SOTD

Sultan Abdüs Selam this morning.
Maybe next time I’ll layer it with some XLL so I can achieve a Jungle Trifecta:)

A while ago.....a layering of a tiny bit of Ward Al Ta’ifi with Assam Organic Meghalaya.
The nuance of AOMeg got lost. Probably too much Rose. I barely even let the tip of the applicator touch, but still, versus a swipe of oud, maybe a micron of Rose should be applied:confused:
Yes the rose is overpowering at first if you add a bit too much. But let it sit two or three years and the rose and Oud learn how to get along very nicely with one another. My experiment was with Maroke 2004 and Bulgarian rose Otto. If I do it again I’ll use 2ml of Maroke and 0.5ml of rose, probably Bulgarian, not Tai’ifi. And just maybe, 2 or 3ml of an Assakicko sandalwood like Santal Sultan. Yeah, maybe I will. Thanks for jogging the gears Oudamberlove!
 

Rasoul S

Well-Known Member
Three of us vancouver Oud heads got together and sniffed and swiped and had a wicked time with first of the season first flush darjeeling.

What stood out for me:
Assam 3000 is awesome!!!
Oud hud is a beast
Older 05? Assam organic is on dif plateau compared to younger versions
Yunnan exclusive is a force. Sharp sobering boozy and medicinal to the power of 10
Royal Bhutan is a drier less fruit more animal barn compared to nirvata
Kyara Ltd 2.0 is game over
Lavanya is a palate cleanser and reset button true to origin and taha style. I like it
Xll is growing on me
Vintage khus is next best thing after oud and shows plenty of complexity
Oud mustafa 4 is awesome while number 5 is curious. Can’t comment further. Neither have any resemblance to the new number 7
 

saint458

Well-Known Member
*** At noon (too hot in here)...
EO Green Papua on both side of beards
EO Tigerwood95 on neck
EO Borneo Zen behind both ears ...

Upfront ancient jungle vibe ... in background hints of a mountain of pure musk ... floating clouds of even medicinal musk ... a dolby surround jungly resinousness with muskiness all around. I couldn't resist myself ... at last I lied down thus fallen asleep on the floor with a musky happiness.

** Right now at evening ...
EO Borneo 50k on both side of beards
EO Borneo 2000 behind ears
EO Suriranka Senkoh on neck ...

... Triple shot airyness with extreme unknown floweriness ... will tell the rest later ...
 
Last edited:

5MeO

Well-Known Member
Today - Yunnan '03 on the right, Chinese Exclusive on the left.. I'll tell y'all what, when one has a crave for Chinese oud nothing else will do! These are like the kombuchas of the oud world - tart and fermented and funky.. The other day I had Oud Zachariyya on the right and China Sayang on the left - the mighty Oud Zachariyya smelled like a tame gentle woodsy thing compared to the beastly China Sayang..

Quick history lesson - when Ensar released Chinese Exclusive several years ago many in the oud world did not like it, and even considered it a heretical distortion of what oud should be.. Now, of course, we know those people were fools - Chinese Exclusive having vaulted to the talk of legend, spoken about in hushed and reverential tones.. Having acquainted the oud world for this most peculiar orange peel/musk/pheromone the other Chinese oils have been released, and to great fanfare... Anyhow, I'm loving the Chinese Exclusive today..

Two days ago I had China Sayang on the left and Hainan 2005 on the right - I have long said I like Hainan 2005 better, but on this day I enjoyed them equally.. Both have this remarkable juxtaposition of fermented/funky/animalic and the freshest cleanest airiest quality.. CS seems denser, more toward earthy woodiness, whereas the Hainan 2005's notes are composed more loosely, with a big crowd-pleasing fruity quality to it..
 

Oudamberlove

Well-Known Member
Suriranka Senkoh and Wilpatu Raja
The last swipes from samples:(

SS is fantastic, clean cut. An isolate of beauty.
WR is spicy, metallic/mineral, with fruits of banana and green mango.

I love WPs, but I had to reach for yet another swipe, this time from an oil/region that is so satisfying to me. Assam Organic Meghalaya :cool:

Blisssssed:rolleyes:
 
Hainan 2005

I received my order of this Oud yesterday evening so of course I tore open the package and swiped some. Since it was the end of the day the swipe went over vestiges of the Green Papua and Bio Ingravitesa I’d worn earlier, and, I’ll admit, my nose was dulled by an adult beverage with dinner. My first impression was Barney Hindi. (Isn’t Barney Hindi that new distiller competing with Russian Adam in Indonesia?) Obviously I wasn’t able to properly consider this famous oil.

