1 Million Golden Oud

Blind bought this based mostly on 'the Fragrance Apprentice's ravings. And there really is no way to test this anywhere short of several hours flight. Ordered one online, cost me about 140€ with taxes&duties. But on to the review: Presentation: The bottle is the same tacky, plasticky thing with badish atomizer as the rest of the 1 Million line. Completely unacceptable at this price point. Compare it to similarily priced products from eg. Dior and the difference is HUGE. The Scent: Opens spicy, leathery, some oud and moderate sweetness. The leather accord plus spices really remind me of LNDL Eau de Parfum. This takes a very different route further on, though. I usually really dislike sweet fragrances, but this one is really well balanced with all the different aspects. But the middle and drydown is where the magic really happens! The oud in this one does not take center stage, but rather a supportive role together with the leather. On drydown I can better pick up the 1 million DNA, but as a sidenote. All in all I would say that George is absolutely right, the drydown is absolutely gorgeous! Also all the different notes in this fragrance are in perfect balance, and it really feels like they have given a lot of thought in this one. Great stuff! Performance: Initially you get about 3-5 hours of really good projection, not over-the-top but in my estimation this hits the sweet spot between performance and overbearingness. On a work day I applied three careful sprays and after roughly 8 hours I felt that the scent was slowly getting weaker, then I started my home-workout/stretching routine, and as my body heated up I was treated to a huge scent cloud of gorgeusness at about 12 h from applying. So the performance is, I would say, very sufficient to say the least. Keep in mind that this is in the middle of Finnish winter, so in warmer climes thus is going to be a beast. All in all, a rare blind buy success! If only PR would up their game concerning the flacon... I feel that this one should have been a standalone release with better presentation.

Golden Oud (GO) is a very solid release for the One Million line. GO actually smells like a niche oud fragrance, but with reasonable designer prices. If you are able to purchase a bottle within the UAE market as I was able to or a reputable discounter within your home country. While GO could easily pass for as niche oud-wood fragrance. I mainly get oud-wood, dry spices, and a low dosage of sweetness. I also get a tad bit of fleeting floral notes as well. The only thing really lacking about GO is that doesn’t evolve or develop over the course of its life cycle. Which can make GO a slight bit boring and redundant in an already saturated oud fragrance market. GO smells the same when you first spray it and until it fades off your skin. GO may simply smell a slight bit more pleasant as its “intensity” subsides during its wearing life-cycle. Performance and projection are solid and will likely yield most people 8-12 solid hours. GO definitely isn’t a must have fragrance especially if you already own a few bottles of designer/niche oud-wood fragrances. However, GO may be worth considering if you’re a collector or someone that simply likes to acquire exclusive fragrances for a particular fragrance line. While I am not particular fond of the One Million line. I am happy to have two bottles of GO in my collection – just because. 😊😋😛🤣 GO can easily be worn by both women and men, but may be more appealing to men. I also suspect GO will be more appealing to men 35++ years of age or younger guys with more experienced and developed noses and tastes for non-mainstream fragrances. Overall: 7.5/10

By far the most interesting in the Million line up, and one of my most complimented fragrances. This is a rich, long lasting, and decently projecting fragrance. I have received most of my compliments in Spring or Autumn with this one. The biggest being in Spring, shorts and T-shirt weather, I was walking along with a friend when a random woman walked up to us from behind, and complimented the fragrance. She said she followed the trail of the scent. This is first time I've had someone hunt me down to ask what I was wearing, usually it's just a compliment in the same room or walking past. The saffron, nutmeg, black pepper, along with the sandalwood and Oud give this a very masculine leaning feel towards the "westernised" middle eastern spicy-earthy-dry fragrance. Very wearable, even at work, where it was also popular. You only need 3-4 sprays as it projects well and lasts on the skin all day. This is an artists niche-like attempt from Paco Robanne (now just Robanne), and it steps away from the usual youthful synthetic sweet the rest of the line has, and is one of the better interpretations of Oud in the designer world of fragrance. The price-point feels about right. Affordable, and unique enough that you probably won't smell like everyone else, especially if they are wearing another 1 million fragrance.

Purchased this from a company called Step by Step off of Amazon and it was shipped from Kent ,Washington I live in New Hampshire so it came all the way across the United States took 6 days to get. Paid $126 for a 3.4oz bottle and worth every penny and then some batch code is 31291. This is grown-up sophisticated and sexy as FUCK I ❤️ it. Been wearing this for 3 days now wanted to have a go at it before I gave my review. 1st the longevity is killer 2nd the sillage is awesome 3rd the performance is top notch 4th it is definitely blind buy worthy 5th the smell is very complex and different. Some one said in a review here that this smells like Stronger With You Leather and would be a redundant purchase well they need to see a doctor and get their sniffer checked I have SWYL and they both smell very different to me in my humble opinion. This is not sold in the USA 🇺🇸 but ya you can buy it online from someone in the USA 🇺🇸 who got it overseas this was only marketed for Arabia supposedly a limited 500 bottles if you can believe that. I got my bottle very happy. If you buy it from Amazon watch the price because this was going for $175 and only a few bottles left that's how they hook you but watch the price and the number of bottles it changes day to day that's how I got such a good deal. 10/10 for me 😊.

The best iteration of the Oud Malaki DNA, crossed with the best parts of both 1 million and Gucci Guilty Absolute. A motor oil leather, burned incense, and slightly camphoraceous palo santo esque accord (the gurjum balsam) upon which sits a restrained, dark berry orris, and the Oud Malaki-esque spice accord (I smell cardamom, nutmeg, petit grain and bergamot) though here it is smoother and more refined than in the Chopard offering. Delightful stuff and currently in my top 10. A middleweight fragrance that is versatile enough to be a signature. Wear it anytime, anywhere. Decidedly masculine, not at all dated. Gorgeous and perfectly balanced. Better than almost all designer and niche in this olfactory space. Edit: while not smelling completely similar, this sits in the same olfactory space as Jubilation XXV and is, to my nose, preferable in every way. It's more interesting, more warm and human whereas Jubilation always struck me as a bit of an aloof, intellectual take on incense. I'm sure some - maybe most - may not agree but figured this may be helpful if someone really loves the spicy/berry/incense DNA of Jubilation but is looking for something with a different energy.