Osang

Dim yellow light reluctantly infiltrates the overgrown chapel, where devotees in gray linen robes peel palms in the middle, wrapping them in resin mixed with incense ashes to prevent decay. The remaining parts are thrown into a mass grave, rumored to carry a strong scent of blood. I didn't smell it, or perhaps I'm numb to the bloody, leaving only a layer of not-so-sweet sweetness in the depths of my nostrils. As he works, he murmurs indistinctly to the withered palms: "Make you into medicine, to heal you." These words, like a whisper emanating from the fragrance, but from my perspective as a spectator, I understand: this is a medicine made for the resurrection of God, and the person made into the medicine is already a part of the body of God. Supplying God is healing man—death terminates the decay and corruption of humanity. After writing all this, I found the inspiration for this fragrance interesting: the patron saint of Naples, Italy, was beheaded and martyred, and his blood has been preserved to this day. The coral branch in the perfume bottle symbolizes the solidified blood of the saint. By the way, I found out that in the third time in 2020, the Holy Blood did not liquefy during the ceremony, causing astonishment and concern among the people of Naples about disaster. Do not blind buy. Some may find it familiar, but more regret it the moment it is sprayed. This fragrance still has practicality: it will keep others away from you. They won't think you sprayed perfume but rather that you work during the day and return to an ancient mansion to boil medicine for the bishop all day, doing your true job.

This perfume seems to show vast differences in the different batches. I have gotten a sample from a German retailer, one from Mendittorosa in Naples and the 100ml flask that I bought. The samples from the retailer were absolutely lovely. A lovely smooth transition. Very floraly and comforting. A romantic, seductive scent, lasting forever on my skin. Therefore I bought the 100ml bottle which smelled nothing like the testers. A very harsh incensy smell that never seemed to develop into any lovely notes as well. It smells like your smudging your house with too much myrrh and you’re getting sick from it. A harsh punishing everlasting smell. I contacted Mendittorosa, checking the batch code, which was legit. They provided me with another sample from their manufacturing. Again it didn’t seem to come close to the first samples at all and more to the 100ml flacon. But here the notes were much more sweet and carrying. Not so punching myrrh-like as from the big bottle. So yes, there seem to be huge inconsistencies in the batches unfortunately. Otherwise I do love the smells but since two of the testers are smelling like completely different perfumes, it’s hard to create a proper review. The bottle is being sent back to the retailer for further evaluation with Mendittorosa. Updates are coming as soon as.

This is a honey / amber scent that initially gives you vibes of Grand Soir or even Bee by Zoologist but there's a real richness and complexity to this that separates it out from those other two. The churchy herbs in here give it a smoky, incensey sort of vibe that lingers long after the top notes have dissipated. It has similar vibes to Amouage Interlude in that it immediately transports you to a place that feels slightly old. With Interlude, that transportation is to an ancient temple, with this it's more like a European Catholic church. The bottle design, as with all Menditorrosa, is an absolute work of art and really needs to be seen in person to be properly appreciated. Its a masterpiece. I suppose if I had to make any criticism of it then it would be a recognition of the very high price point combined with wearability. Those seem like slightly silly things to mention though. You didn't buy a bottle of perfume centred around the story of an Italian blood ritual with THAT bottle because you thought it would be good for the office or the club, did you?

After two days of this I think I have enough of a handle on it to express an opinion. It opens up very salty and mineral-ly like others from this series reminding me of the smell of rocks on a cool, windswept beach. I appreciate this phase more than actually enjoying it. The middle is where the honey takes over and I get some of what others are referring to as a "piss" note. Again, not really a fan at this point though I don't hate it. The final phase though is the perfect sum of myrrh, iris and honey and this part is to die for - sweet myrrh seen through a haze of cool iris and still projecting magnificently even at the 12 hour mark. I've been searching for the perfect myrrh fragrance for awhile and if it were all like this, even the crazy price wouldn't deter me. Unfortunately though, with its "interesting" opening and "difficult" middle I'm going to move on.

From top note to drydown, it’s like being caught in the middle of a religious procession. Opens with a heavy incense blast, accompanied quickly by a thick powdery cloud. Everything feels dense and heavy and stern, as if you are being silenced into submission. What follows is a thick, dusty scent of old wooden cabinets, benches, books, sweat and maybe even an embalmed corpse somewhere. Thick honey, myrrh, amber, resin, and wax slowly intermingle amidst a wall of prayer. But not all is gloom and doom, a hopeful hint of orange, clove, and iris cuts through the darkness with a tingling camphoric effect. What a trip! This wears more like a private / personal scent with meditative powers. Not something to wear on your first date or a sinful night out of debauchery.

