Odoon

Don't be fooled by the prominence of the smoke icon looming large at the top of the note votes. Odoon is surely a smoky perfume but it's not one of those where everything is dominated and bonfire sizzled by the smokiness. What impressed me about Odoon was the sheer commitment to the woody vibes in here, no jarring top notes for the sake of Indy originality, no quirk or gimmick just a perfumer taking a concept through to it's logical conclusion and ending up with a stunning perfume. For all that, it's not massively original, I think I've smelled stuff similar but can't place it, although I could be wrong because had I smelled this before I'd likely have procured a full bottle. I'm even going to go as far as saying that Odoon was the highlight of my perfume sampling from 2018. It's sublime. Heavy resinous woods, thick turpentine edged, with a brutal opening (as per everything Pekji) to the smoothest and most beautiful of landings. It's seeped in cedar wood, naturally smoky oak, sandalwood and perhaps vetiver too? This is a masterclass in how to do, smoky, dry woods that have impact but aren't too intrusive, this is a touch more wearable than some of the the others from the line which have a touch of the artistic, extrovert, savagery about them. I love Odoon and I want a bottle, it's as simple as that. Update: Wore this fragrance again today and I have to say I neglected to mentioned the curried, slightly sweaty note in here which I put down to coriander seed or caraway or something in my IG review. My mum said I smelled of celery and that's when it hit me that Odoon smells quite a bit like celery salt, that kind of concentrated celery aroma. Omer Pekji actually set me straight confirming that the spice that's so prominant in Odoon is actually fenugreek, a spice I don't think I've ever used in cooking? He also mentioned that newer formulations of Odoon with have the fenugreek content reduced by two thirds.

Sampling Pekji Odoon, a dry but semi-sweet woody and resinous blend consisting of pepper, a strong mix of woods (ash, cedar, guaiac, pine, sandalwood), vanilla, and notable resinous presence, not specified much beyond that, but perhaps a mix of benzoin and labdanum—a little sweet, and little smoky with the vanilla. It does not feel overloaded in any one aspect—woody, spicy, resinous, or sweet—but rather, a quite effective balance of all of these elements. It feels well-rounded and complete, well-thought-out to the point that I think lots of people could enjoy this, particularly in the winter, and it does not smell too much like any other fragrance, at least that comes to mind now, in that it’s less resinous or vanilla-laden than numerous other options, and the particular blend of woods plays really nice with the pepper to have a sort of genuine outdoor feel that’s nonetheless brought indoors a bit by the vanilla. This is certainly my favorite of the line so far (I still need to try two others in the discovery set of 5 that I bought from Luckyscent, however), a cool weather gem that performs well, also. Like the rest of the line, Odoon is priced at $165 for 50ml, in extrait concentration, and is sold in the US at Luckyscent and a few other boutiques like ZGO. I think the value is very good here, as Odoon could be worn frequently or occasionally and has that quality of being a potentially everyday scent that also smells special, something I feel that stems from Creed Spice and Wood, perhaps a lighter, less complex comp, even, while we’re on the subject. 8 out of 10

Odoon is the hyperwood. I can't think of a better start for describing Odoon than the incipit of the fragrance's own ad copy. Odoon is indeed the hyperwood. The quintessential woody fragrance. It's smoky, creamy, dry, sweetish, dusty, angular, smooth, deep, fresh, warm, rounded, edgy, earthy, clean, dirty...it's wood in all its facets and it has umami too. As simple as that. Think about either Wonderwood or Wonderoud with even more woods and with a thicker and smokier bone-structure. There's a hint of something floral somewhere but it's just a refinement while a resinous vetiver base enhances the general *woodyness* to the maximum. A no-brainer for woods lovers. Rating: 8-8.5/10

To me this smells like a honeyed labdanum. It's linear, but rich. Has the depth of natural oils, but lasts all day. I love it.

This is a sweet, resinous, smokey wood fragrance. Cedar and pine are most prominent with some pepper, musk, smoke, ash and resins. This does smell like freshly cut wood or wood shavings being ground at a mill but sweetened up and with a little bonfire in the background. A nice fragrance. Reminds me of a lumberjack. Very sticky and resinous almost like he is tapping a maple tree.