SOTD

Rasoul S

Well-Known Member
Hindustan number 1

I got my sample of this masterpiece today

I applied some to the wrist and back of the neck-
At first i get very light Indian oud notes- wrapped in tingy notes of citrics-

Upon drydown it gets to the core scent - which is very refined woody

Well done Agar Aura - nice oil really- and the gen3 addictiveness is there:)
Agreed. Highly ethereal but some substance underneath to give you a drydown experience
 

Oudamberlove

Well-Known Member
This morning
People’s Sultan
It helped sheild me against synthetics at th Mall.

Noon
Tawau Al Awwal
Possesses a barn like only Sabah can.

Afternoon
My personal blend named Multi-Oud
One week old but still unsettled.

Evening
Oud Mostafa 4
Show Stopper!!!
 

Oudamberlove

Well-Known Member
I received my bottle of Komrad K today (from a group purchase to save on shipping costs:p)

I smell some facets that were also in AA Au Luong, plus, something spicey. An absolute Twist-n-Tweak on a Cambodi profile. It deserves more study (Fraghead to the rescue!!), It smells young (that means many sessions and seasons to play with this oil), bottom line.....Bang!! For the Buck!!;)
 

Rasoul S

Well-Known Member
Archinam again <3
I’m playing the Girynops vs Filaria game in my head. The write-up mentions the former, but today Im getting decent earthy notes à la Filaria.
interesting you say that. my nose too told me subtle but ever-present filaria notes. i associate them with forest floor, wet top soil/humus note.
 
Enlighten us, Ensar... ...how are these two related to each other?
Well, Sidi Ensar is apparently busy creating his Musk attar, so let me throw in a thought or two.
Komrad K is a slightly bitter / medicinal and, to a certain extent, incensey oud that has more to do with Tigerwood Royale or Hainan 2005 than with Oud Yaquob. and I get a note in Komrad K that reminds me of Sultan Mujeeb´s opening.
Oud Yaquob, on the other hand, is all about fruits and florals, it is pineappple and oranges, jasmine and ylang-yalng, and incense.
Matter of fact, I opened my replacement bottle of Yaqoub and did a side-by side comparison. The two may have a similar vibe in the first minute or so. But after three minutes, they separate and go in different directions.
So, to my nose, Komrad K and Oud Yaquob could be Cousins twice removed, maybe....
 

Oudamberlove

Well-Known Member
What I love about Komrad is the peeks (peek-a-boo) of Cambodian Senkohness. So much going on in this oil, and I’m sure it is still settling/evolving. There’s no need for me to try and wrap my head around it’s profile........I figure that I will just swipe it, sit back, and enjoy the show.
 

~A Coburn

Well-Known Member
Komrad K is definitely a go-to for daily swipes! I mentioned in the Komrad K Promo that its "medicinal profile will take old timers back to Kyara Koutan with its wish you had more of it camphor morphing into ethereal mint and laced with clove to cacao milk-chocolate with the buzz ever present, just one deep inhale away..." And to me that buzz is more Yunnan than Hainan, but the sinensis feel to a Cambodian oud is impressive none the less.

I think @Philip or @Larry K. mentioned wanting a Chinese organic, and I think Komrad or Zazen would be along the lines of the profile that hypothetical oud would portray... although perhaps not hypothetical for much longer....

Speaking of Zazen, it's my SOTLTD <--- see if you can figure that out ;)

It's amazing how the world works... everything in phases. There's the obvious like seasons, day and night, etc. But there's also Oud and natural aromatics, and astronomy and cosmic activity. Just a couple weeks ago we had a full lunar eclipse here, and now the next few nights will showered in meteors! @timoudthy, what's NASA got to say about that?

Anyhow my thoughts about phases is because we've bid farewell to quite a few oud oils over the last week, and though they each started off with way different quantities they disappear at the same time... But I guess when it rains it pours....

But on to the scent: I can still remember my first swipe of Zazen, I was somewhat taken aback by my thoughts of "even better than Oud Yusuf for first-timers, and... it's WiLd!!!" Oud Yusuf is the flagship, the single most approachable oud I've ever experienced... almost.... -Enters Zazen...

I've always looked sideways at mainstream Cambodian ouds, either they're so sweet they make your teeth hurt - with some oxidized-to-profile-death or fermented beyond recognition, but I feel a new era of Cambodi is upon us, Zazen has a beautiful tone or floral sweetness to contend with Oud Yusuf, but its persimmon twang with bubbly wild zing take it to the next level of enjoyment.

It makes the handsome Oud Yusuf look shy compared to its flirtatious performance.

