Here’s another fun and fruity Oud-y, along the same lines as the new Bond no. 9 offering, New York Oud. The oud is mild here, as it is in NYO, and will easily appeal to that wider range of persons who might normally be turned off by a parasitic fungus note (in all it’s many glories). NYO had a distinct plummy-fruit note, while AV sports a sweet, jammy-fruit. If AV were just the tiniest bit less refined, it could pass for the new Bath & Body Works Warm Vanilla Oud*.
I mentioned that it would be impossible to over-apply New York Oud, not so with Aoud Velvet. A couple dabs will do you, and they’ll do so all night long. Nicely done, but I prefer the dryer, darker version in Montale’s other ouds: Aoud Queen Roses, White Oud, or Black Oud.
*Which currently exists only in the minds of a few perfume nerds.
At The Perfumed Court starting at $4.25, or Luckyscent for $150 (50 mL)
beauty on the outside 
Okay, confession time: I don’t like oud. But don’t tell anyone! You had me for a second with the BBW Oud, but wait, it is probably nor far in the future! 😉
I’m going to send you some of the NY Oud, because I think it might change your mind. The oud is so different, it’s like a sheer veil compared to a brocade tapestry.
Once you try that, then we’ll talk 😉
Your description of New York Oud really piqued my curiosity. I
Hey, if this stuff keeps selling, Warm Vanilla Oud is not too far into the future. 🙂
Let’s cross our fingers! I can’t wait to soak in a bubble bath of oud… 😉
So there are others beside myself who don’t like oud? (To put it mildly) There’s just something about that Band-Aid, pharmacy thang that I’m not getting. Oud (at least the ones I’ve tried) makes me feel a bit like Charlie Brown: I. Can’t. Stand. It.
So I’m doomed to be the eternal oud non-sophisticate, or else I just haven’t met the right one yet. 😦
Maybe a little of both? I think I might not be able to smell the aromachemical that causes “that Band-Aid, pharmacy thang,” but I’m pretty sure that it does not exist in either NYO or AV—these smell like very different beasts than other ouds I know (and love) 🙂
I can’t tolerate tuberose, except in the minutest quantities, so I’m obviously a total degenerate—maybe disliking oud actually makes you more sophisticated! LOL.
I have been testing a few oud fragrances including Montale Black Aoud.
I get that pharmaceutical note that Tarleisio smells. Wearing it was driving me crazy because it smells like something that was in my parents bathroom cabinet…the smell would waft out when you opened the door.
Finally, it came to me..Ivory Soap! That’s just one small piece of the Black Oud puzzle but there is def. a note reminiscent of Ivory soap.
LOL, I don’t get the Ivory soap smell, but I can relate to the weird associations that perfume inspires!
But here’s the question: do you *like* Black Aoud??? 🙂
I do, but it makes me uneasy. Once the childhood associations fade, I will be able to appreciate it more.
The oud I do love is L’Artisan Al Oudh. It’s sexy with a capital S. I also love Czech & Speak Dark Rose. Both of these are FBW to me!
Al Oudh is wonderful, isn’t it? I came so close to buying a full, 100mL bottle… but a split came up right at that time, and I ended up with 10mL, which is really all I need.
I love it, but haven’t worn it often enough to justify any more!
Black Oud I need to try again. I’ve got White Oud, which is very nice… but Black has so much more ZAZ! When I tested it, I got some on my leather jacket, and I could smell it for months afterwards—it was wonderful! The opening, and the faaaar dry-down I love, but it’s the in-between that I still have a hard time with.
Dark Rose is wonderful, but not FBW for me, since it smells so similar (to me) to Aoud Queen Roses, which I do have a FB of! ALthough, if I had sampled DR at the same time as AQR, I can’t say which one I would have ended up with…
🙂