review - Dark Aoud and Moon Aoud

I have scent strips of both. I enjoyed Moon Aoud more than Dark Aoud but it's difficult to say on scent strips, always need to test on skin first!

Though I got the scent strips two weeks ago and I can still smell it on them, Montale and its insanely potent fragrances.

Moon aoud has coffe notes? Sounds i need to get one bottle if yes!

Both sound great.

I def get a coffee-type note in the scent strip. Really really nice!

Tried these when i was in Qatar. Dark has a fantastic dry down, but starts a bit off putting. Moon Aoud seems to blend in with all of the other Montale offerings. It was good, just not great. I would definitely recommend Dark Aoud for those of you looking for something different, seems to focus on woods other than oud.

I bought this blind, trusting another Basenoter who compared it to one of my favorite dailywear fragrances. And yes, Dark Aoud is very similar to the drydown of Amouage's Memoir Man. I, of course, see that a good thing, but here the trajectory is fairly linear and actually very DIFFERENT than any other Montale I have smelled. For the first time in recent history, Montale's odd approach to naming seems to be dead-on with this one. It is DARK, in every way possible. I wore it all day yesterday (it lasts and lasts, but it's not like anyone will doubt that, being a Montale).

I'm not great with individual notes, but the "mood" I most describe in this is spicey, SMOLDERING ceder. Where Memoir Man is a crisp aromatic wood bonfire in a wet, green, coniferous forest.... Dark Aoud just decided to torch the place and turn the whole forest to embers. If you like this sort of thing (unending smoke and wood with that very specific love-it or hate-it Montale Oud Note, not that it is very strong here...), then you will like this fragrance. Suffice to say, I love it. No regrets on the blind buy. I do find a bit strange the release of this in the calendar year, however. I don't see this quirkily-painted bottle (which if fun - if you like the montale cans) getting much love in the warmer weather that is NOW. It's powerfully dark and begging to burst the synapsis of anyone near you on a cold fall or winter's day. But hell, wild fires do tend to reach their height in the summer... so there you go.

Moon Aoud (I got this as the 20ml offer from Direct-Purchase with Montale). I also really like this one. The name is weird, but so is the fragrance. I would love to see the official list of ingredients, as it is truly bizarre and a spray on my wrist at work had colleague asking "what the hell is that?" They like it, but they though someone was burning an incense stick somewhere. It is strong and pungent and spicey. Unlike Dark Aoud (which I found very linear), this one seems to travel all over the place...

At the onset - that bandaid characteristic of all Montales, but it is short lived and the blending in this is immediately more appreciated than in something like, Black Aoud, where it never stops. What happens next is a bit in gourmand territory (and in my experience, a bit rare with Montales) I do detect the dash of coffee, the link to red aoud (so is that the saffron?) and that very realistic leather (not soft and supple but raw) from Oud Cuir d'Arabie, but there is something rather "spacey" here as well (maybe Montale was NOT completely on drugs when they named this Moon Aoud). There is a slight rubber note (that I get very strongly with something like FAT ELECTRICIAN - the blend of vetiver and vanilla - but it is subtle and more smoothly blended here). Another clear note I'm picking up througout is LIPSTiCK. I have a sample of Histoires de Parfums Moulin Rouge, which was my first experience with this note in a fragrance - but if you wear or frequently kiss lipstick - you all know what I'm talking about.

Don't know how necessary this is if you have other Montale Aouds, but it's a good one if you don't. It's got the lasting power and sillage of the typical lineup, but might be superior in the blending and thus doesn't threaten to blow anyone away with any single offending note. It's fun, will certainly get comments, and true to the "oud" that has brought this house so much acclaim.

Im excited about this! I blind purchased it too so I cant wait to get it. Montale may be back to his great scents. He went off the deep end for a while!

Hmmmm Moon Aoud certainly sounds interesting. Fumehood, would you say it's worth a 50ml bottle?

Parfums Raffy now carries them.
They are in the women's section. For some strange reason they are calling them Dark Aoud Orchidee and Moon Aoud Orchidee.
A new line from Montale perhaps?

http://www.parfumsraffy.com/montale/montale.html

Hey Zubbra...

