood, or whole flowers), which would require a much larger hatch for shovelling out spent botanical waste. Heating the liquid oil extract would only vaporise the most volatile oils (the most aromatic component), so spent waste oil is left behind in the boiler. After the oil-rich steam exits the Lattafa bottle (the boiler) by channelling up and down the tube, it'd enter the condenser vessel's coiled copper tube that's submerged in cold water, liquifying the steam back into a mixture of essential oil and water. This liquid then exits the condenser into a container (called a Florentine flask) that automatically separates the floating essential oils from the heavier water based on their different densities.

The few reviews on this (including Joy Amin on YouTube) suggest that this is a clone of Amouage Purpose 50, which I haven't smelt. Do Ctrl+F for "Purpose" here - mobile browsers also have the Find feature. Anyway, to my nose, this also smells quite similar (60-70% similar from memory) to my bottle of Rayhaan Terra (clone of Amouage Outlands mid/dry-down, supposedly), and could even be considered a twist of that if it wasn't cloning Purpose 50. They're clearly distinct fragrances, Sur Mesure Noir being much spicier and much less creamy, but the general *vibe* of both compositions is very similar. Also in the same vicinity as Swiss Arabian Incense 01 (maybe less than 50% similar in scent, but definitely a similar vibe). Sur Mesure Noir, Terra, and Incense 01 are all dark fall scents with aromatic/diffusive components that contrast with the darkness to give a perception of a slight 3D effect and higher quality, although a bit less so for Terra. This has both the complexity and ingredient quality of niche (although is linear) but probably not on par with Amouage I'm guessing. Only issue is short longevity and moderate projection but my bottle is less than a week old so it'll probably improve. Despite cloning an Amouage, this scent profile is mass-appealing (while being complex enough to absolutely smell niche). Autumn/fall appropriate. Unisex masculine-leaning. Formal attire appropriate.

Been testing Sur Mesure Noir for a bit. There’s barely any info out there and only one review here, so I figured I’d share my thoughts. It’s a smooth woody-spicy scent with bergamot, cinnamon, lavender, and a warm amber/vetiver base. The opening smells like cinnamon cola to me as well, which I actually really like. That’s the best part for me. Quality is good, blending is solid, and performance is decent (6–8 hours, moderate projection early on). But here’s the thing: it’s not dark or smoky. No incense depth, no animalic edge. It’s more “well-dressed woody spice” than “midnight aura.” I expected something closer to Purpose or Outlands. Instead, it feels like a lighter, safer mix of both. The drydown reminds me of Arabian Tonka with a slight touch of YSL La Nuit. I’m convinced there’s tonka in here even though it’s not listed. There’s also this subtle sweet-ink nuance in the background. If you like refined, wearable, slightly spicy woods for cooler weather, this works. If you’re into deep, resinous, niche-level darkness, this might disappoint you. I hope it grows on me I had high expectations.