WHAT I SMELL: Warda Al Oud opens with a thick and heady osmanthus that feels as if it’s dripping off the skin. It’s big, bold, rich and completely overwhelming but in the best possible way. While the main star is the osmanthus, jasmine begins its ascent to the osmanthus mountain by adding hints of the light and bright. After a bit, a buttery note makes its way in making it feel more like a lotion than a perfume. I don’t want to call it pretty at this point, instead it’s beautiful in a seductively exotic, erotic and carnal way. Here the perfume resides for quite some time, it’s rounded and voluptuous and it’s hard to believe that there’s any oud in it because it’s so smooth and just slightly earthy. As the perfume slowly continues to develop, the jasmine and a slightly soapy metallic rose dance intertwined in a lilting manner off of the skin. In the end, Warda Al Oud exquisitely embraces the wearer and anyone lucky enough to be near them.
From the Xerjoff website:
Warda al Oud opens with pungent osmanthus and seductive jasmine. Hints of Cambodian oud and tobacco notes are married to bitter roses and establish their auburn scent reign.
Warda al Oud is an attar composition of condensed metallic rose embracing the smoky oud and musk which intensifies the incense.
OLFACTORY NOTES
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- Bergamot
- Osmanthus, Jasmine, Bulgarian & Damascus Rose
- Vanilla, Cambodian Oud, Amber & Musk
Actress Peggy Drake, 1941.
WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: Seduction.
THREE WORDS THAT DESCRIBE WARDA AL OUD: thickened, creamy, rapturous
WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT WARDA AL OUD: Scented Intuitions
BOTTOM LINE: It is very rare for me to make a blind buy anymore. But this offering was on sale and combined with a very generous coupon allowed for this beauty to end up in my collection. I was a bit worried that with “oud” in the name the perfume would be too heavy, but Cambodian Oud is much softer and that’s very true in this case. Warda Al Oud is so wonderfully beautiful and it blooms off the skin in the hot environment that I live in without becoming cloying and heavy. But what I love most about this perfume is that it stays with you in a very quiet manner throughout the day and into the evening…and even the next morning. Actually, it’s like a haunting tune that you can’t get out of your head.
- Bone Rating: 4.5 out of possible 5 bones
- Scent: Amber
- Nose: Chris Maurice
- Classification: Unisex
- Expense: $225 for 10 ml attar
WHAT I SMELL: 1000 opens with warm peachy aldehydes that quickly meld into a blend of violets and rose. The combination of the osmanthus and the florals make for a heady, overly ripened, thickened and metallic perfumed football helmet. Once the helmet’s on, there’s also a buzzing layer of sandalwood that provides an aura of hair spray. But not to worry as a little more passing time reveals a softer side with a more creamy rose taking center stage. 1000 is big, actually bigger than big. Its florals are magnified with an intensity that doesn’t allow you to look away. At the heart of the perfume, tucked underneath is the muted shadow of Patou Joy. Joy tends to be remote and aloof, but 1000 is easily the the more outgoing and gregarious cousin. But the DNA is unmistakable. After some time, 1000 begins to lose some of her exuberance and the metallics and sharpened edges fall away and it makes 1000 more elegant and more wearable. In the end, 1000 leaves us with a big and warmed floral heart.
WHAT IT SMELLS LIKE TO ME: The perfumer’s Citizen Kane inspiration is perfect with a beautiful rose, the metallic blades from the sled and the incense to magnify the sled’s destruction…ROSEBUD.
The Scented Hound 