That's hard to say. It depends on whether you have other Montales. The DARK AOUD is quite unique in the line, so I jumped on that one and have no regrets. It it the darkest woody scent that I own and I continue to very much enjoy it (though I don't particularly like it more than Amouage's memoir, which has a more interesting opening and gradual evolution in the direction of Dark Aoud).

As for Moon Aoud, I'm happy with 20ml promo bottle, but don't know that I'll be looking to replace this as long as I have a similar scents from Montale (and I have a few). Perhaps something not made clear above is that the medicinal oud IS at the forefront, making this another band-aid-y blend (ala BLACK AOUD, though not as bombastic and ever-lasting). You might welcome the wearability of something NOT so powerful. It's a good blend. Other notes mentioned previously are what I find when I go hunting around that central accord of oud.

So test it first. And if you have room for another Montale oud (aoud), you might look toward the moon :-)

Thanks for your great review Fumehood. You make me miss Moon

Both sound really interesting. I am making a trip to Scentbar and this weekend and hope to find these. Would you consider Moon Aoud a gourmand then? I was planning on getting Bond No. 9 New Haarlem but am intrigued now that I hear Moon Aoud has a coffee note... would you say it is sweet?

Hey Fumehood! Thanks for the in-depth response. I actually took the plunge before this response and ordered myself a 50ml Moon Aoud with a 50ml Black Aoud (and free 20ml Red Aoud)...should be arriving today!

Can't wait!!!!!!!!!

They both sound very interesting, I look forward to testing them.

Dark Aoud is a joke. Pure unadulterated crap. Sampled yesterday and today. Watered down nothing. Lasts and lasts, my a**.I'm convinced Black Aoud was just pure luck for Montale. He hasn't created much since then. If you like Bleu de Chanel, this may be for you.

Why? What's the correlation? Answer - You've got bad taste.

Oh, thebeck. You're always so "unadulterated" in shitting on everything and everyone. But I do have to say, I like it. Despite the tell-it-like-it-is bulldozing, I will continue to appreciate your perspectives on scent and even occasionally share in some of your bad taste. (Like thinking that BLACK AOUD is ok to wear among the general public)

Still, I feel better in commending DARK AOUD as something sufficiently potent, lasting, and beautiful (if in a simple and linear way) as long as I remind myself that you were the nose that can't detect OPUS IV after 30 minutes and snored at Memoir, so perhaps that "good taste" in viewing Black Aoud, Homage, and Absolue Por Le Soir as every-day scents is starting to burn out those Hippie Nostrils.

Paper Moon,

Bond's New Haarlem is its own gourmand beast (though it always smells more like pancakes and syrup to me than coffee... the note is really far more Starbuck's Caramel Double-Fat Latte than true Dark-Roast Brazilian Santos). As for the Montale, I wouldn't compare the two at all. Moon Aoud is not sweet - but somewhat pungent and medicinal (and the more experience I have with it, the less I would tend to call it a gourmand). The coffee is subtle.

Despite my general annoyance with Bond's Superiority complex and my swearing that I'll never buy anything again (resist the Harrod's Oud fanfare, resist the Harrod's Oud fanfare, he coaches himself), I do like New Haarlem - but prefer Histoires de Parfum's 1740. Try that before you dish out for NH.

I received my 50ml Moon Aoud last week (as well my 50ml Black Aoud and 20ml Red Aoud, mmmmmmmmmm). Moon Aoud is gorgeous. I haven't had a fragrance change so much on my skin like Moon Aoud does.

I get the sharp medicinal opening which then transforms into the creamy saffron - aoud scent and a slight coffee-like scent which lingers back and forth on my skin (for 14 hours or so).

All in all I love it. And, even better, my friend who is definitely not a fragrance guru, complimented me on my taste of fragrance when he got into my car the other day. And I had none other than Moon Aoud on.

Hmmmm, I'm starting to think I need to sample these asap. Please write your review if anyone else has sampled these.

+1 on my list of things to do

For me Moon aoud comes second after Black aoud.

I got my sample of Moon Aoud today. It's definitely growing on me. What did you think about it?

Being from the UK, I have to wait at least 7 painful days before I get my samples from LS! First in Fragrance are great but it works out cheaper on LS.

Anyway, I'm still waiting on my Moon Aoud! I'm hoping that it will confirm to me what "aoud" actually smells like.

