Gharaam

I was looking for a good slightly more manly interpretation of BR540 for a while - heard Jo Milano had some decent ones etc but it was very hard to source in Europe. By chance, while browsing the page on Musk 01 by Swiss Arabian I randomly clicked on this fragrance profile to check out some of SA’s older releases I never heard about, and was surprised to see people talk about BR540 and the note breakdown on here. Never heard anyone mention this fragrance in conversations about „best 540 interpretations”, but judging from past experiences with SA (their Tobacco 01 is really nice, clearly high quality ingredients as compared to some other ME brands) i immediately ordered a bottle. I had a decant of 540, and since trying it every now and then would go down a bit of a rabbit while chasing that specific ambroxan and saffron overload that gives off this really unique metalic vibe. To me it almost, in a weird way, smells like if you took two magnets that had the smell of amber and had them spinning and clashing against each other like some kind of twisted version of Beyblades. Somehow this scent profile is so unique and so interesting to me. I got the bottle yesterday, sprayed just one spray on a tester strip, and instantly knew this was the one. High quality, seemingly unknown by the community, replicating that Amber magnets feeling of the 540 but slightly less sweet and I think a bit more masculine leaning, honestly really great, and the quality as all SA fragrances is also on point. Smelled great from first spray, no „maceration” needed. Very happy with this - don’t know about the performance because I haven’t given it a full wear yet, but the projection alone I think is above average already, just from the tester strip I could smell it all around my kitchen and living room.

Going to keep this short and simple; this is an extremely high quality version of BR540, one that I can actually smell. All things being equal and both at same price, I'd probably buy this version because I can actually smell it. There is something else that makes this a bit more appealing than BR540, but I can't put my finger on it. All in all, if you like MFK's BR540 or Initio's OfG, then you will definitely adore this.

I was obsessed with BR450 on other people, on me it smells like a hospital mixed with wet mop. I find Cloud too sweet on other people, and some sweet perfumes become 666 times sweeter on me, so 2005 BU here I come. Gharaam is perfect for me as it’s not that sweet and has rubbing alcohol scent which sorts out my morning nausea. Perfect if you’re pregnant. 13/10 will wear till my hormones say enough

If you’re looking for an Angle’s Share dupe this is the one and at a fraction of the $. Spicy, boozie, warm and cozy like your favorite sweater, this is a winner. Definitely my go to winter scent.

I just got this perfume and it does smell like BR540 after few minutes and a lot more after an hour or so. I was ask at work if I was wearing BR. Very nice dupe that wont break the bank.

I purchased the Love collection discovery set (6 samples) and I ranked Gharaam as No. 4 (descending order to favourites). Let me tell you why. Gharaam is not a fragrance that needs a lot of explanation. If you have sampled Francis Kurk's BR540 or any of it's many dupes/ clones/ inspired by fragrances, then you will have quite a good idea what Gharaam smells like, and how the combination of saffron, fir and ambergris work their magic. In comparing Gharaam to other inspired-by fragrances, it is much more wearable- it is not as sweet, not as invasive, however the saffron note is a bit more pronounced in this fragrance, and there is a sort of earthy, almost leather presentation of the fir note. Gharaam is unisex, this, Ajmal's Aristocrat, and Afnan's Mirsaal with love are the only BR540 inspired by fragrances I've found are suitable for men/ women who don't appreciate the intense sweetness of the BR540 DNA. I think this perfume will do well when there is some chill to the air i.e., autumn. Gharaam is not a strong fragrance, of the 6, it ranks 5th in strength and performance.

I wonder if people are smelling different formulations or don't have an authentic perfume. I got a Swiss Arabian little black sampler box with 5 vials from shop.sa-usa.com (Maison D'Orient). I'm getting a candy sweet Baccarat Rouge 540 with creamy white florals and a subtle leather note that I assume is plasticky oud. I like this one better than Mancera's Instant Crush. If you don't know what Baccarat Rouge 540 smells like, then the best way I can describe Gharaam is a very sweet, but not cloying, ambery hard candy scent with white florals and a bit of plasticky leather. This perfume has that synthetic sweetness that is very airy and projects a lot. Feminine. Smell: 7 out of 10 Longevity: 8 out of 10 For reference, I'm female.

