Alamut

Alamut is name of a historical place in my country(iran)so I was very curious to test it and today I have the oppurtunity thanks to free samples of shaghayegh perfume shop I wasnt looking forward to love alamut as sandal and labdanum are second and third high rated notes.I highly dislike labdanum and don't like sandalwood when it's strong and seprately distingueshable.when first dabbed I can detect a combination of sandalwood,rose,warm a little dirty amber and a hint of smokey labdanum.it's totally unisex and as I had expected sandalwood is very strong for my taste but all in all I don't dislike it. As time passes it becomes more floral and powdery.labdanum fades away and sandalwood calms down.I like this powdery floral-amber combo alot.it has a delicious sweetness which I wasnt expecting Drydown is still amber-powder-rose and other florals but there's also musk and sandalwood comes back.it's easily noticable but doesn't cover other notes,just hand in hand with benzoin and amber rounds musky powdery florals.it's still unisex but leaning a bit towards feminity and I have to confess that I like it alot.all the notes are so high quality that one can easily detect them though they're blended well.it's warm,delicious,deep,rich,full bodied and sexy.it's also seems to be potent as I've dabbed a little on my wrists and I catch this seductive wafts of musky red rose and white florals grounded by rich balmy base notes as I'm typing but it's not overwhelmingly heavy.I didn't expect to find a love here but I do love it.it's yummy in a mature and original non foody way.I don't have anything similar in my whole collection and I'd love to have such an enveloping,grown up outstanding fragrance.anyone can feel sexy,speacial,powerful and full of self confidence wearing it.it's not something I wear often.a bottle will definetly last my whole life still it's good to have it.it's a fall,winter/night scent so I may ask it for my birthday gift(my birthday is in december) I'm happy that such a perfect perfume is named after this castle in my country Edit:it stayed on my skin for 5,6 hours(very soft in last hour) which isn't great considering it's price tag but is still good and acceptable for me.spraying a good amount may enhance it as I had just dabbed a little

I've been wanting to test this for a long time and luckily Cereza kindly sent me a sample - thank you! Alamut was definitely not disappointing. The opening is sparkly with aldehydes and rich with rosewood, making a very distinct impression. It's immediately warm, with no light top notes doing a quick appearance and disappearance. Alamut builds and develops from the opening, the woodiness of the top notes holding up the flowers til the woody base notes pick up. The narcissus is what I feel most of the flowers here, but overall they have just a light presence, a slightly animalic undercurrent which give this a bit of spice amidst the smooth woods and amber. The dry down is an amber and sandalwood dream, cosy and inviting, though on the dry side, which is fantastic. While the amber is a base note, I feel it's presence throughout, cushioning all the other notes and keeping them soft. Definitely my favourite amber scent. It's amber, but with flavour and substance. I'm not sure about the Arabian theme, as the labdanum haze is very gauzy throughout the composition - which is perfect IMO - but what this makes me think of is an old wooden trunk that's been hidden away in an attic for years and years, filled with treasures from your grandparents and great-grandparents. Alamut is an idealised version of how that trunk would smell the first time it's been opened in decades, soft wood, old letters and an old perfume bottle with a few golden drops left. This is based on the EDT which has very good staying power and projection. A perfect womanly woody scent, that's still unisex. Cosy, rich and distinctive. FB worthy for me.

On the surface, it could be viewed just as a musty sweet powdery rose fragrance, but Alamut is truly a tale of vintage florals and inspirations. It was inspired here and there seemingly by Guerlain Vol De Nuit, Jean Patou Joy, Samsara, and is presumably a soft blue print for Maai by Bogue Profumo. You gotta test this on skin to witness the dance of the florals and woods. At an instant blast there is the rosy rosewood that quickly introduces the musty vintage tuberose and dry narcissus that instantly reminds me of Bogue Profumo Maai, Guerlain Vol De Nuit and that also of Papillon Perfumery Dryad. It is not as animalic but it speaks the element. Slowly, the creaminess & indolic florals bloom with sweet powder, sandalwood and reveals a roses&jasmine combo that is in the style of Jean Patou Joy. The sweet creamy powder here also a reminiscence of the house’s star Teint De Niege. There is also this dry musky animalic woodiness in it at the drydown that peeking in and out along side the sweet floral-y powder. Alamut is not a smooth blend, but is rich in ingredients and faucets of perfumery styles. It could be judged as a mess, but each facet that reveals itself is with intention and a solid character you could distinguish and identify. It is like watching a movie. I am keening to try the EDP and the Parfum version.

This is beautiful beyond words. But since we speak with words, the person who described what this scent allows me to feel is Baudelaire: I am beautiful, oh mortals, as a dream carved in stone. This fragrance represents the Platonic idea of beauty for me: that extreme, ethereal beauty we are all looking for because we know it must be there, and when we find some parts of it in this world we are pleased. I get this kind of pleasure from Alamut: it completely raptures me into another world. Shalimar has the same effect on me, but I have to admit Alamut is on an even higher level, and it is the highest expression of beauty for me in a fragrant form. At least of the Plato and Baudelaire kind, ideal, superhuman (but present in all of us) beauty. This was one of the first niches I smelled so the quantum leap in quality from the mainstream must have contributed to my fascination with it. I hope I will own this scent one day, and it will be my other celebration scent, along with Shalimar. If my life was about opera and art exhibitions and Hannibal Lecter dinner parties and nothing else, I would be wearing Alamut all the time. The assassins were given drugs in the fortress of Alamut so they would sacrifice their lives in battle. I need no drugs as long as I can smell this hypnotic beauty.

Luca Turin gave Alamut one star, calling it a "hideous oriental," completely eviscerating Lorenzo Villoresi "(putting) forth no ideas at all." Naturally, I had to try, as I always do when Turin gives a scathing one star review and plus I was already an admirer of Villoresi. Wouldn't you know it? I love it. Rosy, powerfully woody, filled to the brim with florals and a moderately animalic, musky dry down tempered with a dusty, powdery undercurrent. I most notice the rose and orange blossom in its opening, with the top notes characteristic of a creamy sandalwood, and then a barnyard flower garden narcissus, a humid ylang ylang, all anchored by a sultry woodiness. In fact, in comparison with Rouge Hermes, which has a very similar profile, I easily favored Alamut, as Villoresi pulls no punches and doses the elements with a saturation that has made me fall in love with his compositions. There is a thickness that might be a bit much for wallflowers, but for those with zero inhibition when it comes to scent, I love to lavish in this. Fans of the aforementioned Rouge Hermes, Guerlain Samsara, or Maria Candida Gentile Cinabre: do take note. I swear that Turin just has a personal vendetta against Villoresi! Alamut is irresistible...