Attar/Mukhallat of the Day

[Mr.P]

When I saw that @Faizal_p was talking about vintage SQ violet flower oil as an ingredient in his perfume, I nearly had a cow. I may have actually had one. I had long given up on ever smelling an authentic violet flower oil, but if anybody on the planet would have some stashed away it would have been the SQ I imagine.

The amazing thing though is that cow or no-cow, I now have a tiny little bit of this material, just a drop, which is all that I needed and infinitely more than I thought I would ever experience.

The aroma is classic simple sweet clean violet flower; I've smelled many imitations and it's easy to see what they were all aiming for here.

Beautiful from the threads, the smell on the skin is really surprisingly sweet and saturated, tangy, engaging, yet fully violet. It seems quite fleeting but I've only applied the tiniest trace so who knows. One of those rare things that's 100% appealing to the senses at all distances and concentrations that I experienced it over the first dab.

 

[Arabiad07]

SantalMisk - Al Hashimi

Not really a big fan of musk macerated in sandalwood. Usually the sandalwood dominates too much.

This is the exception. Musk is at the forefront but smooth and rounded. Really really great. Lasts a long time. Something special about Kashmiri musk

 

[Mr.P]

A package just arrived with a fresh batch of Ruh Motia and Gulab along with chameli, sandalwood, kadamba.

This sambac must be right out of the still - I have enough experience distilling fresh plant matter to recognize the still notes. It will be more true to typical Jasmine oil when the still notes fade but there's something lovely about it being this fresh - it's like a connection back to the actual flower petals themselves. A slight cloudiness due to some remaining trace of water from the still.

 

[Mr.P]

The ruh kadamba is wild - quite a distinctive scent. I am reminded of mimosa and silk tree, though it is not a type of acacia - it turns out it's in the Gentian family. Sweet mild yet full scent (in the way a ripe banana is mild but intense experience). It does not smell like banana but it has that level of thick mild sweetness. Right now it's so new that my association with acacia/mimosa is the dominant thing I notice. Soft, powdery, diffuse, with this peculiar waxiness that brings exotic tropical flowers to mind. There's a nice enduring smooth sweetness almost custard or vanilla like… I need to apply another swipe

 

[Shiningrobes]

The ruh kadamba is wild - quite a distinctive scent. I am reminded of mimosa and silk tree, though it is not a type of acacia - it turns out it's in the Gentian family. Sweet mild yet full scent (in the way a ripe banana is mild but intense experience). It does not smell like banana but it has that level of thick mild sweetness. Right now it's so new that my association with acacia/mimosa is the dominant thing I notice. Soft, powdery, diffuse, with this peculiar waxiness that brings exotic tropical flowers to mind. There's a nice enduring smooth sweetness almost custard or vanilla like… I need to apply another swipe

Who are these from? I’m really interested in kadambah

 

[Sipy]

Zakir crassna musk.
Why is it so stunning?

 

[Olfactory Nomad]

AZHAR - AlHindoud, I think it was you @Mr.P the other day that was talking about layering oud and Indian sandalwood and the sandalwood becomes the dominate note? This attar is a co-distillation of a Nagaland Hindi and a creamy aged Mysore. I have never smelled an oud and sandalwood blend before, though have read about it enough and I'm also new to Hindi's in general so thought this is a good time to try something new and you really can't go wrong with old mate Al Hind. This is a really lovely mix, definitely sandalwood forward. I really couldn't smell the oud at all from the bottle but once it starts warming on the skin you get this leatheriness that comes from underneath. It's like the oud takes place of the sandalwood base notes and then pushes the middle and top notes of the sandalwood forward. If you were wanting to wear an oud for the day but instead reached for a sandalwood this is what you would get. I don't know if that makes any sense but this is lovely.

 

[Mr.P]

sounds very nice.

I think what I said about Sandalwood and Oud is that faintest trace of Sandalwood oil on my skin completely changes the way any oud (and other oils) will smell, if added to the same spot. Not quite the same as being a dominant note but if I put a dab of Sandalwood on my left arm in the AM, it is out of commission for the day as far as testing any oud or anything else, not because the Sandalwood has a strong smell, but because everything else smells different when it's mixed with just a bit of it.

And I do feel like the effect is exaggerated with Oud compared to jasmine, rose and others - like the changes are especially noticeable.

I've had more than one occasion where I discovered that I still had sandalwood oil on because I applied a swipe of oud and it smelled off.

Edit: I was just thinking about this a little more... sandalwood is something that is as much (more?) about its function as it is about its smell in a blend. It influences a blend strongly at levels where it's not easy to detect directly. I think. Learning here...

 

[AlHind Oud]

AZHAR - AlHindoud, I think it was you @Mr.P the other day that was talking about layering oud and Indian sandalwood and the sandalwood becomes the dominate note? This attar is a co-distillation of a Nagaland Hindi and a creamy aged Mysore. I have never smelled an oud and sandalwood blend before, though have read about it enough and I'm also new to Hindi's in general so thought this is a good time to try something new and you really can't go wrong with old mate Al Hind. This is a really lovely mix, definitely sandalwood forward. I really couldn't smell the oud at all from the bottle but once it starts warming on the skin you get this leatheriness that comes from underneath. It's like the oud takes place of the sandalwood base notes and then pushes the middle and top notes of the sandalwood forward. If you were wanting to wear an oud for the day but instead reached for a sandalwood this is what you would get. I don't know if that makes any sense but this is lovely.

This is one of those oils that will bloom when you walk outside and a cool breeze hits it.

 

[Olfactory Nomad]

sounds very nice.