I finally got to try these. Dark Aoud is very dark, linear and quite heavy. After the opening choke and blowback of pepper,oud, leather and saffron the beast calms down and the various notes get some separation to show the harmony. I see a slight resemblence to Killian Pure Oud. The base has leather and vetiver thus keeping it on the cool side. Not much warmth in this one. It is a very masculine, dark, satisfying scent that is not for everybody; but it has some balls on it. And it doesn't smell too bad, you have to look past the first 5 minutes because it can be very potent. I will try it again tomorrow to see if I can talk myself into a bottle, but probably not.

Moon Aoud is much more subtle than Dark Aoud, and I think a better fragrance than Black Aoud for a rose oud. It is well named because the coolness of vetiver and leather gives the saffron/rose/oud note a cold midnight air background. There might also be some synthetic cedar in there - I like the affect. Happy to find a touch of of amber to give it body and warmth that is lacking in Dark Aoud. I liked this too quite a bit - even more than Golden Aoud which was my favorite saffron/rose/oud from Montale. This one is a keeper I think.

Just trying both right now.

First thing I noticed is the almost chocolaty accord coming from Dark Aoud which makes this one extremely interesting. Does anyone else get this gourmand-like quality? This accord dances very nicely with the vetiver, which is nicely done. In fact this is one of the best vetivers I have smelled. I would certainly not call Dark Aoud "linear" it has a decent amount of development. From quite a harsh oud opening, which I quite enjoyed (I like loud oud notes) to a soft spicy vetiver-oud-sandalwood which has great sillage and projection. I'd say this is definitely worth trying. Overall very enigmatic, I feel this fragrance may reveal more to me on further wearings.

As for Moon Aoud, very boring in my opinion. Smells like a decent soap, too clean cut for my liking. Was expecting the rose to come out of its shell a little later on, but it stays very subtle and smooth. Perhaps too subtle for my liking. I was expecting the richness of the rose note to dance in the moonlight of the oud.


EDIT -

Wow, has your opinion changed any? I think Moon Aoud is supposed to change quite a bit while wearing it, you might want to give it another chance. It has an awful lot of notes in it for it to just smell like soap. I'll probably sample Dark Aoud and Oud Cuir d'Arabie next and get a bottle of the one I like best.

If Black Aoud , is a mysterious vampire, Dark Aoud is a werewolf, its raw , masculine, and incredibly powerful , even giving BA , a run for its money on my skin. There is little evolution with this one , its starts of with this bitter chocolate notes and morphs into a blend of mysore sandalwood and oudh, which gives it a very stark, powerful , minimalistic vibe.

Since having bought and received both a while back, they have become a welcomed addition to my collection. Like them both.

So then: Dark or Moon? The Dark Aoud - Amouage Memoir comparison really appeals to me...

... But Dark is not as wearable as Moon. I own Dark, and I love Moon. The more I try Moon, the more I need it. I decide to get Moon in a very near future. Moon is very strange, but in the good way. Full of woody and aoud first, then it gets colder, more mysterious. Sexy, and inviting. Moon is very different from previous Montale Aoud scents.

I liked it too. It seems both of these are creeping up there with Black Aoud as some of Montale's best.

Totally agree with Stew - this one (Mood Aoud) is trumping Black Aoud for me, the latter of which is beginning to feel obnoxious every time I try to wear it. My 20ml promo bottle of Moon is now depleted... and I'm am fully decided that a full bottle will be purchased when I finally visit the Paris Montale Shrine in November.

Dark Aoud continues to leave me swooning in a beautiful space, and because it is fairly linear, I am enjoying layering it with other scents to give them a bit more BASS in the BASE. (Serge Lutens' Fille en Aiguilles - lovely but perhaps overly sweet and Christmas-like with it's candied pine sap, particularly benefits from sharing the olfactory palette with a base of Dark Aoud).

Both (Dark and Moon Aoud) are eveloping scents, and I continue to highly recommend them as introductions to the Montale Oud accord.

You should post pictures of your trip.

Hey Guys! I'm still enjoying my Moon Aoud :P

Does anyone know if Montale have released anything else new lately? It's hard to keep track of what they release!

Not that I know of, but keep 'em coming, Montale!

"for women" though if that bothers you

Kabul Aoud is the newest one and its excellent from what I have heard.