Things were very different this morning. I purposely kept my nose away from the medium swipe I put on my forearm. The sillage, unbelievably, was Thai or Cambodi! Sweet, fruity, gelatinous overlaying a barn that was fresh and warm like saddled horses. My mind wandered awhile as I was busy with other things, and now, about two hours later as I focus again, there is Kinam smoldering in this stuff. It doesn’t punch you in the face and grab you by the ears like Kyara Ltd, but it’s there, and so strong and bitter I could taste it even though I was just smelling it on my arm. It’s that little curlicue of kyara smoke that catches you at the top of your throat. I can’t really tell if it’s green, red, or purple. Maybe I’d call it black pepper kinam if synesthesia is coming to me at all. Obviously there’s a lot of work to do before this one will be figured out.
 
Last edited:
Today - Yunnan '03 on the right, Chinese Exclusive on the left.. I'll tell y'all what, when one has a crave for Chinese oud nothing else will do! These are like the kombuchas of the oud world - tart and fermented and funky.. The other day I had Oud Zachariyya on the right and China Sayang on the left - the mighty Oud Zachariyya smelled like a tame gentle woodsy thing compared to the beastly China Sayang..

Quick history lesson - when Ensar released Chinese Exclusive several years ago many in the oud world did not like it, and even considered it a heretical distortion of what oud should be.. Now, of course, we know those people were fools - Chinese Exclusive having vaulted to the talk of legend, spoken about in hushed and reverential tones.. Having acquainted the oud world for this most peculiar orange peel/musk/pheromone the other Chinese oils have been released, and to great fanfare... Anyhow, I'm loving the Chinese Exclusive today..

Two days ago I had China Sayang on the left and Hainan 2005 on the right - I have long said I like Hainan 2005 better, but on this day I enjoyed them equally.. Both have this remarkable juxtaposition of fermented/funky/animalic and the freshest cleanest airiest quality.. CS seems denser, more toward earthy woodiness, whereas the Hainan 2005's notes are composed more loosely, with a big crowd-pleasing fruity quality to it..
“Kombucha of the Oud world!” Terrific!
 
Oud ahmad. Sad to think oil’s like this won’t be around anymore or if they will be still made, us mortals will be completely priced out. In fact I am Already priced out but imagine 5-10-20 years from now...

Perfect oil. Perfectly aged. A true legend. Muskiest oud I have seen.
Hey Rasoul, Oud Ahmet and Sultan Ahmad both have me wondering. I see you’ve reviewed Ahmad too, on a couple of occasions. I wonder if you’d write a little compare/contrast essay on these two mysterious contenders.
 

Oudamberlove

Well-Known Member
Morning swipes:
My Filaria blend on the left,
Inderapura Encens on the right.

IE is aging like a real champ....almost gone are the smokey notes, add a little vanilla in the opening, this oil deserves to be aged for decades. Wish I had more than one bottle.

Well, as if I’m not oudified already, I had to swipe another aromatic. My best Siberian Musk macerated in Ali sandalwood oil (very high ratio), 4&1/2 months aged, layered with some ASO Ward Al Ta’ifi (This time, I just touched the outer dipstick without pulling the dipstick out. That left just some tiny amount on my fingertip to layer onto the Musk swipe). One sniff and “instant bliss!!”
3FD8A054-28F1-4078-9AB0-AD1A7550C686.jpeg

Later today......,

A gOud friend sent me some samples today.

So I went Crazy and swiped many oils.

Sylhet Supreme, Nagaland Imperial, Midori Qi, Taigo Senkoh, Laos Classic, and Zazen.

Also sniffed some off the stick:
Old School Kinam, Habz aged Borneo, and Sinensis 3

I’m in Oud Heaven:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:
 

Rasoul S

Well-Known Member
Hey Rasoul, Oud Ahmet and Sultan Ahmad both have me wondering. I see you’ve reviewed Ahmad too, on a couple of occasions. I wonder if you’d write a little compare/contrast essay on these two mysterious contenders.
Completely different oils only similarity is somewhat in the name. Oud Ahmad is a mellow mature musky earthy oil (virtually no terpy or vaporous top note) while sultan ahmet is a bright powerful top note heavy oil. tingling kinamic beast of an oil. Not remembering the age but it smells young while Oud Ahmad feels even older than its actual age. Iirc Oud Ahmad is a 2001 oil.
 

