I received 3 samples with my recent AA order of Royal Lao and Kencana V3. I took an immediate liking to the sample of Mardelong the "Thai/ Malay sandwich." There was a free shipping offer so I decided to purchase a 2.5g bottle. To my nose it's sort of a boozy oud with hints of tobacco, vetiver, vanilla and cola. I'm looking forward to a swipe of a sample of Nashila to experience/ evaluate that one. What is your experience/ view on Nashila Rasoul?
nashila is both highly typical and atypical oil. typical of taha's style of going for purity and nothing but the aromatic compounds in the wood aesthetic. presenting mother nature with minimizing the role of aromas added via the process by man. think sashimi over a braised dish. atypical in that you wont really find hindi oils like this. overall taha's oil are more about heart notes and top notes and if there is a barn note is that intrinsic to the wood. there are many compounds in nature (indole, rotundone, coumarin...) that can have elements of barn in them. as you try more and more you will see this for yourself. for example white pepper corn has that horse/barn lie note due to the presence of aromacheminal rotundone.
the oil itself is a like a peacock tail. so many colors and aromas to be dazzled by. one would think is some serious technique and fractioning at play, but when you gently heat the wood he used to make this oil (he sent me few tiny pieces), you will be shocked to see the aromas of this oil are very much in the wood itself. this is very hard to believe, but it is so. stefan @Simla House and @Micheal Smith can attest to this.
moving on, cola/cream soda is very much part of some malay oils and a note i have yet to see anywhere else, except maybe malinau in borneo where the note is more of an orange creamsicle, orange vanilla milkshake.
looking forward to your thoughts on kencana. an oil that is a bit too young for my personal liking and the agarwood smoke notes while is very much sought after by many, is a distraction and an unwelcome component for me at this time in my journey of oud appreciation. after some time on the skin, the classic malinau notes come out to play. if you like what you see ensar's borneo 50 k is a must sample for you. if you love it and cant get enough of the malinau note, then is time to go for white kinam!