The Oud Affair

Even as a girl who highly favors sweet girlish gourmands, I find this absolutely breathtaking. I was prejudiced against anything oud but as a longtime admirer of Ava Gardner I had to at least try The Oud Affair inspired by her - and it turned out surprisingly well, the fragrance having become almost an instant love for me. Honey is deliciously photorealistic, accompanied by smokiness that gets more prominent within a couple of hours and after a couple more hours begins to degrade slowly, giving way to slightly skanky oud and vanilla. I smell honey even after tobacco is no more. I was afraid that oud would dominate the composition but it is not the case here at all, and as I have a mild interest in classic 80s skank, the oud note does not bother me. This is a perfectly blended fragrance I get a strong sense of harmony from, like there is nothing about it that's wrong in the slightest. No off notes. Undeniably high quality. Quite straightforward but it doesn't take away from its beauty. It's just marvelous. During my ride home it leaned masculine for a while although the ride was longer than usual and the fragrance kept changing, seeming even feminine at times. I could imagine this actually having a spot on Ava Gardner's vanity. Good as it was, I felt unsure whether I just liked the scent or wanted to wear it as a perfume but the more time I spent with it the more I considered the latter. I won't rush to purchase it though because it is quite pricey but my first impression was very positive. It evolves beautifully and keeps your attention the entire time, and a perfume as captivating as this I would want to keep. It's the sort of fragrance you would spend your whole life looking for. Athmosphere-wise it creates a sort of romanticized idea of being a gangster moll and walking into your guy's speakeasy somewhere in the 1920s and you're just there being beautiful around men who smoke and drink and gamble and do business like men do. Great performance, solid 24 hours from a couple sprays, noticeable sillage for half that time. All-round terrific fragrance based off my first impression. Edit: I bought it and haven't had any regrets so far. It's become one of my favorites and I'll say it confidently, it is more than just perfume. It is memorabilia. A little goes a long way and 1-2 sprays will make the bottle last forever, justifying the price tag somewhat.

What a smoking, sultry affair. This is a tobacco scent with gravitas. Yes, more tobacco than oud. Tobacco is dark, smoldering and rich, and the honey is dry and dirty. I find that the tobacco is blended well with the subtle oud which doesn't present many of its animalic qualities. There is indeed a warm woody depth and a meditative darkness about The Oud Affair -- musky, moist pulp, slightly mealy. The honey is integrated well with vanilla, no syrup, no toothache sweetness, warmed with some ginger-spiced earthiness. I don't find any sharpness here. Indeed with similar notes there are commonalities with Tom Ford Tobacco Vanille and Phaedon Tabac Rouge. I find The Oud Affair my favorite blend of the three being a little more straight forward and bearing the same smoldering dark vapor I find in Vilhelm's Dear Polly. Two for two. I'm looking forward to experiencing more from this impressive house. Vilhelm is going to make me go broke.

I see this as a more delicate version of Tobacco Vanille by Tom Ford. I prefer this one. Very attractive on a man. I don't like oud in general (with very few exceptions) and I don't detect much oud in this one. I clearly smell tobacco, a hint of leather, fantastic deep dark but somehow not sweet honey and vanilla which is also not sweet. Spiciness is subtle. I like subtle. Subtle is sexy. Very airy. Amazing longevity (at least 24 hours) and very good silage. The kind of fragrance that you want to experience again and again but in my case I want my man to wear it so that it can work its magic on his skin :-) UPDATE: So I've changed my mind. I want a full bottle of this for myself.

Warm, Comforting, intimate and luxurious. Like a cashmere sweater, this is a classy and refined offering. The opening to me reminds of fresh black tea with a dose of sweetness. A well-rounded fragrance that's smooth and alluring. The tobacco is fresh and reserved but neither smokey nor dark. The oud is very wearable, not animalic or fecal and pairs seamlessly with the tobacco. A more subtle but addictive scent both for yourself and those around you. If you love TF Tobacco Oud or Oud Wood or even Byredo Oud Accord, I highly recommend trying this soon.