I think what I said about Sandalwood and Oud is that faintest trace of Sandalwood oil on my skin completely changes the way any oud (and other oils) will smell, if added to the same spot. Not quite the same as being a dominant note - it's more like a "screen" that you don't quite notice but changes the way everything looks if that makes sense.

So if I put a dab of Sandalwood on my left arm in the AM, it is out of commission for the day as far as testing any oud or anything else not because the Sandalwood has a strong smell but because everything else smells different when it's mixed with just a tiny bit of it.

And I do feel like the effect is exaggerated with Oud compared to jasmine, rose and others - like the changes are especially noticeable.

I've had more than one occasion where I discovered that I still had sandalwood oil on because I applied a swipe of oud and it smelled off.

Edit: I was just thinking about this a little more... sandalwood is something that is as much (more?) about its function as it is about its smell in a blend. It influences a blend strongly at levels where it's not easy to detect directly. I think. Learning here...

Right, ok..I understand what you're saying. 🙂

 

[Olfactory Nomad]

This is one of those oils that will bloom when you walk outside and a cool breeze hits it.

OH YEAH!!

 

[Mr.P]

Right, ok..I understand what you're saying. 🙂

Seems a relatively small number of materials have this property come to think of it - altering the smell of other things dramatically even at levels almost too faint to smell. Oakmoss is like this for sure. I guess fixatives in general lean this way...

 

[Mr.P]

Enjoying the heck out of a particularly nice batch of ruh motiya. The distilled variety (lots of oils sold as ruhs are solvent extracts these days it seems) with the slight stewed fruit note... such a lovely tart green sambac.

 

[Mr.P]

Pink damask rose ruh gulab today from Hasayan region - beautiful soft pink balanced rose scent with beautiful sweet waxy apple and tart citrus notes. Nothing outrageous just solid, simple, good quality otto.

 

[Zubayr]

Ghazali Omani- elkhaldi

Perfect jumu'ah scent for the sun we're getting here in London alhamdullilah

 

[Marwan Faruq]

I've become obsessed with carnation lately. Purchased a wonderful absolute from Enfleurage in NYC and used it to make a "ghaliya" with a Hindi Qadeem, a Thai plantation oud, New Caledonian sandalwood abs and EO, Hawaiian sandalwood EO, musk/sandal maceration, ambergris/sandal maceration, Hojari luban EO, a touch of red champaca absolute, hyraceum tincture, musk seed absolute, and an amber base I've had sitting around for a while. I mixed it into a perfumer's alcohol carrier that has a 5 year old ambergris tincture at like 20%. It smells pretty darn good, maybe could use a bit more funky/aged oud, or a touch of choya luban or hydrocarboresine for smoke but I have none at the moment. Still, its pretty darn beautiful and has a lot of carnation, oud and sandal character, all sitting atop a whisper of animalic musks.

 

[theaphilosophia]

Jum'ah - @AlHind Oud

Opened bright and floral, with a touch of oud and musk, now a spicy floral bouquet

 

[mobyus]

Ruvosa Ravagosa - Ensar Oud

I think I got this as a gift from them when procuring Dukosan.

It’s an alluring blend with a base note of roses (but not overpowering) and in the middle is green stocks, plant vegetation, poopy pollen, and sugar. Top note is ethanolic.

I love it. Different than all my rose oils in that it is lighter or tempered correctly.

 

[Mr.P]

Ghaliya Banu Hashim II from @An Najwa recently swiped, enjoying the middle notes more or less at the moment. I sense musk, camphor (borneo type?), something spicy with an edge like cardamom, something peachy-fruity and with rose blended in there, some rich agrestic type oud. This blend smells broad and deep - broadly complex in terms of lots of notes coming in and out of focus especially in the top notes, and then deep in terms of deeply grounded with oud, musk, ambergris and other mysterious things that will make this continue to speak for the next who knows how long. I can see the kinship with the original Ghalia Banu Hashim for sure, I should do a side-by-side next. I feel like the balance is different in this one but I need to refresh my memory on the original to make a meaningful comparison. I think this has a signature An Najwa style to it for sure - very interesting experiencing this along with Kishmir I and II and Khaltat al Baghdad and the original GBH. They are all distinct, yet also feel like a "set". Like a series of books by an author whose style you come to appreciate… each is different, surprising in some way but also with familiar elements and references to other works. Beautiful

 

[Mr.P]

Ghaliya Banu Hashim II from @An Najwa recently swiped, enjoying the middle notes more or less at the moment. I sense musk, camphor (borneo type?), something spicy with an edge like cardamom, something peachy-fruity and with rose blended in there, some rich agrestic type oud. This blend smells broad and deep - broadly complex in terms of lots of notes coming in and out of focus especially in the top notes, and then deep in terms of deeply grounded with oud, musk, ambergris and other mysterious things that will make this continue to speak for the next who knows how long. I can see the kinship with the original Ghalia Banu Hashim for sure, I should do a side-by-side next. I feel like the balance is different in this one but I need to refresh my memory on the original to make a meaningful comparison. I think this has a signature An Najwa style to it for sure - very interesting experiencing this along with Kishmir I and II and Khaltat al Baghdad and the original GBH. They are all distinct, yet also feel like a "set". Like a series of books by an author whose style you come to appreciate… each is different, surprising in some way but also with familiar elements and references to other works. Beautiful

Just a follow up on this. Unreal performance in the base of this Ghaliya! Very much maintaining the classic presence of the original. Just absolutely outrageous - long lasting, balanced, strong, deeply appealing. Haven't smelled anything else like it other than GBH 1.