This is such a gorgeous and complicated "dirty" honey-amber perfume. The most prominent note for me, however, is incense. I am smelling the balsamic, church-like undertones and I think it can be attributed to myrrh and maybe even labdanum. I agree that the fragrance can be slightly animalic to some reviewers, but I mostly detect it as "wet", not dry or fresh, but rather heavy, complex, and extremely intense. I do not detect any "urine" like notes, but rather the church notes and burnt candle smokes. Somebody already mentioned "beeswax with oud" and I agree with that too, there are definitely oudy undertones, perhaps it is what giving the fragrance the slight "dirty" nature.

Ferocious fenugreek, incense, resins and a very dry honey. A small application, rewards you with a better balanced scent. I wear a lot of immortelle scents but this is the dryest, most uncompromising that I have. It's not a safe blind buy, I bought it after 3 tests, because it's unique and very particular, and you have to love that fenugreek and appreciate the mix of church incense vs. Eastern spices it contains. I don't think of it as a honey scent, because it's so dry; strictly a one-off, and to get the best of it, just apply a small amount. I've only worn it in winter, so far.

This is the scent of time, rushing out when you swing open the door of a Grandfather clock to wind the pendulums. This is the scent that transports you -sitting in an ancient church, when a shaft of sunlight pours in through the stain glass windows and warms your section of wooden pews and paper hymnals, re-awakening past incense. Dusty papers, resinous woods, sacred smoke, strong performance, high quality, beautiful bottle.

Osang is unlike anything I've ever smelled! It's a truly captivating fragrance that tells a story. The fenugreek and honey are the stars here, creating this warm, almost savory sweetness. There's also something smoky and mysterious lurking beneath the surface, making it incredibly addictive. Definitely unisex - my partner loves it on me too!

I get a 'La Myrrhe' myrrh, which unironically, is also expressed through an aldehyde (C-13, could be wrong, though), and a heap of incense and sweetened resin. It shouldn't work, but I think it does. It's too aldehydey at the start, but if it levels out over the next few hours, I might be more inclined to, you know, take this further...

Osang is a massive beast dwelling in an ancient cathedral: his fur smells of wax and myrrh, his breath scorches the air, and his purr softens the sounds of a world hostile to me. He is my warmth and calm, my shield and my silence.

every time it’s giving Caravaggio hiding in a Napoli church from his enemies after a drunken brawl while praying to the virgin marry for his soul... beautiful!!!!

My beloved, for me one of 5 top perfume creations in las 20 years... but it was not the "love on first sight" - and its realy not for everione....

The new cap is ugly. I like the white one better. That is all.

There are a lot of fenugreek perfumes out there, especially when you consider that you can get very near to it with the use of immortelle plus a well-gauged note of something sweet like honey, fruits, or florals. Amouage has featured fenugreek numerous times, Eau Noire is one of my favorites (I'm still on the fence if it's fennel or fenugreek, but whatever), Parfum d'Empire's Immortelle Corse and Les Indemodables Immortelle Solaire get very close to fenugreek. So, what loftily conceptual work of art or bizarre mysticism did Mendittorosa choose to connect with fenugreek (or vice versa, I suppose)? The Neapolitan tradition of presenting the dried blood of Saint San Gennaro to the people of Naples to see if a miraculous reconstitution will occur, the blood to become liquid again, and sign that heaven will bless the city and denizens with good fortune, or not and disaster. Myrrh starts the ceremony, resinous, green, fungal, cool, and a touch smoky. Fruity florals play in the background of the opening. I have no problem believing I'm in the streets of Naples, adorned with bright Campanian flowers in celebration and anticipation of the ceremony, myrrh riding along the breezes from the thuribles swinging in the hands of the clergy. The dry down happens pretty quickly and releases an onslaught of fenugreek, honey, and spices elevated on a plinth of standard amber notes - labdanum, balsams, musks, and the like. It seems Mendittorosa is keen to keep us in anticipation. Part of the press blurb is very telling: "... presented to the people, hungry for love and miracles." The final phrase is in bold type. Really, the only part that should be in bold type is "hungry." This perfume is making my stomach growl. It smells delicious. The fenugreek, honey, and spices remind me a lot of methi ladoo or vendhaya kali, two amazing Indian desserts that are earthy, spicy, radiant, a touch floral, and just on the right side of creamy and sweet, just like this accord in Osang. In the end, myrrh makes a reappearance, bringing us back to the start, accompanied by standard amberic balsams. Where's the blood? Did it reconstitute and will Naples see good fortune? Did it not, and thus misfortune awaits? We don't know. There is nothing faintly blood-like about Osang. We have no idea what happens. Perhaps this is a metaphor for the anticipation of miracles, or religion in general: "people, hungry for love and miracles" throughout their life, but the hunger will never be satisfied. I can't imagine Mendittorosa, with their inspirational penchants and modus operandi, would make a statement this controversial but the perfume is hard to interpret any other way. I guess I have to conclude with: I don't know. As a mostly-typical fenugreek amber then, is it any good? Yes, it is. No gaps or details are overlooked, the materials used are wonderful, and they've been blended with technical care - and, as I said, it's delicious. It’s an Indian or Arabian dessert I'd love to take a bite out of. But it's a perfume, so I can't. But if I could - now that would be a miracle.

