"Divorce in Taiwan" - who is EO talking about?

[Hamza H]

I agree. You can maybe say his posts are a bit corny, but it’s just good writing. Call it marketing or whatever, is that even a real problem?

Which oils are you talking about that seem to contain “aroma chemicals”? I kind of know what you mean, but can you be more specific? Any oud oil is going to contain aromatic chemicals. Are you talking about synths?

For all vendors there is the question of authenticity.

Not to single anyone out here, but in our world alone, the lies in fragrance descriptions speak volumes. The lies of how an oil was acquired, the lies by vendors of exclusivity and then the furore that comes when any one dares to question.

Prior to this forum the oud world was a pretty tyrannical place; venture into corners of it today and you find the same story.

I was chatting with a friend from the street you could say, he was astounded at the tactics played by certain vendors, likening them to drug dealer tactics.

Even today, venture into some Facebook groups, critique the vendors. See how long it is before certain vendors air your entire personal life story, block you from purchasing and attempt legal action.

Marketing might be one thing, I’m not too concerned about how eloquent a vendor is with their words. What matters to me is how a brand responds to criticism, competition and questions.

The levels of barbarity in the Artisanal oud world alone go to extraordinary levels of depravity and on the other hand you’ll have those same people chanting “Subhanallah, Alhamdullilah, in sha Allah, SAW and the like.

 

[User]

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[Hamza H]

Yeah, but I was just talking about dramatic descriptions lol. If there are actual lies, then that is an issue. I have not seen anything like that. I haven’t seen any barbaric behavior from Ensar, but yeah I am not a fan of the censorship on his Facebook page. I assume you’re talking about him, even though you say you don’t want to say names.

A lot of the behavior I see from certain vendors comes off as childish. Everyone wants to have a certain narrative that benefits them.


Yeah, I was told the same thing. A vendor told me to watch Narcos if I want to know what the oud world is like behind the scenes. I don’t doubt that this is true.

There’s a variety of people and companies I had in mind, bear in mind we are privy to what goes on behind the scenes too - politics of the oud world generally - and it’s nasty.

People undervalue Nadeem, the ouddict team and this forum. If it goes someday, only then will people realise what they had.

 

[Kolalid]

There’s a variety of people and companies I had in mind, bear in mind we are privy to what goes on behind the scenes too - politics of the oud world generally - and it’s nasty.

People undervalue Nadeem, the ouddict team and this forum. If it goes someday, only then will people realise what they had.

This forum is really such an invaluable resource. Navigating the oud market without this info and community space would be such a nightmare and filled with even more potential for scams and fraud.

Long live ouddict! Lol

 

[User]

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[William Birch]

Ensar released a video a couple days ago talking more about this.

Here’s the video:

 

[C-Sauce]

who knows. regardless i like the variety of ensar and so its all good. but prices are an 100% overreach in my mind cause like i said such a gorgeous and quality oil in oud ertugrul was only 670$ for 2.5g and there are lesser oils for 10x that amount

I’ve probably graduated from newbie to intermediate by realizing just this. I just tried an array of samples from mesOUD and they smell absolutely fantastic for 10x less. Bullungen smells like Borneo Reborn and others in that category, but you can get 5g of Bullungen for $350 or so instead of only 3g for $700 or more. EO smells great, but I’m starting to view them as the Creed of the oud world when it comes to marketing and pricing.

 

[Mr.P]

As i see it its a place that oud noobs have a good chance of landing on and getting an authentic oud without having to do much research or take any risks other than being overcharged, definitely fills a niche.

 

[User]

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[mesOUD]

I haven’t tried Mesoud though. I’ll be trying some of his oils next week. Maybe they will change my mind, but I have heard this story many times and nothing has changed my mind yet.

Have to compare apple with apple,if you will compare with nha trang,then have to compare my artisanaly distilled oils,even they are very limited,soon i will distill vietnam nha tinh,you can compare it with nha trang

 

[User]

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[User]

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[C-Sauce]

After a few years of smelling ouds from different vendors, I have come to the conclusion that Ensar’s oils are fairly priced along with other vendors, and he is still one of my favorite vendors to buy from.

Most oils that seem similar enough for a much lower price don’t hold up when your nose is more tuned. There are a few exceptions, but it’s very rare.

If you are one of the people who can barely tell the difference between EO Nha Trang LTD and IO Nha Trang Ultima, then of course NTU is a no-brainer. I think anyone who smells high grade Nha Trang oils often will see the obvious difference, and NTLTD is arguably worth the extra price(around 3-4x the price).

I am not usually impressed with cheaper versions of oils from Ensar. There are unique oils that Ensar doesn’t have, and I buy those. If someone says that there are two similar oils and one of them is from Ensar, I usually default to Ensar or I smell both of them.

I haven’t tried Mesoud though. I’ll be trying some of his oils next week. Maybe they will change my mind, but I have heard this story many times and nothing has changed my mind yet.

I updated this to clarify the kinam part. I might be a newbie, but I’ve been sniffing oud for 5+ years and constantly learning while building on a perfumery background where attention to nuance is essential. I’m on a quest to learn, so I wouldn’t be surprised to discover much later that I’ve been completely wrong. Nevertheless, MesOUD is the first small distiller I’ve tried and I’m finding these oils to be every bit as good as EO. The fact that MO can sell such fine oils and wood chips 5-10x less makes me suspect that the markup at the big houses is absolutely obscene. I haven’t smelled the kinam oil yet, but I have tried their kinam wood, which is 10-20 times larger than one of the offerings I bought for 50x the price from the big guys, and it exudes exactly the same shimmering aldehyde, apple blossom, and vanilla. Take the gigantic kinam chip from mesOUD (part of $150+ sample pack of 20+ samples, and compare it with the tiny sprinkle of micro wood chips for $250 called Brunei Kinam. You be the judge. I’m curious what you think of these when you try them out.

 

[C-Sauce]

Updated this as a question, not a statement. I’m wondering whether ASO Arakan (warrior oud) is a maceration of oud with civet paste.

 

[User]

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[Kolalid]

I also just realized that ASO Arakan (warrior oud) is a maceration of oud with civet paste. They don’t tell you that, but that’s what it is.

It is listed as a pure oud oil not a attar…

 

[C-Sauce]

It is listed as a pure oud oil not a attar…

Maybe I’m wrong. I might have had civet up my nose. Does anyone detect a trace of civet?

 

[User]

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[Arabiad07]

I updated this to clarify the kinam part. I might be a newbie, but I’ve been sniffing oud for 5+ years and constantly learning while building on a perfumery background where attention to nuance is essential. I’m on a quest to learn, so I wouldn’t be surprised to discover much later that I’ve been completely wrong. Nevertheless, MesOUD is the first small distiller I’ve tried and I’m finding these oils to be every bit as good as EO. The fact that MO can sell such fine oils and wood chips 5-10x less makes me suspect that the markup at the big houses is absolutely obscene. I haven’t smelled the kinam oil yet, but I have tried their kinam wood, which is 10-20 times larger than one of the offerings I bought for 50x the price from the big guys, and it exudes exactly the same shimmering aldehyde, apple blossom, and vanilla. Take the gigantic kinam chip from mesOUD (part of $150+ sample pack of 20+ samples, and compare it with the tiny sprinkle of micro wood chips for $250 called Brunei Kinam. You be the judge. I’m curious what you think of these when you try them out.

Keep in mind Mesoud is being extremely generous and has been clear that he’s not aiming for profits. He may be selling at cost or even below. He’s very very generous.

Other vendors may also need to factor in many employees and other overhead costs

 

[C-Sauce]

That’s worth noting.