One last swipe before it's gone :(
 

Ensar Oud

Well-Known Member
Enlighten us, Ensar... ...how are these two related to each other?
Well.... apart from the fact that I made them, I guess they're not! One is Thai and cultivated, albeit from a 60 year-old tree, the other is Cambodi and wild, albeit from probably similar age trees. What I meant was, the depth and richness of the two is along the same vein, although Komrad is even deeper for me.

Komrad K was double-distilled, and marks a landmark experiment in oud distillation. We extracted the resin via absolute extraction, and the oil via hydrodistillation. Then we 'reconstituted' the two to get as complete an agarwood aroma as possible, infusing the oil with the absolute!

Now, guess what. If an oil that's infused with resin "reminds" you of Tigerwood Royale and whatever other greats were mentioned in comparison, imagine the kind of wood THOSE oils were distilled from! When I see oils sell for over $500 on this market, and knowing the kind of wood they're extracted from nowadays, I cringe. I cringe because the likes of Tigerwood Royale and 1995 are still in stock, and selling for WAY LESS. I cringe because of the ignorance that's being spoonfed to everyone, breakfast lunch and dinner with the marketing story of "no marketing stories" – and no products to market, either.
 

Oudamberlove

Well-Known Member
N
Komrad K was double-distilled, and marks a landmark experiment in oud distillation. We extracted the resin via absolute extraction, and the oil via hydrodistillation. Then we 'reconstituted' the two to get as complete an agarwood aroma as possible, infusing the oil with the absolute!
Nice move!
That’s why my exploration of Komrad has just begun. I picked-up on the resin although it is not in the forefront. I know that some settling and aging will reveal more of the resinousness, and when it does..............Bammm!

Of course this method will be used by others, now that the cat’s out of the bag:p



SOTD
Earlier...
EO Sultan Mujeeb
Wouldn’t everyone wish their ouds could be this strong and long lasting o_O

It’s my Heavy Hitter.....but wait.......someone sent me a sample of Sultan Abdul Hamit:eek:, can’t wait to do a side-by-side:cool:

Right now...
AA Royal Chen Xiang
mmmmmmmmmmmm:rolleyes:
running low....:(
 

Rasoul S

Well-Known Member
On this beautiful eve I break my fast with a humble wood and a great oil.

Basic Incense grade Vietnam wood from tony Bolton. No super or double or triple or sinking or what not. Kyen looking. Minor resination plenty of oily wood appearance. Not otherworldly but so beautiful, satisfying and has me feeling plenty content. Bitter sweet cooling menthol crassna. Holy grail sub species in my eye.

The oil to go on for loving kindness and compassion seated meditation is shah jahan. On my minds eye ina. Similar breed oil as oils like chugoku but piercing and not subtle and coy. Yet a roundness and kinam quality to its behavior and quality. If there is such thing as Assam kinam (I know there is an EO oil by that name but I have never tried. ) then is what I expected it to be. In other words if someone told me this oil is ensar Assam kinam In a blind swipe session, I would be like yeah, I see it. Shah jahan Doesn’t have the richness and satisfying drydown of what I always see In ensar oils of this caliber and price. other wise the rest of the qualities in this oil have a check mark next to it. I am very very very happy and content. Time stands still. How long will I remain in this limbo? Who cares. Feels forever. Wishing you all the same.
 

~A Coburn

Well-Known Member
Aye, I had inquired about plantation Sinensis, or lack thereof.
@~A Coburn you are spot on. I instantly clicked with Komrad K because of the strong Chinese feel to it. What you have called a "Yunnan buzz" is dead on.
Interestingly even in the sinensis motherland many plantations grow crassna, although thankfully work is being done to hold onto the species.
 

~A Coburn

Well-Known Member
The oil to go on for loving kindness and compassion seated meditation is shah jahan. On my minds eye ina. Similar breed oil as oils like chugoku but piercing and not subtle and coy.
For me it's all about Mustapha No 7! For meditation I look for an oud that takes me on a journey, one that uplifts and abates the mind, while soothing the senses, and as it transitions from one phase to another it seems to deepen ones meditation, taking it along with its profile, from one phase to the next.

Obviously I'd let Nha Trang LTD take me for a journey any day, but I'm talking more for regular, everyday use =)

I also really enjoy Archinam for that. To me it can brighten the darkest of days as the ancient psychoactive properties of the ominous Shaman region are released like a genie from the bottle.

Like Green Papua, it has that psychoactive stimulus effect, Archinam teleports me to the heights of Puncak Jaya, I can feel my breath lengthen inhaling the pristine Kinamic air There's nothing floral about it, other than it opening your thousand-petal sahasrara to full bloom.

I find it grounding, so a generous swipe detoxes me from any negative charges from the day; the dense-jungle aura with pristine fougères, moistened peat, lichen and earthen green.

The boundless and infinite components become one, from the Kinamic peaks and endless blue skies of the mountains to the sweltering pulse of the jungle -Harmony...