A mysterious smoky honeyed Oriental this perfume combines notes of honey, fenugreek, sichuan pepper, nutmeg, myrrh, benzoin, styrax, sandalwood, amber, oud, incense, peru balsam, florals and musk all in discrete proportions. The resulting juice is a sensual strange potion that evokes many feelings at the same time. A bit of hope a bit of fear a bit of longing and a bit of reverence. The unisex perfume has moderate to strong projection and sillage. Not for everyone and may need open minds to appreciate. Enjoy!

Softer than what I expected. Myrrh and honey seem to be the most noticeable notes. Sillage is moderate at best, which isn't a bad thing unless you're looking for a more beast mode fragrance. A creative design with the cap (I have the white one) and the drops of blood on the outside representing the miracle in Naples. There was a red piece of something inside the bottle, not sure that was be design of a mistake. Very wearable for any occasion.

A rich resinous honey bomb, I agree it is rather a predominately single note fragrance. The heliotrope comes through, for those who know its smell. Bottle is exquisite as is most of them from this line. I’m going to venture a guess that most will not find it to be a FB purchase. But do check out others from this house 🐝

Agree with caca13 the iris honey (and maybe oud) combo does create this sweet powdery piss note. Interesting, but the performance is bad for something so expensive. May be an issue with my skins preference for eating the less sweet notes, which are already faint.

Wore this today and my wife did not like it, smelled too organic to her. I think this is a personal meditating fragrance, not one that will garner compliments. I love the concept of representing the miracle of San Gennaro in Naples, Italy.

classic. the sugary honey kazinak that the priest gave you so you wouldn't tell anyone that he raped you salty tears and a feeling of unquenchable hunger in base

It smells like an old cabinet that is full of beeswax candles. Strong honey and dust notes.

Osang is difficult. It’s one of my first niche buys and I keep hoping I’ll develop a taste for it. But it’s an intolerable love I keep going back to expecting something different only to find the same urine note each time. That note sits like a bratty kid on my skin refusing to budge and let the other notes emerge. I detect them there and eventually the complexity shows itself. At that point it feels ritualistic, historic and mysterious...and still has the underlying smell of urine. Damn it. I didn’t feel quite as strong about the smell until I read the reviews and there in print was what I was thinking. Now it’s stuck. So I wear it while I work at home. It’s too bad, it deserves to see some daylight.

I've been curious to find a perfume thats almost church inspired- this one captured the church incense and a cold, musty wooden space. It was too benzoin + fenugreek heavy for me at first and I didn't like it, it felt very masculine, but the dry down was nicer and allowed for the other notes to shine and took on a more unisex, softer scent (to me). I'm on the fence about it. Its complex, very evocative, unique. Certainly not a suitable blindbuy. Polarizing.

Was told by a close and trusted friend of mine that this resembles Pikovaya Dama from Xerjoff with an added honey note. I hope this is true as Pikovaya Dama is amongst my favorite fragrances. UPDATE: So I finally tried this on skin and was greatly disappointed no where near the quality of Pikovaya Dama opening is the only really special part of this fragrance dries down to a very soft non projecting urine like honey note that gets annoying after some time. I would just save my money and buy a back up of PD seriously Osang is mediocre at best and that is giving it a bit to much credit

Oh no, I can't imagine how I felt. This is a creepy, horror scent. It's like the scene of a massacre and barbaric murder. You are there, witnessing a person or many people having their throats cut to be sacrificed to the devil, or evil dark forces. As if in horror or Witch movies. This scent is really scary to me.

