Areej le Doré : The Official Discussion Thread

[Mak-7]

The puppies finally got delivered 🎉

Got OE sprayed to the chest and it is very close to OE2, but with a different floral twist.
Cant make my mind about it yet, but it is a shade lighter than V3 and rose is quiter.

I do have SM3 on the wrist and compared to SM2:
- less of the fatty citruces up top
- either added, or because less citruces - actual clear pine note similar to spell 125 is quite apparent
- it is a bit more dry due to reduction in citruces
- musk, as in a bit powdery texture is here, galore and around same level as in RM2.
- there was a fuzzy note, not sure what it is in SM2 and rm2 that i didnt enjoy and quite in my face. Subdued this version around.

So far from initial view - the best version of the Siberian and russian musks that i tried, including attar. SM2 is a bit more smooth, dense and pure parfum like, and SM3 is a bit more airy, dry, edp like, but thats not a bad thing. I was curious how would SM2 smell like if it was less concentrated, and SM3 is a more airy, lightweight and subjectively better composition.

 

[onewontdo]

When you want a no-nonsense chocolate bomb, RO2 is as good as it gets, from a purist standpoint this one beats out the Oud Monarch and Rumi as a solitary chocolate bomb IMO. The Hindi Oud in RO2 opening is apparent enough though, and the musk and ambergris are a nice touch as well.

I'm curious to try this next to my 2022 Slumberhouse Ore. I guess it will be in a different spectrum since there will be no booziness in RO2 plus oud, but it will be an interesting comparison as far as chocolate forward woody scents go. Ore 2022 is just a chocolatey mega bomb that makes my mouth water. Hope my RO2 will ship soon!

 

[Castingshadows]

I'm curious to try this next to my 2022 Slumberhouse Ore. I guess it will be in a different spectrum since there will be no booziness in RO2 plus oud, but it will be an interesting comparison as far as chocolate forward woody scents go. Ore 2022 is just a chocolatey mega bomb that makes my mouth water. Hope my RO2 will ship soon!

There’s zero similarities between the two. Especially 2022. They go in completely different directions. However if you like Ore 2022 you’ll love Russian Oud.

 

[Osny]

Yep I’ll second that there’s zero similarities between WP2 and Iris Ghalia. Not even close. Like at all.

Ok, I'm convinced I should try both again

 

[scent I meant]

got my set today - initial thoughts

the set is beautiful - the best of the best

perfumes ranked from absolute gems to really good

1
Walimah - absolute love from first sniff. Never smelt anything better (i know too early to say this)

2
Siberian Musk - the citrusy punch with smokey pine needle note is breath taking. Got Soudain vibes for the first 15 minutes. The citruses are still stromg and lingering with the slightly leathery musk and the earthy feel to it is exquisite

3
Otttoman empire - the rose was quite textured, fresh with crispy sweetness in thr opening which has now a little tamed and im getting somehing i got with gulab attar. the indian oud is still quite subtle but i am getting slight sniffs of it

4
chinese oud
the opening felt different and it is most likely becasue of the different oud used. the orange blossom took a few minutes to surface and the oud kept reminding me of history chinese oud - vinegary sour with a touch of blue cheese -felt like humanic rather than animalic

5
Russian oud
was expecting something else but maybe russian oud has always been an overhyped perume. Sickly sweet for the first 10 minutes, felt as if i fell into a box if cadbury chocolate powder. same cacao which i picked in batb. after 30 minutes it became resinous and ambery with fermented well tamed oud. quite linear but still quite good

 

[Mak-7]

RO2 start on test strip has very close link to the start of AdN, but violet and calamus are realy dialed back this time around. Nice boozy start, clear and pleasant chocolate, much stronger clarity and density of notes (+30%). So far so good. Didnt get to ambery drydown yet

Personally glad to read that hype around RO is dying down, and everyone has a fair shot at an improved perfume for a great price 👍🏽

 

[Dr B1414]

but violet and calamus are realy dialed back this time around.

These two notes right here are the reason why I never even dared to sample AGDN. Violet, it's tough for me when paired with sweetness, and I can't stand calamus.

