Jinkoh Store Emperor of China
Starting the day with my most beloved oud oil and one of my most beloved aromatics ever. This stuff blows my mind every single time. Decided to start taking notes on this one for a future review, as up until now, I was always enjoying the ride and not paying much attention to the technical aspects of this oil. It deserves a proper dissection.
It definitely has a horizontal development, something that I noticed a long time ago. The Hainan agarwood pronounced woody profile and the manuka honey chord is always at the very center/base of it, while all other notes pop in and out, sometimes singularly and other times creating various accords.
As a side note. Smelling many oud profiles and trying oils from many vendors, different distillation techniques, styles, and so on. I came to recognize one particular trait that I always associate with the Agarwood smell. I call it, and see it, as a smooth, suede, brown leather note. It has a wood smell, but it has a different depth than regular wood, never sharp, never bland, never white, I guess. Always deep, brownish, and rich, hence my leather association. I could expand this to many other facets of course, but if I were to choose only one facet that I get in all oils, is this one. It's always present to me, although it doesn't always surface/dominate.