Really interesting stuff when tested but when I tried to wear some it was ok at first but then it got annoying after 15 min. and after 30 min. it became intolerable. If I couldn't have washed it off I would have burned it off with a blowtorch. I don't see how anyone could wear this scent for long.

For the first hour or so this very closely resembles a very cheap air freshener aerosol spray that you find in the supermarket. Very unfortunate to have made this association. I’m hoping for something special in the dry down.

This is a very strange scent on me. I think it might work for the month of October.

my skin has a way of turning honey into piss. add in the oud and benzoin, and this is genuinely repulsive on me. actually unwearable with my chemistry. unfortunately for me the sillage is great

If you like boar, gamey, it was Fantastic!

Oh man, I am really starting to understand the type of perfumes I want to own in my collection. I was blessed to be able to try this, hear the story of its creation PLUS get a vial to take home and I am currently wearing it to play Resident Evil 4 which I feel is very fitting as I am in that church part of the game where you pick up Ashley. This is a musty wooden fitted back room of an abandoned church with a pile of heavily worn but unwashed priest clothing that has not had the door open in a few years. It is a warm day so the smell is intensified because the heat is releasing the fumes of everything. You see dust particles floating in a beam of light from a small window from the force of barging the locked door open to get inside. (I am an urban Explorer so I have encountered this experience in a few abandos). After the noise of that crashing door, it is dead silent, the darkness of the room amplified by that beam of light and it locks a special memory into your head. Something feels off in that room, it gives off a weird energy, you wish the walls could talk so it can tell you what has happened back there. It is strong myrrh incense, the most accurate/literal catholic/orthodox church incense I have ever smelt. It has this body odour funk to it like sweaty clothing stained with the sweat and juices of priests mixed with whatever their clothing has come into contact with and this olddddddd musty, dusty smell. This is not a perfume you wear out, this is one you wear privately and relish in because it doesn't feel right and doesn't smell right. It is not a smell anyone would come into contact with in the daily world and when I was coming home on public transport this was the strongest perfume of all the vials and scent strips I had on me at the time and people were giving me weird looks/moving away from me and honestly, I don't blame them. It is not a scent a normal person would ever come into contact with and it is unsettling, it smells like I've just crawled out of an abando explore. It is such a strong scent that my purse where I had the scent strip in still heavily smells of it and it did make me self conscious in public. Not because I don't love it (because I do) but because I am fully aware this is quite a disturbing way to smell for the normal population. Edit: I actually didnt read these comments before posting mine because I like to apply the fragrance, let it sit while I am in silence and write what it smells/feels like and what it makes me think of but it is interesting how many people mentioned the beam of light. I think that that really does show the weird warmth of this fragrance but these reviews truly won't make sense to you unless you smell this frag personally.

walk with me cause this is intense, and I'm reacting to this live every step of the way it opens MUSTY AND DIRTY, and mind you, I know damn well it ain't me cause I came out the shower an hour ago, and it also has a bit of a woody tinge to it, like old church pews after a hot southern sunday choir annual day 3 o'clock service where the ac isn't working and everybody fanning themselves with that one mlk fan and the choir dragging tf out the songs and someone ain't brush their teeth, and there's barely a hint of honey in there at this stage too that was of no relevance to anyone but me and the other handful of black baptists from the south who just so happen to see this anyway this is genuinely pissing me off bro, this is what I get for having this perfume stuff as a hobby, but we push through and I promise I'm trying to give this a chance cause from the notes alone it sounded perfect for me (come on, why else would I have found this and tried it?) now that it has dried down, which takes far too long for my liking, I'm getting way more honey and spicy smoky incense, yet the musty church pew still lingers a TINY bit in the background and turns powdery almost, although it's far less noticeable and tolerable (can we just fill this room with thank you... thank you...) overall, it finishes with that churchy vibe, though obv I'm not catholic so I can't comment on catholic church incense like most people, but for me it's quite resinous and powdery, a very smoky and almost natural incense, and some honey to round it all out with barely a bit of woodiness lingering deepest part of the dry down is such a unique honey and smoky incense with a powdery woodiness like before but it compliments it so well, and overall it definitely is the most holistic approach to a church scent that I've ever smelled maybe this will work out better for you if you've never been to church