Rasoul S

Well-Known Member
I often wonder what it would be like if I had access to oils like Purple Kinam, Nha Trang LTD and Royal Guallam
Then I swipe Tigerwood 95, and I begin to wonder why I even wondered in the first place.
Nothing but pure adoration for TW95. Possibly my all time favorite.
Currently blissed out.
Totally. I myself prefer twr but tw95 is a thing of beauty too. Don’t overlook Kinam rouge as it is one of the most complex oils and I don’t know how to put it into words but to me if you love tw95 then kinam rouge is a natural next step. Each time I visit it a different facet of it jumps out.
 
Completely different oils only similarity is somewhat in the name. Oud Ahmad is a mellow mature musky earthy oil (virtually no terpy or vaporous top note) while sultan ahmet is a bright powerful top note heavy oil. tingling kinamic beast of an oil. Not remembering the age but it smells young while Oud Ahmad feels even older than its actual age. Iirc Oud Ahmad is a 2001 oil.
Thank you Rasoul.
 

Rasoul S

Well-Known Member
@Larry K. i would say both are such special oils that are to be owned if one has the fortune and the means. But if one has to absolutely only choose one then without hesitation I would say Oud Ahmad. It’s just a singular unique oil and so special and so rare that is a must have. Like a dying breed of an exotic animal. One wants to visit themor learn more about them before they go extinct.

Sultan ahmet while very special has a few other oils that could scratch that itch when it hits. Sultan mustafa. Sultan Sulayman even...
 
@Larry K. i would say both are such special oils that are to be owned if one has the fortune and the means. But if one has to absolutely only choose one then without hesitation I would say Oud Ahmad. It’s just a singular unique oil and so special and so rare that is a must have. Like a dying breed of an exotic animal. One wants to visit themor learn more about them before they go extinct.

Sultan ahmet while very special has a few other oils that could scratch that itch when it hits. Sultan mustafa. Sultan Sulayman even...
I’ll admit I was leaning towards Sultan Ahmet because Taha and Russian Adam gave it such praise, coupled with the implication Ensar must have thought it special enough to send to luminaries like them. Your comments make me think I must try Ahmad. So instead of getting 0.7g of just one, I’m ordering 0.3g of both.

It seems to me that you’re right-the best Ouds are going to be unattainable to normal people and this is happening fast. My calculation is that it doesn’t make sense to “invest” in rare Ouds because any ultimate buyer is unlikely to trust an outsider like me regarding provenance, storage, freedom from adulteration, etc. However I do think that if we want a “library” of exquisite scents, just as a reference regarding what once existed in the world, we have to act now. So I’m buying tiny quantities of the best there is, and topping them off with argon each time I visit them.
 

Rasoul S

Well-Known Member
I’ll admit I was leaning towards Sultan Ahmet because Taha and Russian Adam gave it such praise, coupled with the implication Ensar must have thought it special enough to send to luminaries like them. Your comments make me think I must try Ahmad. So instead of getting 0.7g of just one, I’m ordering 0.3g of both.

It seems to me that you’re right-the best Ouds are going to be unattainable to normal people and this is happening fast. My calculation is that it doesn’t make sense to “invest” in rare Ouds because any ultimate buyer is unlikely to trust an outsider like me regarding provenance, storage, freedom from adulteration, etc. However I do think that if we want a “library” of exquisite scents, just as a reference regarding what once existed in the world, we have to act now. So I’m buying tiny quantities of the best there is, and topping them off with argon each time I visit them.
dear @Larry K.
no doubt. of the sultan oils i have tried, sultan ahmet is the jewel in the crown. but as you said, for creating a library of scents that may be lost forever and in front of our eyes in no time, oud ahmad is the first to go. if means are very restricted and only 0.5 or 0.7 of one oil is all one can procure, then i stand by my strong vote for oud ahmad first.
 

Philip

Well-Known Member
My calculation is that it doesn’t make sense to “invest” in rare Ouds because any ultimate buyer is unlikely to trust an outsider like me regarding provenance, storage, freedom from adulteration, etc.
I am not saying this about you specifically @Larry K. but I will never understand how people buy Oud as an "investment." I never purchase with the intent to resell, much less consider Oud a commodity, in the strict sense of monetary value and its potential increase. My collection is very, very near and dear to my heart. Sometimes I don't even need to swipe, I just open my box, smile, and walk away feeling replenished.

BTW, I agree with @Rasoul S . I have never tried Oud Ahmad, but I have three words for you: SINKING GRADE. AGED. :eek::eek::eek: