Rasoul Salehi
True Ouddict
All,
i hope you will find quiet time to read the very through (looooooong) and comprehensive blog post that Taha of Agar Aura shared on his site the other day.
R.S as mentioned in Taha’s article is me.
While I consider myself an open minded, curious, adventurist and never judge a book by its cover and always try to give the benefit of the doubt kind of guy, I have to say i was pissed off at myself and also at Taha for having taken a plunge of buying multiple Gen 3 oils in full size from him without having asked for samples first. stupid me. punishment i received was well deserving, until...(more on this below)
allow me to explain by taking you thru my experiences.
Prior to these gen 3 oils (kiyosumi, kanzen, kekasihku, ayu, au luong, lavanya,...) i had exposure to some 70-80 oils from many different distillers/merchants up and down the price point and from each and every corner of agarwood growing region. literally. none and i mean none including Ensar Senkoh series oils (closest to gen 3 oils) behaved the way Taha's oils did.
I would read Taha's descriptors of his oils and then i would try them and shake my head in disbelief of where does this guy get the nerve to describe all these notes that are not only not shy or coy in the given oils, but completely absent. In the meantime he was telling me my nose and brain is fatigued and how I need to wait till I am ready for them, blah blah. what a scam artist. desperate moves of a fool that will get exposed. How the hell does he think he will get away with this in the world of online forums and close-knit community that oud lovers have formed. he was guilty before trial in my eyes. i had given up hope (not entirely but 90%) after i re-tried the above gen 3 oils again and again and again and to my surprise saw little to no development in them. they remained one dimensional, monolithic, subdued, uninspiring and meh. i left them and stopped checking in on them every other day. i came back in two weeks or later and out of nowhere fireworks! holly molly!!! what the hell is going on??? did my wife started mixing oils to mess with me? is like literally an alarm went off and these oils woke up from hibernation.
not all and not at the same time but kekasihku and kiyosumi in particular went from being totally dumb to magical display of most amazing performance. others like ayu or au luong and kanzen that were very one dimensional to me, started to show all sorts of other notes. what beautiful layers too!
i shouldn’t have been too surprised b/c this phenomenon exists in world of single malts and wine (my profession). To a total newbie, all red wines smell the same and taste more or less the same. it is thru repeated and systematic exposure and patiently trying to go behind the first notes one perceives that these elixir's open themselves up to the beholder. But i didnt expect this in oud, b/c as mentioned none of the other 70-80 samples from many different merchant/distillers and from $200-$2500 price points behaved this way.
but hey, these oils have a mind of their own. they do what they do and for the few patient, curious and true dedicated students amongst us, they promise the most satisfying experience once we crack them. words don’t fit. i cant explain the joys i receive now from most (still not all) of these gen 3 oils. I openly told Taha and i tell you that I still favor some of the gen 4 over gen 3, but not all. At their best the gen 3 oils do something to me that is indescribable. They are the equivalent of the most perfect piece of sushi nigiri.
Fast forward now and I have my largest transaction and order of oud oil to date awaiting delivery. Blind purchases. I trust this man and these oils and I am confident I will have a rocky relationship with many of them at first, feel frustrated again and have ups and downs with them but eventually we will live happily ever after together…
none of this takes anything away from all the other styles of oud(h) out there made by many different artisans. in fact if forced to live with gen 3 oils all my life, i would be very very sad. the mood, the mind the heart wants a loud oil at times. some times these oils are too squeaky clean and avant garde and the heart wants something more rustic. something not as perfectly put together like a doll. i crave all sorts of different oils. the wood notes themselves are beautiful in many oils and i wish some of these gen 3 would have that. the dry down of these oils is the same as the opening. having and wanting drama and development on the skin is part of the pleasure of many other oils. at the end i am happy to live in a time that offers us such huge range of offerings crafted from this very special gift of nature to us.
may you enjoy your oud(h) journey as much as i have been enjoying it to date. keep an open mind and an open heart and enjoy the ride.
peace and love to all.
i hope you will find quiet time to read the very through (looooooong) and comprehensive blog post that Taha of Agar Aura shared on his site the other day.
