Oud Ispahan

[Scent-imental]

I recently met up with a very kind and generous Basenoter, from whom I receved a decant of Oud Ispahan, and i have instantly fallen hard for it.

I would love to get a FB, but don't wish to be too hasty. I am wondering whether i should sample further oud/rose offerings, as there may be an even better one.

I have pondered Midnight Oud by JHAG. But the main appeal of this as a blind buy, is that it's cheaper, and the bottle is pretty.

Any other Oud/Rose suggestions, and how does Midnight Oud compare with Oud Ispahan?

Your help and comments would be appreciated

[cacio]

The dior is lovely indeed. It is a smooth, traditional oud-rose accord, similar to others - now that most niche brands are coming up with theirs. Things like by Kilians Rose Oud or the new exclusive guerlains come to mind. But they are really not better than the Dior and cost the same if not more. Indeed, I cannot think of anything better in western perfumery.

I have smelled midnight oud only once, and, while I thought it was good, it wasn't as rich as the Dior. For cheaper stuff, in a different style, there are the ouds of Montale, like Black Aoud. But they are sharper, woodier, butcher, the overall feel is quite different.

I hope some of our middle eastern bners chime in with their view.
cacio

[d4N13L]

I quite like Oud Ispahan, the macerated roses are very well blended and complements pretty well the burnt oud. Preety reddish and delightful with stupid longevity of more than 24 hours.

There are other options, but they will always use the resin oud instead of the burnt one, which is much more rancid and sharp and dry, instead of smoky and slightly airy as the very different kind of synthetic oud used by Dior (almost all known ocidental houses use synthetic ouds, except some western ones).

I would stick with Oud Ispahan.

[kalli]

I was just thinking about this scent..haven't tried it but really want to!

I haven't sniffed too many rose/oud combos but Noir De Noir by Tom Ford is a nice one.

[Scent-imental]

Thank you, i feel a FB is imminent then.

[Warum]

I am going through the Dior samples so I am looking forward to trying this one knowing that it receives some love! Thanks, good to know! Will post when I try it later today.

[Scent-imental]

I'm in love with it, sniffing it and doing the "i'm in heaven" eyes closed ecstatically, sort of thing. Looking forward to seeing your impressions Warum

[alfarom]

I would try several rose-oud combos before committing to a full bottle. You can get samples via several websites and have a better idea of one of the most classic oud accords. If you don't want to venture into eastern/middle-eastern oils, here's a list of stuff you could explore...

Dark Rose
Rosam
Midnight Oud
Agarwoud
Roja Dove Aoud
Red Aoud
Black Aoud
Portrait Of A Lady
Incense Oud
Rose Oud

[Scent-imental]

Thanks Alfarom I knew i could rely on you for a list of suggestions.

[alfarom]

Thanks Alfarom I knew i could rely on you for a list of suggestions.

You're welcome! In the end, it's possible that you'll get Oud Ispahan but, at least, you'll know it was the best one for you...

[Warum]

I'm in love with it, sniffing it and doing the "i'm in heaven" eyes closed ecstatically, sort of thing. Looking forward to seeing your impressions Warum

I have it on right now!
Have you tried Keiko Mecheri Parfum le Soir? It is the parfum from her rakhat-loukhoum series. Oud Ispahan reminds me of this one strongly, although I think KM was released later, I just happened to try it first.

- - - Updated - - -

Actually, I just checked and KM is an earlier one.
Check it out:
http://www.basenotes.net/ID26132960.html

[lairdangus]

I have tried almost all of the "common" Rose-Oud combinations on the market, and none of them is remotely similar to Oud Ispahan, imo.

As has already been noted, the others all make use of the synthetic oud resin note, while Oud Ispahan features burnt agarwood. I find that this approach eliminates the nasty medicinal vibe in many of the others. If you are American, it also ensures that you (and those around you) will experience none of the unpleasant "bug spray" associations that plague so many rose-oud fragrances.

[matildaben]

Oud Ispahan is my favorite of all the Rose-Oud combos I have tried. Instead of a middle-eastern vibe, it feels very French. The only one that I like as much is Portrait of a Lady. I would also suggest trying Guerlain's Rose Nacree du Desert if you can get a hold of a sample.

