Alienated Essence

Alienated Essence is a heady narcotic elixir indeed: clean balsams, jasmines of both clean and intriguingly filthy varieties, creamy-boozy vanillas, and resinous ambers, incenses (myrrh!), woods of unknown but antique origin. I just tested a single spray on the back of one wrist, and it's projecting like mad, competing with my much more heavily sprayed SOTD. I just got this today, and I'm certain it will be exponentially better in a few months, kept in its dark box, but it's good enough that I could use it now with absolutely no regrets. I'm told the OG is impossible to find these days, at least in good condition and not too rich for my blood, so I'm really glad Dua made this. It's a tribute more than a dupe, in the very best way. Update: I'm picking up on a jasmine-tea accord, too--possibly the jasmine plus cashmeran. On full wear, months later, my thought is, "Wow, August is not the best time for Alienated Essence." And yet the heat brings out the intensity--not that it needs the extra boost, since this juice is nuclear--in both good and bad ways. I go back and forth between smelling jasmine incense in a perhaps not so clean restroom, and smelling a complicated mixture of ambers, balsams, and jasmine, always that unmistakable Alien jasmine, a supersized synthetic that positively CLANGS and TWANGS with feculent fruity aggression. I don't know any other jasmine so brazenly undomesticated. It doesn't seem like a real flower so much as the malevolent spirit of a dead flower that's coming back to exact its olfactory revenge. I am making it sound like I don't like it, and that's true in a way, but I also love it. I love it the way I love the idea of Las Vegas as distinct from the reality of Las Vegas. I love it like Schoenberg's Erwartung. I love it like too much baklava. It's a once-in-a-while kind of fragrance. Nothing I say should be construed as a reflection on how well Dua has recreated this fragrance. I don't know the OG well enough to say, although I do have a bottle of the OG Alien (pre-flankers).

(I don't have a sample of Mugler's Alien Essence Absolue for comparison). This has the same amber that is in Alien Mugler. This is a very smooth amber and is an enchanting fragrance. The jasmine here is not loud like in Alien, but it is still very pretty. This is a very wearable fragrance for work too, only if you spray lightly. BTW, this is a freshly delivered bottle, no maceration time needed. Still smells great! Edit: I have a sample of Mugler's Alien Essence Absolue now. This Dua smells just like it, so I suggest buy that since the Mugler is very hard to find, or a ridiculous price.

Of course I don’t have the OG thank God for The Dua Brand! Insanely sexy, dark, sultry, the incense the black vanilla the orris OMG! The projection is perfection the scent trail I’m leaving is erotic and beautiful! Sooooo many compliments! I’m a Mugler fanatic and this fragrance rings my damn bell baby. Extrait level juice with the performance to back it up. Make sure you’re patient and give this girl a good rest in your drawer to macerate and she will transform into HEAVEN!

I've let this macerate for almost a month after purchase, and it smells incredible, an identical dupe for Alien Essence Absolue. Extra buttery and oily amber, jasmine, and vanilla, very decadent. Major projection, enters the room before you do. Best suited in cool/cold weather.

As ambery-sharp and woody from the cashmere and amber as the Alien EDT with the same oriental jasmine, minus the oriental obnoxious to me citruses of it and the pencil shavings stale woody effect, but this does have SOME of the nutty myrrh and rich buttery orris of the Alien Essence Absolue that I love, but not as amplified. I emphasize that it doesn't have the stale woody element of the Alien EDT or the Alien edp, so I disagree with those who say that Alienated Essence is stale. I agree with those who say that it is close to the regular Alien though. I tried the OG Alien Absolue in 2015 and fell in love with how syrupy and nutty it was. I do not find the same rich syrupy nutty effect in this while it is 90 percent close to the OG. It projects very loud and lasts long though. The drydown becomes more buttery and nutty and this lovely element projects well along with the sharp ambery velvety cashmere, but still I think the orris, incense, myrrh and vanilla should have been more prominent. I find that Korres Cashmere Kumquat which is to me a hybrid of Eau Extraordinaire and Essence Absolue has more vanilla and nutty feel than this due to its almond, so it reminds me more of Alien Essence Absolue in that nutty vanilla aspect than Alienated Essence. Cashmere Kumquat has the citrusy - orange blossom woody almond effect of the Alien Eau Extraordinaire from the heliotrope in the latter, but with a sweet vanilla nutty feel as its almond mimics the myrrh of Alien Essence Absolue. This is still nice and can be paired with the Korres one.

Inbefore "tldr": Alienated Essence is an identical dupe. Let me also preface that I love jasmine and I enjoy Alien and some of its other flankers (especially Goddess Intense). I missed out on even trying Alien Essence Absolu, so I bought Alienated Essence a month ago, as I've heard it's exactly the same. (I've let it "mature" for a month since getting it, as you should with Dua's.) I ended up buying a decant of og Absolu anyway, because I needed a frame of reference... reason being that I didn't really like Alienated Essence when I got it. "This can't be like the discontinued original that everyone is raving about"... I thought there was something wrong with Dua or with my nose, so I had to compare. Yeah, well I got my Absolu decant and was disappointed, because it's exactly the same LOL. It's true! There are very minor differences, but Dua nailed it. It was just so unexpected for me to dislike Absolu, but I'll save the reasons why on the actual Alien Essence Absolu product page. It has way more to do with my chemistry than it does the fragrances themselves, so... woe is me, I guess. Moving on: The barely discernable differences lie in the rendition of the jasmine and the incense notes in each. The jasmine note in the og Absolu is sweeter, while the jasmine is a bit stale in Alienated Essence. OG Absolu's incense note is smoother, while the incense in Alienated Essence is a bit more like burnt rubber. Only slightly. But on its face, without nitpicking, they smell exact. AND... and, get this: Alienated Essence lasts way longer and projects better. If you are a die-hard Absolu enjoyer, then yes, this is your dupe.

Dua did a good job with this...I wouldn't call it an exact dupe for Alien Essence Absolue but it is close. Luckily I was able to find carded samples of Essence Absolue to compare. To me Essence Absolue smells richer, smoother, more rounded. I am picking up more of that myrrh/incense/orris combo with touch of vanilla that gives it a buttery "root beer" feel. Alienated Essence smells a little anemic in comparison although it projects very well and I love that the juice is not super dark and stains clothing like Essence Absolue. This dupe will whet my appetite for the real thing for the time being. Maybe with more time to sit it will smell better but I am still gonna save up to purchase Alien EA one day ❣️

Kinda underwhelming for myself personally.. as someone who’s been DYING to try alien essence absolue, I think I might’ve set my expectations too high. It’s nice but also a little bit boring to me

I took a chance on this one and it is good. DUA did a really good job with this one. I get that rich smooth creamy dry down from Alien Absolute had and that I love and miss. Maybe not one to one exact but close enough .Where the now reformulated Alien has that slight soapy sharper jasmine. I need a bigger bottle 1.1 ounce DUA doesn’t cut it for me. Alien Absolute is such an iconic scent for me. Thierry Mugler was channeling from the ethers some iconic, unforgettable scents straight down to the style of the bottles . Edit: after 6 months with this it turns sorta root beer, soda like maybe licorice on me which wild because I despise licorice and root beer passionately. But for some reason it’s so smooth and comforting on my skin. Who knew