Tobacco and Honey when used right can make and awesome fragrant combination and The Oud Affair is no exception. Here there's a spicier edge to it with a gingery incense note that add smoky character to the natural tobacco and honey sweetness. There's a woodiness as well but not in a typical Oud fashion. It a very mature date night evening out fragrance. Guerlain has a similarly good Tobacco Honey fragrance that is sweeter but lacks the smoky woody character of this. Both are unisex but in my opinion works best on a man. The Oud Affair in particular.

on my skin, i get prominent notes of rich honey, tobacco leaf, ash, oud, vanilla. in the background i get hints of lit candle, paper money, and tea. these background notes are more noticeable after about an hour. texturally, this scent is quite viscous. i am so obsessed! it is masterfully blended. it’s such a sexy, confident fragrance. it’s fascinatingly unisex, in the sense that it seems to alternate between very masculine and slightly feminine. for me, this is a perfect night out, upscale dimly lit cocktail lounge/speakeasy type of vibe.

The Oud Affair, in my opinion, is BEAUTIFUL. I disagree with the review below. This was not a disappointment at all. In fact, I was pleasantly surprised! I'm a huge fan of Tobacco Vanille as well, and I think Vilhelm Parfum did an excellent job creating something similar, yet unique in its own way. The longevity is out of this world. I sprayed the sample at 8am, and at 5pm I could still smell it! That is what sold it for me. It outlasts Tom Ford. If you enjoy Tobacco Vanille, there's no way you won't enjoy The Oud Affair.

Ok. No disrespect to Tom Ford TV, but this pulls its pants down and spanks that ass. I own TV, but I feel like this scent is better. It’s different enough to not be a clone too. It’s more complex and doesn’t use that clove note people tend not to like, instead it uses ginger. I own both, but not redundantly. Easy 10 hrs on skin. Amazing performance and the price is way more affordable. This is a more mature scent. It’s sophisticated and complex, same crowd as TF TV. A must try for the genre! 9/10

I really do love this fragrance. It's sweet and potent - almost cloying, but not quite - and has a delightful, powerful vanilla undergirding something a little smoky and a little oaky. But I can't help but feel like this is something a gay Nazi would wear. Don't ask me to articulate why I feel that way, it simply exist in my mind. A gay Nazi would smell like what The Oud Affair smells like. A gay fucking Nazi. Do with that what you will.

I don't think this is BETTER than Herod, it's different, i have both and they are both relevant i like them each for their own. This one has more of a deepness it's darker and less sweet, this one is also giving me already smoked cigar, some of the ash, and the sweetness of the unsmoked cigar. Herod to me is more honey sweet, none of the ash and already smoked cigar. I guess Herod is more gentle?

I read down in the reviews that it’s a better quality tobacco vanille..... and as much as it hurts to say this but it’s the truth I would’ve never dreamed of smelling a better tobacco vanille but it happened and nothing stays on top forever Today tobacco vanille met its rival that is really tough to beat

This is far beyond better than Tobacco Vanille. To put it simply, there’s the smell of a fresh cigar (not smoky) mixed with honey, vanilla and the slightest bit of oud. The ginger butter makes it uplifting! This was a blind buy for me, and it might just be my best blind buy ever!

Tobacco and honey are blended so balance in opening and mid note, both grew very well on my skin. After 3 hours the honey dominated and left the tobacco behind. Oud is missing. A little bit of smoky note will make this scent more beautiful, imo. I love it anyway.

What an incredible perfume. Opens with sweet, syrupy leather and hints of ginger. Then comes the dark tobacco and oud with a background of vanilla. Last for hours. My new signature scent.

I finally tried this house and bought 5 different samples. This is one of my favs out of those! Unisex with a masculine opening but the honey note is lovely in the dry down.

Babchkas's cherry kompot with sweet oud and tobacco. Lovely fragrance for special occations and nights out.

