Alamut (2006)
by Lorenzo Villoresi

Nobody ever accused Lorenzo Villoresi of being too simple. This is another big combination of surprising notes but, unlike Sandalo which smells complex, Alamut doesn't smell much like any of the notes listed. At first I thought I smelled myrrh, but later doubted my suspicion. On the whole, it comes across as a very sweet, spicy and powdery amber to me. The big, sweet opening is rather hard for me to sit through, but I love the woody, resiny base that follows and lasts for hours.

extremely sexy, haunting sweet incense based opening which is so mesmerising that it'll haunt one...a kind of scent which has definite progression and stages..the first half hour is sweet agarbatti kind incense with heavy rosewood and rose notes...the midnotes reveal a "well controlled" Tuberose as an anchor with a blunt powdery coating - delicious, the base notes is the most comforting... it's always amazing to see a scent with definite stages...the intial sweet incense based opening (agarbattis) to a blunt midnotes with almost little or no sweetness to a comforting base of musk, amber and benzoin....very rare to come across a scent so beautiful, that you actually miss them. our freind Java green had a sample of it and im sure, the scent addicts that we are, we are going to miss this one sorely.

unisex? - i dont think so...this one can be worn by a man easy.

This is an odd one. It begins with an acrid smoke blast (ever live next to a house that just burned, followed by a rainstorm?) - very unpleasant. Could this be Osmanthus - the top note ingredient I'm not familiar with? Then it calms down to a light spicy floral -sort of a myrrh and frankincense resin blend -must be the benzoin gum used in incense blends. The dry down is sweet and feminine - very close to Caswell's Tricorn.

Here are the notes according to Villoresi's site:

Top: Osmanthus, Rose, Jasmin, Rosewood
Middle: Narcissus, Tuberose, Ylang Ylang, Orange Blossoms, Labdanum
Base: Amber, Musk, Amyris, Sandalwood, Patchouli, Benzoin

Since one can buy Tricorn for $30, it makes no sense to buy the Villoresi Alamut for $120, especially since you have to endure the acrid top note for an hour.

Not one of Villoresi's best combos.

I did not like the overwhelming first note, which just smelled bad to me, rather like burnt rubber. Then it quickly faded to a vaguely musky/woody smell.

I am really surprised at the reviews this has gotten - the suggestions that Alamut is a middling fragrance, both on the boards here, and in the blogs. This is a wonderful fragrance. In the interest of full disclosure, I will admit that I am a Villoresi fan. Piper Nigrum was one of my first loves, one of the fragrances that ignited my interest. Trying to put my positive prejudice aside, I still think this is a great fragrance. It may be Villoresi's finest. You get a sense that he has grown as a perfumer. The notes seem to meld together better, and flow better as well. The progression is smoother throughout the drydown. The scent itself is a warm, smooth, suave blend of sweet spices and gender-neutral florals blended with a warm, sensual animalic base. It most reminds me of Costes, but where Costes is more woody, this is more oriental, and to my nose, more exotic. It is richer as well. I am in total agreement with Gerald - this is a great unisex scent for those who like exotic, lush oriental fragrances.

Lorenzo Villoresi's scents are delightful--in the bottle. I find them too loud, too strong, too much sillage for the way I like to wear a fragrance. Alamut is no exception. Out of the bottle wafts a strong anamalic scent--and while I know that is sophisticated, to me it just smells unwashed and unpleasant. I tried it anyway, and the animalic part hides underneath rich spice tones, but it keeps peeking out, like a dog that's hiding under the bed because he's piddled on the rug. I don't find it endearing. Sure, it's my chemistry, but that also means I can't wear it. Might like it on others. From a distance.