 

[Mak-7]

Calamus is tough, i agree. Violet i dont have that much problem with it, but i overall not a big fan of pairing chocolate notes with greenery. One got to be super skillful with those.

 

[Tigs7]

I'm curious to try this next to my 2022 Slumberhouse Ore. I guess it will be in a different spectrum since there will be no booziness in RO2 plus oud, but it will be an interesting comparison as far as chocolate forward woody scents go. Ore 2022 is just a chocolatey mega bomb that makes my mouth water. Hope my RO2 will ship soon!

I wonder how Ore changed over the years. My old bottle, which I sold several years ago on the bay, had clear marbles in it so I’m guessing it was one of the earlier iterations. I recall that it smelled of whiskey, woods, and cream.

 

[Dothraki]

Is my memory betraying me or W&P II is really really close to EO Iris Ghalia? (Don’t know which version is the Iris Ghalia I have tried, unfortunately).

I would say Iris Ghalia is closer to Musk Lave. They share some similarities but definitely huge differences too. But if you like Iris Ghalia I would suggest trying Musk Lave believe it or not lol. Iris Ghalia compared to W&P… W&P is all about that dry amber musk accord. Dry dusty powdered old varnished wood. IG is more chewy, glossy, sweeter and has a sorta soapy aldehydic thing going on to my nose. Both very good. Although IG wasn’t FBW to me personally.

 

[Dothraki]

I wonder how Ore changed over the years. My old bottle, which I sold several years ago on the bay, had clear marbles in it so I’m guessing it was one of the earlier iterations. I recall that it smelled of whiskey, woods, and cream.

I might still have a 2013 sample set from Slumberhouse I’ll see if Ore is in there.

 

[oudaddict]

I think Ensar just pumps out a lot more juice than RA.

I doubt it. The price has a major factor. Due to the pricing structures, EO fragrances will normally reduce in value over time whereas ALD always retains its value.

 

[brothernature]

I doubt it. The price has a major factor. For to the pricing structures, EO fragrances will normally reduce in value over time whereas ALD always retains its value.

Nothing worse than blind buying an EO and wanting to sell it a month later. Gotta take a heavy loss to get rid of them lol

Early Areej hold crazy value. And they are amazing to this day.

 

[brothernature]

I wonder how Ore changed over the years. My old bottle, which I sold several years ago on the bay, had clear marbles in it so I’m guessing it was one of the earlier iterations. I recall that it smelled of whiskey, woods, and cream.

Ore has gone through a lot of recent changes, but in essence, it's the same scent.

The 2022 is way more milk chocolate-y based than the rest, but still has that boozy cocoa with a woody base way to it.

 

[Mak-7]

Wallimah is just perfect. It is maybe 20% lighter compared to attar, but never the less very good. Best of the set for sure. At the start there is purple grape note which i dont enjoy, thankfully lasts only for like 3 minutes, and then smooth bordeaux ride of flowers and aged vetiver 😌😌😌😌😌😌 maybe wallimah ranked my #4 amongst all areej frags.

Chinese oud is identical, just first 5 minutes oud acts a bit like deer in headlights, but after that its great smooth ride of CO og. Good buy for those who missed original one.

 

[Tigs7]

Ore has gone through a lot of recent changes, but in essence, it's the same scent.

The 2022 is way more milk chocolate-y based than the rest, but still has that boozy cocoa with a woody base way to it.

Thanks that makes sense why I don’t recall the cocoa. I sure hope I’m not nose blind to cocoa in compositions, guess I will have to wait for my RO bottle to determine that.

 

[Mak-7]

Those who didnt like the cap on the new bottles - my 50ml of chinese oud is looking to upgrade 😉

Also, new bottles with chinese oud cap somehow remind me of LOTR towers....all pointy and gothic in its nature.

 

[Anomalus763]

What was the retail price of Oud Zhen on the release date?

 

[Mak-7]

350

 

[Dr B1414]

Curious to see so many people thinking so highly of Walimah. It is very good, one of the best floral perfumes I've tried, but not that good, at least to me. Personally, I always felt that it lacks a proper base to ground all those florals. The vetiver does a good job but not enough. Wish he had used a similar base he used in OE. It's almost perfect.