[dianabi]

I love and own Oud Ispahan. It's definitely the sexiest out of the rose/ouds I have tried. And that drydown.... (goes to sniff the bottle cap)

[Nefret]

I enjoy Oud Ispahan, but my significant other clearly does not. So for now, my decant and I will just have to make do. (He mostly wrinkles his nose and says, "Oh, that's strong!" over and over again. Ha.)

[hedonist222]

There are only a handful of perfumes that utilize oud wood not oud oil.

Oud Ispahan is oud wood not oud oil.

Therefore if you like it, there's nothing else like it.

Well there's Leather Oud by that doesn't have rose in it.

There's Onde Mystere by Armani. Probably the only rose / oud wood alternative. But the oud wood aspect of it is not as prominent.

[rubegon]

My wife loves this one. She's getting a 250ml bottle for Christmas. That way it will last at least a year … I hope.

[danieq]

Now I need to try this, which I haven't! But, I'd like to add to your list of possibilities Atelier Rose Anonyme and Keiko Mecheri Bal de Roses.

Guerlain makes one which at the time I tried it, I wasn't ready for, but I'm guessing I'd enjoy it now. Rose Nacree du Desert

- - - Updated - - -

Oh, and there was one more which I couldn't think of earlier, Royal Rose Aoud. I had the pleasure of sampling this, just on paper, at Parfumerie Nasreen in Seattle. I had told Nasreen that I wasn't a fan of Oud, but she eagerly proved me wrong. This was her suggestion. I put the paper in my purse and it STILL smells amazing in there and that was 6 weeks ago.

[Evangeline]

Oud Ispahan has been on my radar for a while, and I might break down one day, but I'm putting it off since I already have several rose and oud (or "oudy") combos, including Rose Oud, Noir de Noir, Aoud Queen Roses, White Aoud, Midnight Oud ...see what I mean? But honestly, they're all different ...all quite nice but some are better than others, and Oud Ispahan is pretty special even among these. And that's how I keep rationalizing my way into another, lol! But really, for now at least, I'm going to try to be content with what I have.

I agree with your recommendation of Armani Onde Mystère, hedonist - it's been a while since I smelled it, but as I recall it's another one I wouldn't have minded adding to my collection.

[DieNase]

Hi there, I cannot find the old thread where I discussed oud ispahan and I think POAL with some of you. So I just steal this thread to give an update. I recently tried Oud Ispahan and was quite impressed by it. However I think it needs more testing, as my sniffing was in an occasion where I sniffed lots of stuff. Sl I am currently getting a 10 ml decant that I should be receiving around Christmas. Moreover I bought a 10 ml decant of Portrait of a Lady and absolutely adore it. I love the dryness in the parchouli drydown without being screechy. Maybe that quality comes from the incense. Overall makes me think a bit of Incense Rose by Tauer. Not that they smell the same. But they belong to the same family in my opinion. One who loves either of them should definitely try the other as well. I'm yet undecided whether to buy a full bottle or not as a little really goes a long way and I already have so many bottles. Just one spray on the neck, and the scarf I put on later even has a POAL sillage of 0.5 meters for several days!!!! Just crazy. I think the drydown is not that rose dominant and I would regard it as almost butch. A good unisex tending towards masculine in my opinion.

[canuck21]

One of my favourites and arguably one of my favourite rose-oud scents. There really is nothing quite like it and the longevity on this is out of this world. I love how pungent this is and so in-your-face but all while remaining elegant with it's quality traits found throughout.

It seems I much prefer oud wood over oud oil. A winner in my books.

[danieq]

I haven't tested this one yet, but did recently discover another Rose/oud combo that I am enjoying. velvet Rose &Oud by Jo Malone.

[hedonist222]

Velvet Rose &Oud by Jo Malone.

According to JoMalone.com , Velvet Rose & Oud is based on oud wood (like Oud & Bergamot) not oud oil.

[DieNase]

I no got.hands on my decant of oud ispahan. I adore.this stuff. The initial jammy quality.of the rose.reminds me abit of the armani rose d'arabie. Also it.reminds me a bit of woody intense. But I also kuch prefer this combo with the oud wood. Inbthe very late drydown something about it reminds.me of portrait of.a lady, which I would.not.have called.an oud scent. Anyway, with this gem I think I have found my holy grail rose oud combo. I am still thinking.of how I could.justify the purchase of a bottle.in view of the size of my collection an ld.the fact.thatva little (decant) goes a long.way.