Have a bottle for swap if anyone is interested :)

The Oud Affair Vilhelm Parfumerie (Blind buy) Full review on Jun 15, 2024 When I was on quest to find my Guerlain, I become friend with Guerlain associate, he is also perfumer. We always have a fun talk and he teach me a lot of knowledge. During one talk, he dip his Guerlain paper to one material call “Ambermax” dilute, it was an eye opener experience that there was another world behind the note pyramid. Ambermax, could be explained as sweet, smooth with high density, no balsamic aspect from old way amber, however they is slight burnt note / smoky at very far end as it dry down. Ambermax can be evidenced when smell up-close as burnt note is stronger, you feel it stuck in your nose a bit. Sometimes, Ambermax can be refers as oud due to smoky profile. as use in NEFS (Nishane), Ombre Nomade (LV) as core material. Due to nature of this material, Ambermax utilizes a lot in Tobacco - Honey profile, merge top and heart with honey note, add tobacco in the base, there you have it, tobacco - honey fragrance. I found this material use across modern tobacco / honey fragrance. Even Guerlain or Dior, it just difference decoration. However, even Oud Affair uterlize Ambermax, I found intension to cover ashy base note with vanilla and twist the Brunt aspect to burnt hot tobacco instead. And Ambermax in this fragrance, not very strong as equal as Guerlain or Dior. Oud Affairs open with spiciness and tobacco profile with honey / vanilla sweetness like at begining, around 10 mins post wear up to 1 hours, The honey in Oud Affair is prominent, embody watery texture and sweet than thick and goovy. As scent progress, the honey disappears and it was brunt tobacco leaf note, certain level of ashiness to be enjoy. The scent softer at 4-5 hours post wear and becomes powdery vanilla with soft tobacco leaf, intact on skin. I think I found this similar to Tobacco Honey by Guerlain than Tobacolor which leans very oreintal. And Perfumer have nice idea to refers “Ambermax” as Oud. It is more relatable.. but by all swears, this has zero oud to begin with (woody - oud, maybe) Details of scent is quite ok to enjoy from day to day (I barely use Tobacco) but I do appreciate Oud Affairs now and I would probably keep in my collection. My suggestion for use of this fragrance (actually any oud / tobacco honey fragrance, I would use it slightly farer from skin (like from 5cm to 8cm, so scent more diffusive, ambermax have strong radiance even little use) and lower than neck area. Light hands spray, if you use this way. It will be much much enjoyable (I am prone to concentrated ambermax lately). Score 8/10 (soild standard, round out tobacco honey scent) Projection good Longevity 6-7 hours Classification Unisex.. (You may skip entirely below.. I was uncertain about this fragrance but I know develop certain view, I just want to to keep this trackable..) == Original entry on Feb 9, 2024 == First Impression I was wearing Oud Affair like 2 times. I am tossing my humble opinion like do I like it? Our I just doesn’t like this olfactive in general? However, even Oud Affair is still remains in my “Not-so-sure” territory, in this realm “Honey & Tobacco” other scent doesn’t really had passed this one. I was venture in this realm before “honey-tobacco”. I tested out a few, Mugler Pure Havane, Dior Tobacolor, TomFord Tobacco Vanille and latest Guerlain Tobacco Honey. This one still my favorite blend from this realm. First or all, this is not an oud scent. believe me. They used synthetic oud for sure. It’s leans more leathery to my nose and it doesn’t have any benyard effect at all. I personally think oud in this are for 2 propose. 1.) deepening / darkening the scent. 2.) borrow the woody property to enhance the tobacco. Now, tobacco in this, have 2 faces which cohesively stay well. The one is leafy side which has been dry for a while, the dry-red tobacco with tarnish effect and yet still have mild ashy undertone that I do like. Almost like smell of Cigarette. I personally enjoy this aspect personally, it might not be your test. I have other suggestion at the last paragraph, kindly bare with me for scent review. Honey / vanilla in this, not acided but more like water honey. It is not coiling sweet (at least on my skin) it let’s the tobacco-oud kind of experience stay front and it just there to support and make it easier to wear. The helper was ginger, will add some spiciness to fragrance. It is also kinda of burny feel as scent progress it is provide feeling of paper? I am not sure but nonetheless I enjoy. Density of this fragrance, is really good. Not overly ambery sweet like others I have test. It has certain level or stay power but still airy and transparent. Compare to the scent I have tried before. I found this is somewhat sit between all of others tobacco-honey fragrance that I mention above. But it sort of kinda in a good way for me. - Tobacolor is much more sweet and ambery while still have mild ashy undertone, the honey is acid and thick. it had sort of fuirty plumy aspect that covers in the base, this one doesn’t have - Tobacco Honey is much fresher take on tobacco leaf, lively and leafy. I think it is good. Not ashy at all. The honey is ok too mildly acid but still watery. - Tobacco Vanille is quite similar in tobacco aspect, very rough. But the balsumic Vanilla base is so thick. It is almost reserved for winter, this one doesn’t really have that strong vanilla backbone. It is rather merge with honey beautifully. - Pure Havane, is almost transparent as this and reserved similar sweetness and honey is just slightly more thick/acid. However, the tobacco mostly have leafy aspect with zero to none ashu undertone. Now, I enjoy Oud Affair the most. Ashy, leafy, honey mildly spicy and leathery feel of everything is enough, well round. But it is not for everyone, I believe. I suggests other alternatives above and you may starts there. I am just not really sure about this olfactive I could def. Wear this like a few time a year. But it is just not my thing. I could wear to switch up the mood at best. However, the bottle design of Oud Affair is very much downfall for me. For my small hands it hard to hold, hard to spray in certain area. I have to hold the bottle in weirdest position. It is not really fun experience and it takes way too much store space. It good for an eyes but not for actual use. Still, I really enjoy the scent. But I can’t really score - this is not really my area to be able to score, but I record everything I have test at best.

