Scent of Yesterday..didnt have time to post
I paid Taha a visit..Was I shocked to see him with a makeshift walking stick waiting for me! Thanks for having me Taha.May you be rewarded for your good deeds.
I'll try and describe the oils the best I can...though it won't be enough to do them justice due to my inexperienced nose..and it wasnt in the best of conditions yesterday...but here goes
1. Chamkeila (to be released) & Shano shokat..Taha's latest hindi Ouds..dark, black oils (not sparkly golden, green etc..Don't see any marketing trick here).
They are definitely from the same family. Barn-less hindi. Why do I put them together? Because I can't dissect the differences with great accuracy. Chamkeila, reminded me of patchouli. Deep, earthy sweetness. Some would say musky, and even Taha said that..not that far off due to the chemical compound in it (was it irone you mentioned Taha?).. Shano for me had the similar grounding, earthy body but presented in a different way..
2. An unreleased hindi. Currently nameless. I dont think it'll ever be released on the website. Barnless too. I get the same core structure as the other hindis..Finally I got to know how high quality barnless hindis should smell like. More information to key in my scent memory library. Very educational session on hindis..
3. A nameless, unreleased Koh Kong . Surplus from a custom order distillation if I'm not mistaken. Definitely a true blue cambodi. Sweet, smooth, some terpenic hints of incense notes, without any off notes. Super friendly oud for the uninitiated and western noses in general. A really good oil.
4. Unreleased maroke oil. Ethereal.clean. airy. Ample woodiness. Kind of clears your mind albeit I think. No burnt plastic/rubber notes. Nicely done. One of my favourite types of Oud..not too far from Malaysian thematically..perhaps due to my nationality bias
Here comes the scent bombs.. aquilaria sinensis oils..strangest ouds I've experienced so far.
5. To be released Lao (1) oil..opens up with ample amounts of terpenic molecules, with some sweet dried fruits tagging along..then it exudes slight bitter and woody notes..maybe this is the medicinal notes famed in sinensis? Then it turns sort of hindi final stage dry down notes..then it ends as something else. Very difficult for me to put my finger on it! The sweetness remains until near the end though, but in decreasing intensity.
6. To be released Lao (2)...the big brother of the two..in the sense of intensity! The most terpenic, woody opening oil I've smelled...ever. no fruits. Woody.bitter notes...morphing into something else now and then..Hard to explain its complexity..sorry guys (and Taha)
Aaaand....I think I short circuited my sense of smell..haha. of course I didnt return empty handed..had a dab of one of the oils yesterday..could barely smell it without deliberately putting my nose at my wrist..but when I asked a friend about it, he said he could smell the oud right when I stepped into his car. Sort of frustrating I cant appreciate the oils at its maximum potential..atleast I now know how getting serious olfactory fatigue feels like...
Gotta take a break from oud for a while I guess :/ sorry if I missed anything Taha! Too many to remember every tiny detail. Definitely not doing much justice for your oils. Need more practise and training.
Oh..about the "little vial" in Taha's latest post about Assam..Saw it..had a whiff..no barn. Not pitch black. Clean..also tried a laosi oil by the same distiller of the two bombs, but with his own techniques and specifications..very different..opens up abit dirty..and bitter..then super sour..unpleasant to my nose (Taha, your description of it as old socks might be what I'm detecting here)..then almost hindi barn-ish..then back to bitter..not as good but still very complex..maybe it's just not my taste?
Aand maybe some other stuff but lets end it here.