R.S as mentioned in Taha’s article is me.
While I consider myself an open minded, curious, adventurist and never judge a book by its cover and always try to give the benefit of the doubt kind of guy, I have to say i was pissed off at myself and also at Taha for having taken a plunge of buying multiple Gen 3 oils in full size from him without having asked for samples first. stupid me. punishment i received was well deserving, until...(more on this below)
allow me to explain by taking you thru my experiences.
Prior to these gen 3 oils (kiyosumi, kanzen, kekasihku, ayu, au luong, lavanya,...) i had exposure to some 70-80 oils from many different distillers/merchants up and down the price point and from each and every corner of agarwood growing region. literally. none and i mean none including Ensar Senkoh series oils (closest to gen 3 oils) behaved the way Taha's oils did.
I would read Taha's descriptors of his oils and then i would try them and shake my head in disbelief of where does this guy get the nerve to describe all these notes that are not only not shy or coy in the given oils, but completely absent. In the meantime he was telling me my nose and brain is fatigued and how I need to wait till I am ready for them, blah blah. what a scam artist. desperate moves of a fool that will get exposed. How the hell does he think he will get away with this in the world of online forums and close-knit community that oud lovers have formed. he was guilty before trial in my eyes. i had given up hope (not entirely but 90%) after i re-tried the above gen 3 oils again and again and again and to my surprise saw little to no development in them. they remained one dimensional, monolithic, subdued, uninspiring and meh. i left them and stopped checking in on them every other day. i came back in two weeks or later and out of nowhere fireworks! holly molly!!! what the hell is going on??? did my wife started mixing oils to mess with me? is like literally an alarm went off and these oils woke up from hibernation.
not all and not at the same time but kekasihku and kiyosumi in particular went from being totally dumb to magical display of most amazing performance. others like ayu or au luong and kanzen that were very one dimensional to me, started to show all sorts of other notes. what beautiful layers too!
i shouldn’t have been too surprised b/c this phenomenon exists in world of single malts and wine (my profession). To a total newbie, all red wines smell the same and taste more or less the same. it is thru repeated and systematic exposure and patiently trying to go behind the first notes one perceives that these elixir's open themselves up to the beholder. But i didnt expect this in oud, b/c as mentioned none of the other 70-80 samples from many different merchant/distillers and from $200-$2500 price points behaved this way.
but hey, these oils have a mind of their own. they do what they do and for the few patient, curious and true dedicated students amongst us, they promise the most satisfying experience once we crack them. words don’t fit. i cant explain the joys i receive now from most (still not all) of these gen 3 oils. I openly told Taha and i tell you that I still favor some of the gen 4 over gen 3, but not all. At their best the gen 3 oils do something to me that is indescribable. They are the equivalent of the most perfect piece of sushi nigiri.
Fast forward now and I have my largest transaction and order of oud oil to date awaiting delivery. Blind purchases. I trust this man and these oils and I am confident I will have a rocky relationship with many of them at first, feel frustrated again and have ups and downs with them but eventually we will live happily ever after together…
none of this takes anything away from all the other styles of oud(h) out there made by many different artisans. in fact if forced to live with gen 3 oils all my life, i would be very very sad. the mood, the mind the heart wants a loud oil at times. some times these oils are too squeaky clean and avant garde and the heart wants something more rustic. something not as perfectly put together like a doll. i crave all sorts of different oils. the wood notes themselves are beautiful in many oils and i wish some of these gen 3 would have that. the dry down of these oils is the same as the opening. having and wanting drama and development on the skin is part of the pleasure of many other oils. at the end i am happy to live in a time that offers us such huge range of offerings crafted from this very special gift of nature to us.
may you enjoy your oud(h) journey as much as i have been enjoying it to date. keep an open mind and an open heart and enjoy the ride.
peace and love to all.