The Oud Affair Vilhelm Parfumerie Musty Oud Slightly Urinal Powdery With a tinkle of crocus/chaffron specie at the start with no iodine as such Warm Specific A must try before you buy, unless of course you are a sophisticated perfume gourmand👻 With the animalic warmth of cibetin Oud oil. Maybe a vanilla pod Moderately sweet. Musky and fluffy With bitterness and tartness More as a masculine or for a specific weighty woman Burns a bit on the skin, not without spice Not without a distinctive fluffy tobacco, expensive tobacco, these are not cigarettes with a tobacco semblance (Still don't recommend smoking in your life! It is harmful to your health and it is unpleasant to those around you.... "smoke" better tobacco flavors as analogs, there is always a way out if YOU want it!) If you sniff into the skin, it's real candles! It's like sniffing candle wax. More like propolis or wax, beeswax, but not without paraffin. About the urinality, I tried it in the winter, you'd know how much smoke it gives off! And someone's unwashed body, I had a boy classmate at school smell like that🫣🤢. It's still a mystery if his dad liked oud or if he didn't wash and the house was filthy... Kinda like coming from a financially secure family, but it's more like just slightly above average where I was in elementary school I'm just thinking, they didn't sell perfume like that there, it was just cheap and generic😅. If perfume, it was from a big city, but judging by the classmate, he didn't wash after all🤯 Fleur noble as a menagerie, civet in reality 🤣 But today in the rain this fall, he gave a waxy candle for the first time Like probably all Wilhelms, bright, rich on the edge start, and then quietly settle down and diffuse-slate with this one It was heavy to me then, now it's totally normal with experience. The DNA and mannerisms of the brand are clearly visible. The sweetness comes from honey and vanilla. The honey adds an animalic edge. The spice is due to the tobacco and ginger. Although I've been testing it for the last time and I don't hear it as ginger. Tobacco is also fluffy, speaking between us all sophisticated noses, but do not forget that often without musk almost nowhere to do without, and it can be simply silent in the pyramid Oud, of course oud! It's cool here! I'm not sure if it's natural Arabian oil, probably more due to fatty resins and animals, but if it's natural oil, a nice smile to the perfumer😙 Join my Telegram channel "AVRUMs Perfume Notes"! 💙

A lesson on maceration & aging perfumes! I bought a sample earlier this year, around March or Feburary, along with Morning Chess. Back then i loved Morning Chess, and Oud Affair smelled like sad old man. It was damp and meh, like a bad night out. All the notes were there but it felt really depressing to wear. Months later, Morning Chess makes me nauseous now for some reason, and Oud Affair now feels more uplifting? The honey is still there reeeally cold. Imagine throwing a block of honey in the freezer, leave it in for a few days, and grill it over an open flame. It's powdery somewhere but still very cozy, and matches the story Vilhelm wrote a looot better. I love this plot twist! Kinda wish I got more of this instead of Morning Chess now. ☝️ So remember kids, the next time you think a perfume you bought smells bad on you today, let it wait a bit for a couple of months before throwing it out 👍