Dark, enigmatic, charismatic and
moody. No, we’re not talking exes— we’re talking oud. The rare and
precious oil found in agarwood has been inspiring perfumers of late,
leading to a bounty of scents based on this compelling note. One of our
favorites is this luxurious potion by Calice Becker. She has mastered
the critical element of balance – showcasing all of the wonderful
strangeness of oud, while taming it just enough to keep it from becoming
overwhelming. Pure Oud opens with the dark glitter of obsidian, as
saffron swirls over a deep animalic growl, then takes us on a long and
twisty journey to secret places: a deliciously murky lair filled with
mysterious smoke; a hidden chamber redolent with ink, leather and
ancient wood. Make no mistake, this is powerful stuff: the ink is
extremely inky, the leather is enveloping and rich, the animalic
elements are so vivid that you can feel the lion’s breath on your neck—
and yet Becker has taken all of these prickly components and spun them
into velvet. The end result is so astonishingly smooth and well-blended
that you could wear it every day. Oud lovers will adore this, naturally,
but this also gets our vote for the oud fragrance most likely to win
new converts– not because it is a simplified version, but because it
gets all the complications perfectly right. Magical.
Pure Oud Notes
Saffron, Oud Oil, Cypriol, Gaiac Wood, Copahu Balm, Ciste, Myrrh.