Oh my, you're right! How long has it been since their latest issue before that one, two months? Well, bring it on! :-D
It's apparently an UAE exclusive, though...

I am waiting to get Black Aoud and Red Vetiver and 20ml sample of Greyland. It's a blind buy hope it's worth it. Any opinions on these 3.

Good choice. Red Vetyver is similar to Terre d'Hermes, I like it better though. Black Aoud is very good, intense and mysterious. I'm not a big fan of Greyland, but it's similar to Gucci Pour Homme, very woody.

red vetyver is very, very nice. . . but very, very similar to TdH. i actually prefer TdH - it's a tad brighter. my coworkers cannot tell them apart.

Red Vetyver is wonderful! I prefer it to TdH.

Does anyone know the notes for Kabul Aoud? Sounds interesting.

+ 1 and + 1, although it'll probably be difficult getting it if it's a UAE exclusive. Or maybe the Paris shop has it?

According to this site http://www.lamodadubai.com/2011/08/m...oud-fragrance/
notes are: Cedar, Guaiacwood, Aoud.

hey boosh, what's LS? i'm also from uk and trying to find a decent website that sends samples. cheers, danny

The fragrance of the witch's shade, appalling as the pirate Dark Dog wolking hooded in the more obscure of the nights. Sepulchral, impersonal and ghostly, Michael Myers in the course of the night of Halloween would have worn it. Unbelievably bold, petroleous and sulphureous. Possibly the darkest concoction ever created, sometimes *i think beyond each limit. The lords of the night have now their naughtiest potion and i'm a lord of the night. Dark Aoud introduces a dry and castigatory temperament, a sort of incensey ascetic substance and a deep and melancholy woody beat. This one is even more daculaesque than the infamous Salvador Dali Pour Homme and Black Afgano. My sister says it smells like the death. Ostensibly similar at the beginning to *the New York Oud Bond (even for the common usage of the musky resin of teak wood) which is anyway a *decidedly different beast being endly cool, more versatile, watery, floral and approachable. The Bond one is endly eastern and fizzy, *less severe, less spicy and with a more animalic-human beat. New York Oud owns life, Dark Aoud does not. The dry sandalwood in Dark Aoud is the king, it plunges in a sink of obscure, camphoraceous, smoky aoud and drowns under tar and sedimentated resins. This fragrance exudes a slightly dusty, gassy and deep sort of smell also because of the roaring role played by spices as black pepper and saffron. It also develops *a sort of masculine stiff temperament because of the right dosage of vetiver and ambergris. Dark Aud is averagely dry because of the precious woods and ambergris but doesn't slide in to the drought. Dry amber and a bit of vetiver on the side of spices keep on steady the high level of roughness. The final outcome is all obscure dry woods, old dark leather and petroleous resins. I detect some similarities with Duro and Black Afgano Nasomatto because of notes of aoud, leather and sandalwood but this one is darker and more gassy than Duro (which with shares the leather regardless a strong dosage of sandalwood) and is far less mellow and brewing than Black Afgano, which is almost as *obscure as this one but less severe and more appealing because of the presence of some flowers as violets and a more tasty and creamy influence of sweet balsams. The concern with Dark Aoud is that it takes at least five or six hours to turn from an almost off-putting status to a gorgeous cimmerian good smelling fragrance, just the time necessary some resins and woods develop a touch of mellow mildness. The projection is like the movie " From here to eternity".

Well, Darvant, welcome to Basenotes... You're coming in kinda heavy, bro.

I got lost there. Do chicks dig the Dark Aoud or not?

lmao!!!!

"Do the chicks dig Dark Aoud?", nice *american expression, well this Montale is not properly a favourite from the girls, it's not kinda Farhenheit, Acqua di gio' or Body Kouros. *Dark Aoud is indeed *outrageous and poisonous, is a stark sepulchral *fragrance, you will be for sure unapologetic at highest levels but some girls could quote you as a danger. Don't wear it for a first date unless you are invited for dinner in Transilvania nearby the Dracula's castle. *Perfect instead for *serial killers, grave-diggers, devils and captains of army.
Regards

Its the sort of fragrance you'd imagine a Marvel Super Villian would wear. Great stuff

just got my dark aoud sample...sandalwood fans should definitely test it...very nice juice
I also found a couple of new loves...Red Aoud and Black Musk...awesome stuff!