I have never smelled Baccarat Rouge before but this Smells VERY similar to Ariana Grande's Cloud except Gharaam is more woodsy,and has a more masculine dry down..It also does not have the hint of coconut that you get with Cloud.Cloud also has a beautiful lavender that this does not have The opening however is the same candy cane smell. The projection and longevity is also pretty similar... I personally prefer Cloud as it's more feminine imo.

Wow!!! As much as I would love to try this fragrance. I don't think I would want another BR540 dupe. I sold my BR540 because I didn't love it and now I'm just plain ole tired of BR540 and these dupe wars. People act as if dupes just started, dupes started back in the late ’80s. It's getting to be tiresome. I'm taking a break from fragrances and enjoying what I have. So perfumers please stop duping BR540 or any other fragrance! Damn!!!

I don't get the comparison with BR. I don't like BR at all but I really like Gharaam. For me it's like a coffee/chocolate/vanilla ice cream with an amber base. Sweet and warm. Very likeable. Performance and scent profile are great. I could buy this one for myself. EDIT: After 8 or 10 hours, effectively this one becomes very close to BR 540. So, I like the 3/4 parts of Gharaam, then the last 1/4 I hate it. Weird...

I love Arabian perfumes and this is no exception. No, I can ́t compare it to Baccarat, for me it smells like Mancera or Montale perfumes. However, its staying power is quite poor on me.

I've never smelled BR540 but Gharaam could definitely pass for Mancera Instant Crush and is a much better deal

Exactly same as Adwaa Al Sharq. Good luck

I blind bought this fragrance based on the hype of the brand and supposed similarities with the so hyped up BCR 540. First off, I won’t say this scent is a safe blind buy, it is different than everything I ever smelled I’m still trying to make my mind about what I think of it. On my skin doesn't project much but when I spray on my clothes its like an atomic bomb and two hours later still going strong which I admit I will be more careful with the quantity next time. The scent start with a fresh opening that in seconds turn into a kind of plasticky sweet smell that lingers into the dry down. Its not woody, its not flowery, its doesn’t smell like nothing natural to me and that kind of bothers me. I’m not saying it smells bad, its just different. Maybe my nose had to get used to those kinds of fragrances. My husband described this scent as “the smell of burnt ketchup” LOL

Got a sampling set of Swiss Arabian perfumes. This one I was excited for bc I heard it resembled BR540 and Cloud— EH. Wrong. This doesn’t smell like them at all. Maybe it does, but without ANY sweetness. It smells very dry and it kind of spicy in a way? I guess it’s not bad if I don’t stick my nose right up to the skin where I sprayed it, but it’s certainly not addictive. Not to me at least. I might like this on my boyfriend, but not on me.

Hmm I’m not sure about this. As if we needed another dupe of BR540 in the first place. It does smell very similar, especially in the opening but it has this weird note in it I can’t detect that is slightly off putting. Thankfully that doesn’t last long and the dry down is much softer. Long wearing on skin and I guess would be good for layering but there are definitely better dupes than this. Not the best from this line at all.

I would not call this a Baccarat Rouge 540 dupe when the only similarity I can smell is the saffron. Once that dries down, which is real fast, there's nothing there but some jasmine and weak saffron. If you really like Baccarat Rouge 540, just buy yourself a smaller bottle doll; this isn't it. Poor longevity, disappears too fast.

Strange experience with this one. I like several others from this line like Hayaam and Wajd, but this one at least on my skin is somehow reminiscent of the smell of eel sauce on sushi. A sweet, fishy smell that as you can imagine isn’t what I want to smell like. Someone else below said “burnt ketchup” and I think that’s also an apt description. Something about the sweetness, fresh accord and the spice didn’t come together well in this one.

This is NOT a dupe, nor a clone for BR540. Not at all!!! This is a “harsh” almost too masculine perfume, not sweet, nor floral, just spicy and very SALTY to my nose. Might remind you of some notes in BR540 but they are not similar perfumes at all. Could work for a man who wants to smell “different”, but I won’t give mine to my husband as that salty note is off putting to me and I would probably not enjoying smelling that around me...

This has the BR540 band-aid medical supply scent mixed with straight up rubbing alcohol that never dies down without the pleasant aspects of the fragrance. So I’d agree with the reviews that say it’s similar but not nice. Very powerful if you enjoy that element but I couldn’t get over the choking doctor office “time for shots” sense. Unsettling and I had to wash it off. I’m not sure what happened here.