Very interesting. I would need to wear a few more times to get a better feel for it but initially it’s a very dry, honeyed incense that slowly morphs into spicy dry oud. Smells like a hot day in Florence or some other city with very old buildings. I bought a bottle of Archetipo instead but I would like to sample the rest from this house. Aesthetically an interesting line with a taste for unusual, very natural, earthy fragrances. Edit: Along with Anatole Lebreton Bois Lumiere', Osang is among the most daring, interesting (albeit slightly brutal) honey scents I've ever had the pleasure of wearing. I prefer Osang because it veers more masculine with gorgeous incense. But this is not the simple sweet honey of mainstream perfumery. With the sweet you must take the bitter, dry, animalic and medicinal. There an extended period of Osang that has the medicinal bees wax bite of Burt's Bees Body Lotion but with the dusty sweetness of burning liturgical incense to balance it out. I love how long this lasts on skin and the overall ancient vibe it creates. I've never smelled Guerlain Djedi but if it turned out to smell like Osang, I'd say Guerlain succeeded in creating an interesting but beautiful fragrance on the theme of ancient rituals and death. I kind of regret not buying a bottle when I had the chance. There is always next time.

Baby water, or baby piss! Now this is quite weird, this one smells like baby skin, powdered sweaty infant, it's the smell of the sweat between baby's thighs after being powdered! i have been changing diapers of my sister's babies and i know how this would smell, so it is powdery. Honey, powdery iris, heliotrope, myrrh, musk, slight chili, & labdanum. There isn't any oud or balsamic notes, and definitely no fenugreek! fenugreek is quite disgusting as a smell to be honest but as a nutrition it is the plant of wonders. The head of this bottle reminds me of the nurses in "Silent hill" game, quite impressive and amazingly inspiring bottle. This is bizarre, and deserve to be tested somehow.

• OMG! This is serious perfume! Unique, like no other scent! This is the fragrance I'd call a Ritual, agreeing with all down below who wrote about Catholic or Ancient churches, sacred smoke, resinous incenses. • This is a very real Honey, beeswax with oud, heliotrope, myrrh, benzoine and quite strong musk in drydown. • It needs the same thick and deep mind to wear Osang or a strong pleasant emotional associations with listed notes. • If you try it, you will never forget it, even if you like it or not. • I'd put it together with my Moresque Sandal Granada scent as unique honeycomb masterpieces. :)

Let me start by saying that the packaging used to be much nicer with older white cap it fitted the backstory of the fragrance way better. Osang is nothing but a single note fragrance on me from start to finish all I get from it is honey it's a nice quality honey but that's it there is nothing else to it. Sometimes I could almost sense some resins for few moments in the initial blast but then it quickly fades. Longevity is ten plus hours with moderate projection. In conclusion, Osang feels like a boring, one dimensional high end honey note on my skin a pass for me.

So many elements but the stand out for me was the honey, Myhhr and incense...which makes for an interesting combination. From what I sampled I find that this house truly creates out of the box - more masculine or androgynous leaning scents. It is walking into a church lit by hundreds and hundreds of candles. The mood is heavy and extremely intense. The ray of light is in the sweetness of the honey and the undertone of florals. I am glad that I had the opportunity to try this and want to continue sample more from this house.

The honeyed but ARID dusty amber in here has elements that are v reminiscent of Francesca Bianchi's The Black Knight, I see so far no one has spotted this similarity. Surprisingly this seems a bit more wearable than TBK which really attacks your senses without mercy (despite being a masterpiece - don't get me wrong) Regardless, even Osang is an unforgiving scent, it leaves you very little comfort and room to hide. I'm not one for light 'easy' scents usually, but both of those are waaaaay too much even for me.

Osang opens with aldehydic incense, with sweet honey. Then, I detect something spicy, I told myself there has to be immortelle but I realized that it is actually fenugreek which makes sense and let me tell you that there a lot of fenugreek in this fragrance. There is also some powdery heliotrope and prominent labdanum based amber accord. All these notes work beautiful with one exception, there is a urine note that kills this fragrance for me as I cannot move it out of my head.

This is a fine perfume with great longevity and silage that stays at about arms length. It's worth a try, but not my taste. Powder is the main note I get for the majority of the fragrance with every other note underneath unable to make themselves fully present.

Reliqva Filipposorcinelli but a bit more sweet. If you want to smell like a modern church, go for it. It's really amazing. Forget the old church vibe. That's the new church era

Smells exactly like an old church , not really what I’d want to wear personally , but quite the experience to smell

wow, amazing, just love this scent, really different and very pleasant , smoky resins and incense.

Smells like the budget candle section in the home fragrance department of TK Maxx.