Background:
A few months ago, Ensar and I got talking about some of the issues we have been facing on the supply side of Oud lately. We talked about woods, oils, the pitfalls of the trade, some of the recent unexpected changes in the wind, and a whole lot of other topics.
It wasn't until yesterday that Ensar had the idea to continue writing to each other, but to take it to a public platform. I thought that was a brilliant idea, and so here we are. I hope others will benefit from our correspondences (think of them as emails, but disclosed publicly), or at the very least, find them entertaining. Whereas we may (and actually do) disagree on some issues, hopefully things won't get too nasty! To me, the crafting of Oud is an art, and art is a very personal expression of opinions, skills, and practices.
Ensar, I know we have, we do, and we will continue to disagree on some of the minutae of Oud Distillation. Perhaps things might get awkward. But I hope that both you and I don't lose sight of the fact that even though the continuation of our discourse is now becoming public, we will continue to be genuine, as if there are no eyes seeing our correspondences besides yours and mine.
Like you mentioned elsewhere earlier, there is a lack of peer review and constructive critique in this trade. Well, that's no surprise, as the oil of this precious wood is typically just sold as a 'sellable commodity', no different from rice, socks, or batteries. To you though, I know that Oud is more than that, just as it is to me. There may be no peer reviews for socks, but I sure do believe Good Oud is art and thus deserving of it.
I would like to start off this thread by quoting the two email I sent to you yesterday, after smelling some of your Sultan Series oils (Sultan Ahmet and Sultan Mustafa, for the public record). Thanks again for sending the oils to me!
A few months ago, Ensar and I got talking about some of the issues we have been facing on the supply side of Oud lately. We talked about woods, oils, the pitfalls of the trade, some of the recent unexpected changes in the wind, and a whole lot of other topics.
It wasn't until yesterday that Ensar had the idea to continue writing to each other, but to take it to a public platform. I thought that was a brilliant idea, and so here we are. I hope others will benefit from our correspondences (think of them as emails, but disclosed publicly), or at the very least, find them entertaining. Whereas we may (and actually do) disagree on some issues, hopefully things won't get too nasty! To me, the crafting of Oud is an art, and art is a very personal expression of opinions, skills, and practices.
Ensar, I know we have, we do, and we will continue to disagree on some of the minutae of Oud Distillation. Perhaps things might get awkward. But I hope that both you and I don't lose sight of the fact that even though the continuation of our discourse is now becoming public, we will continue to be genuine, as if there are no eyes seeing our correspondences besides yours and mine.
Like you mentioned elsewhere earlier, there is a lack of peer review and constructive critique in this trade. Well, that's no surprise, as the oil of this precious wood is typically just sold as a 'sellable commodity', no different from rice, socks, or batteries. To you though, I know that Oud is more than that, just as it is to me. There may be no peer reviews for socks, but I sure do believe Good Oud is art and thus deserving of it.
I would like to start off this thread by quoting the two email I sent to you yesterday, after smelling some of your Sultan Series oils (Sultan Ahmet and Sultan Mustafa, for the public record). Thanks again for sending the oils to me!
Taha Syed said:
Mon 26/9/2016 11:42 PM
Today, after a *VERY* long time, your oils did for my nose something it hasn't experienced in a long time. When I am designing a distillation, and during the process (as well as after, of course), the aroma is always 'adulterated' by my nafs. Like Sheikh Nuh once said, music is a pure expression of the nafs. And such is the case with any form of art. When I smell my own creations, I smell 'me' in them.
When I smelled the Sultan Ahmet and Sultan Mustafa, the 'Taha' was of course not there. That filter was removed.
So what did I encounter?
I encountered Ensar. I encountered Oud. I encountered Ensar Oud; two oils that are masterpieces which cannot be replicated by another soul, for all the reason you know all too well..
I go to sleep tonight, with one question on my mind. I wonder how many noses are able to appreciate your creations to the deserved level of appreciation. It may be the fact that I've dabbled with distillation myself so I can appreciate certain intricacies, or perhaps it might be the artsy fartsy guy in me (you should see my assessing paintings, sometimes I'll be lost for ages in the beauty of one brush stroke).
Either way, I have a feeling that the places these two oils touched were perhaps deeper for me than for the average nose. For their sake, I'm hope I'm wrong.
