Oud Blanc

This fragrance is fabulous, clearly a hidden gem: it’s smooth, very smooth... And certainly unisex - which translates to slightly floral -: Peach, rose, oud and vanilla enhanced with saffron, musk, jasmine and patchouli. There’re very few fragrances that impress me after having tried hundreds, maybe thousands. And this is one of them. The best thing about exclusive editions with Oud is that they don't sell well and finally hit resellers with ridiculous prices, but take advantage quickly because they’re discontinued immediately after. More specific - and important - details about this fragrance: - The oud note is smooth and a bit medicinal, never dirty. It’s perceived as one of the protagonists at the opening, but gradually hides in the base during the dry-down. - The scent quality is simply high-end designer: Do a blind test with releases from MFK and Tom Ford with a camera if you dare, so you don't come up with excuses later. - Perfect projection for a classy fragrance - suggestive, not overpowering - with very good longevity. - In the case of a man, it’s excellent for elegant events in autumn, winter, spring and even for cool summer nights. Another fantastic use is for relaxing and romantic dates: “Oud Blanc” is the perfect kind of scent for a Hollywood’s classic scene in an oriental palace, a starry night, a princess and a prince... So to conclude: - Criminally smooooth and criminally underrated. Undoubtedly, one of my favorite elegant designer orientals.

Over a month of owning this, it's gone from a like to a love. It starts out with a fairly common, thick and velvety oud-rose which (unfortunately) reminds me of Lattafa's Opulent Oud, although this only lasts for a moment. Next, the rose comes to the fore, bright and soft. Within another couple of minutes, a watery, bitter peach note joins in. This really helps the fragrance begin to lighten, and it enter a very "fresh" phase for the next 20 minutes or so. As the peach note recedes to the background the accord they have used to signify oud pops-up. In contrast to the clean white peach, It is rich, smooth and woody. In the later dry down it morphs into a chocolatey wood, perhaps from the vanilla/patchouli combo; nudging things slightly away from fresh and towards smooth. Although "peachy floral" is not your typical masculine accord, I have gotten over the idea of the top end of this being too feminine for me, and now I crave wearing it. Clearly a really well made scent and just ridiculous at <£20. UPDATE: I've given it further full wearings and it's brilliant. Such a satisfying journey through the different phases. I bought this when I was searching for a Zegna Indonesian Oud alternative - this doesn't smell *like* I.O. but it gives the same vibe of "a clean, fresh oud-rose that's not heavy". I'm not usually too bothered about this, but the presentation is 🔥 too.

I heard about this on Agnes Eva’s Youtube channel. It is a blind buy for me. I've made quite a few blind buys based on Agnes' reviews. The rose is quite prominent in this, conspicuous from the very sprayer of the bottle before I’d even applied it to my skin - and what a rose it is! A soft, dishevelled, dusty, rose just tumbled out of a bed of oud. It is gorgeous. Agnes Eva called this a bedtime fragrance and I completely understand as there is something very soft and comforting about it and it is quite sexy, yet innocent. Opening with peach and saffron, the emerging rose is like rose wrapped in a cashmere blanket. The jasmine appears later on. Sillage is quite heavy but longevity was about 3 hours on my skin. This is a cheapie that deserves to be better known. Is it unisex? Absolutely, if you are recognise that sexiness does not always apply to archetypically ‘masculine’ sharp/green/clean notes – I would like to smell this on a man.

Oud Blanc is a delight. The classic combination of rose and saffron has something eternal about it. It is a languorous, broadly Persianate-Mughal scent that evokes balmy formal gardens and sweets seasoned with rose water and saffron. The scent is reminiscent of a heady, sweet rose water with a well balanced woody resonance and an unmistakable saffron hum. The notes are a seemingly simple combination, yet those elements have such an inherent richness and complexity that they can never grow boring. Saffron and rose is an inexhaustibly beautiful and timeless scent profile that, when sprayed, seems to elevate the mundane tasks of daily life. While it certainly has presence, Oud Blanc is not overly heavy. It has a freshness to it that suits daily usage while maintaining the depth and elegance that a woody saffron-rose combination inherently possesses. This is truly a well-crafted treasure.

I bought this last week from a big European online fragrance shop, for under 20 USD, upon the recommendation of fantastic longtime YouTube fragrance reviewer Joy Amin. Amazingly, my bottle, new in cellophane, was apparently manufactured in 2014, the year it launched. How is that possible? It only had one run? And it's in great shape, and completely matured. It's delicious and rich but not too in your face. Except the first 20 minutes, which is very strong. It smells earthy and warm on the skin and fruity and flowery in the air. All with an easy-going oud. Recommended. It smells very much of its time though, mid 2010s, when all those rose-oud blends rushed into European fragrances. And before all the UAE fragrances hit fragrance shops in Europe. In fact UAEs are finally showing up in mainstream shops this year, in Switzerland.