Alexandria II

Alexandria is exclusive to Fortnum & Mason in London. I'm so happy that one of the perfumista's on here introduced me to the lovely second floor in F&M. Anyway, back to Alexandria. It's a part of Oud Stars collection. For starters it's very, very long lasting. I had a paper strip sprayed on Saturday and I can still smell it on Wednesday. Smell it not only when I bring the strip straight under my nose but also from about a meter distance. I would describe Alexandria as woody floriental. The notes I can definitely smell through different stages of development are: rose in the opening and middle, lavender - I think the slight whiff of freshness comes from it, very subtle oud throughout the whole life of Alexandria, and finally sandalwood, vanilla and cinnamon in the drydown. There is also something that smells like bitter almonds - not sure what that could be? Maybe just my sense of smell? I enjoyed this fragrance a lot and it's now on the top of my 'to buy list'. Now, on a side note, I didn't really think much of Xerjoff after my big disappointment with Iriss. And I only smelled few Xerjoffs from the Shooting Stars collection but they didn't make my heart beat faster. But Alexandria proved that Xerjoff has beautiful things to offer. Also, another exclusive to F&M is Emery from the Shooting Stars (it's not listed on Fragrantica yet and there aren't any information on the net yet). Emery is a stunningly wonderful oriental rose. I fell in love with it instantly. When it appears on here I will follow with a description of my beautiful experience with it. :-) Update1: I just found Serguey review of Alexandria on here and it says there were only 120 bottles which sold out immediately and that Xerjoff wasn't going to make more. Somebody also mentioned that they did release Alexandria 2 - so maybe that's what I sampled? Need to go to F&M again. Update 2 (26/11/2013): Yes the current version in F&M is Alexandria II. I actually met Sergio Momo in F&M yesterday and had a really nice chat with him. He explained that the difference between Alexandria I and Alexandria II is the oud. The one used in A I was 25 years old. The one used in A II is 5-6 years old but it comes from the same plantation. The rest of the notes is the same. Sergio also explained why they needed to name it Alexandria II saying that even though it's almost identical fragrance yet still the main ingredient is different. That little chat really made my day! Yay :-)

Alexandria II is a fragrance that blends oriental richness with a contemporary twist, anchored by a peculiar use of Laotian oud combined with a rather unusual lavender opening. In fact, the composition starts with a curious mix: lavender, apple, cinnamon and rosewood. The lavender adds a powdery lift that contrasts with the gourmand warmth of apple and cinnamon. In my opinion, this head accord is what sets Alexandria II apart... it’s rare to see lavender leading in an oud-centric perfume, and it lends a nuance of brightness to the otherwise deep and woody profile. The heart reveals rose, lily of the valley and cedarwood, transitioning the scent into a floral-woody phase that feels quite elegant. The base is where the Laotian oud becomes more perceptible, along with the sandalwood, vanilla and musk. The oud here is earthy and slightly hay-like, not really animalic nor stinky. IMHO it is vaguely reminiscent of Loudo oud (courtesy of Mr Maurice), but without the chococaramelly factor. Performance is very good. It easily lasts 10+ hours on skin, and when applied to clothing, it maintains a consistent scent bubble throughout the day. Projection is substantial for the first few hours, then settles into a moderate but persistent aura. Seasonally, Alexandria II is versatile. While it is an obvious option in cooler weather, wearability in warmer months is manageable by containing the number of sprays. Two-three spritzes suffice for a refined presence, without overwhelming. In summary, Alexandria II is a well-structured, oud-forward (but not dominant) fragrance with a unique lavender twist. Do I think it is overpriced? Absolutely yes, but we have discounters and/or people who are too afraid of the Laotian oud... and will be quite keen on getting rid of their bottles :)

Alexandria II by Xerjoff stands above all others in my collection as my ceremonial signature-the scent that announces my presence. What makes it remarkable is how it bypasses the rational mind and strikes directly at something deeper, triggering memory, comfort, safety, and awe all at once. It opens with a freshness polarized by rich darkness, an olfactory experience like no other: palisander rosewood, lavender, cinnamon, and apple, moving into Bulgarian rose, cedar, and lily of the valley, then settles into Laotian oud, sandalwood, amber, vanilla, and musk. Many different woods dancing together with florals and spice. The scent itself is hard to capture in words. Deep creamy woods and floral from lily of the valley, dirty rose brightened by fresh lavender, all wrapped in dark oud, warm amber, embracing vanilla, and caressed by those woods. There’s musk, cinnamon, even apple hiding in there. Together they don’t just blend, they tell a story. It reminds me of ancient libraries filled with aging manuscripts, or the forgotten hull of a decommissioned wooden ship. It’s pungent, demanding,something that takes your breath away while simultaneously making you breathe deeper. Intoxicating. Powerful. Mystical and deeply mysterious, maybe even ancient. There’s nothing else like it. Alexandria II fuses different emotions, different geographies, different intentions into one singular experience. Projection is wide, others will certainly lean in to your space to smell it. Longevity is phenomenal as it lasts 8-12hours on my skin (depending on my activities) and even longer on clothes - retaining its woody, creamy, warm darkness. It’s a 10/10 experience for me, but the expensive price point makes it a 9/10 recommendation.

Judging by al the negative comments that make no sense at all from my personal experience with this fragrance it is very likely that either the fragrance has been reformulated terribly or there is a weird hate thing going on with this fragrance. I own 2 100ml bottles ( which you can see in my profile picture )with batchcodes from january 2017 and march 2017 and there is absolutly no burned or fecal or poor performance or anything negative listed by most latest negative reviews at all with my bottles. Almost everyone who smells this on me has to know what it is bcos it smells so good and they also want to buy it ...( until they know the price 😆) By far one of the most addictive and beautiful perfumes i have had the pleasure of smelling and i sampled hundreds of high end niche perfumes. Perfectly blended,fills a room with only 2 sprays and lasts over 10 hours easy. I guess it must have been reformulated so i am probably not going to buy another bottle of it again and treasure the ones i own and move on to the next great thing. Why do people blind buy perfumes in this price range because the official website from xerjoff sells samples worldwide and you can find samples of alexandria 2 in a lott of different places. I return on a weekly basis to my favorite perfumes to read what other people think of them and i noticed people like Chesco copy paste their bashing of a fragrance and repost it again a few months later so there is a hate thing going on with this perfume otherwise you would not keep reposting your disdain for a perfume

a beautifully made scent by xerjoff. the opening is woody and sweet, the main woody notes here are sandal wood and rosewood to my nose, the oud being a supporting note here and its very very lightly used to my nose. the oud note is balsamic and woody, maybe a bit musky, i really do not get how on earth do people get manure/diaper here, i have asked many normal non fraghead peoples opinion and all instantly fell in love with the opening and the dry down and when i asked them about the manure thing they all thought im crazy. this woody concoction is complimented by tiny dose of cinnamon, noticeable lavender and a small dose of fruity and floral notes. on me the opening woodiness duo (rosewood and oud) dissipates in 2 hours and the creamy sandalwood remains and dominates, the sandalwood is siting on a musky silky vanillic base and some amber woody molecules help with the longevity and diffusion. the scent always feels dense and silky, and makes me feel happy and calm. i have tested the newer batches and the longevity is second to none, 12 hours of solid projection with one spray and the scent can slightly be felt on my skin for 3 days. on the negative side however, the price is just very high, but you get quality here. also i wouldn't recommend this to people who want to "study oud", because oud is not the main star of the show here.