Today, after a *VERY* long time, your oils did for my nose something it hasn't experienced in a long time. When I am designing a distillation, and during the process (as well as after, of course), the aroma is always 'adulterated' by my nafs. Like Sheikh Nuh once said, music is a pure expression of the nafs. And such is the case with any form of art. When I smell my own creations, I smell 'me' in them.
When I smelled the Sultan Ahmet and Sultan Mustafa, the 'Taha' was of course not there. That filter was removed.
So what did I encounter?
I encountered Ensar. I encountered Oud. I encountered Ensar Oud; two oils that are masterpieces which cannot be replicated by another soul, for all the reason you know all too well..
I go to sleep tonight, with one question on my mind. I wonder how many noses are able to appreciate your creations to the deserved level of appreciation. It may be the fact that I've dabbled with distillation myself so I can appreciate certain intricacies, or perhaps it might be the artsy fartsy guy in me (you should see my assessing paintings, sometimes I'll be lost for ages in the beauty of one brush stroke).
Either way, I have a feeling that the places these two oils touched were perhaps deeper for me than for the average nose. For their sake, I'm hope I'm wrong.
Taha Syed said:
Mon, 26/9/2016 10:11 PM
I am right now sniffing the two 'Sultan' oils you included (Sultan Mustafa and Sultan Ahmet), as I couldn't resist starting with those. My gut feeling was that the Sultan Series is the epitome of your 'personal diary' interpretation/experience of agar, expressed on your canvas (the distillation). Sort of the equivalent of what I call my 'Gen3'. And I think I was right.
Ensar, you must pardon me..
I simply cannot revert back to you today with my detailed thoughts on these two oils.
These two oils have yanked my ruh and intertwined them with yours, a sort of rapture I seldom experience. Right now, please allow me to enjoy this fana. It is as though I am one with the oils, and I am also one with you (I can almost feel the neurons charging up and zapping in your brain, as you designed the distillations).
I am so immensely enjoying the stories these two oils are telling me, and I am so engrossed in them, that I must ask you to grant me respite for me to recount the anecdotes from these two journeys to you another time.
As a side,
If indeed your Sultan Series is how I am imagining it (the brainchild of your most personal and intimate relationship with oud), I am beside myself with joy. There are times I fear my own nose has become far too esoteric in unravelling the scent of oud, but when I smell these two oils, it is as though I see the constitution of the wood completely taken apart and then reassembled perfectly in these oils (Sic: the experience suggested to me that just maybe my esotericism does not pass into the domain of insanity; either that or your experience with agar is as 'insane' as mine, reflected in your creations).
You know I've always enjoyed all your oils, but these Sultan Series oils are the finest testaments to the quality of the wood you use and your accomplishment as a distiller in capturing their truest essence in oils.
Now,
Let me be.
The oils are calling.. : )
I am right now sniffing the two 'Sultan' oils you included (Sultan Mustafa and Sultan Ahmet), as I couldn't resist starting with those. My gut feeling was that the Sultan Series is the epitome of your 'personal diary' interpretation/experience of agar, expressed on your canvas (the distillation). Sort of the equivalent of what I call my 'Gen3'. And I think I was right.
Ensar, you must pardon me..
I simply cannot revert back to you today with my detailed thoughts on these two oils.
These two oils have yanked my ruh and intertwined them with yours, a sort of rapture I seldom experience. Right now, please allow me to enjoy this fana. It is as though I am one with the oils, and I am also one with you (I can almost feel the neurons charging up and zapping in your brain, as you designed the distillations).
I am so immensely enjoying the stories these two oils are telling me, and I am so engrossed in them, that I must ask you to grant me respite for me to recount the anecdotes from these two journeys to you another time.
As a side,
If indeed your Sultan Series is how I am imagining it (the brainchild of your most personal and intimate relationship with oud), I am beside myself with joy. There are times I fear my own nose has become far too esoteric in unravelling the scent of oud, but when I smell these two oils, it is as though I see the constitution of the wood completely taken apart and then reassembled perfectly in these oils (Sic: the experience suggested to me that just maybe my esotericism does not pass into the domain of insanity; either that or your experience with agar is as 'insane' as mine, reflected in your creations).
You know I've always enjoyed all your oils, but these Sultan Series oils are the finest testaments to the quality of the wood you use and your accomplishment as a distiller in capturing their truest essence in oils.
Now,
Let me be.
The oils are calling.. : )