Abdul Samad Blend
Abdul Samad Al Qurashi

Sweet golden orange tinged oil (in colour and smell) that's backed up by gentle spices and mildly fruity and woody oud. The sweetness feels the same as what you might experience from inhaling the aroma of dried fruits, raisins, figs or dates, but this is tempered by the woody backdrop. There is also a powdery musk that backs the composition smoothing things out. Solid stuff at the price if a little on the hum-drum in terms of excitement.

Yes, quite pretty, fruity and musky sticky/oily natural feminine aoudh from Abdul Samad Al Qurashi. Abdul Samad Blend strikes me soon for its highly aromatic fruity-floral musky brighteness with a laundry background which conjures me in part the richest Al Hajjar Al Aswad's evocative aromatic muskiness. This aromatic feel is bright-yellow, spicy and soapy, so joyful and carefree. As well as the excellent ClaireV has noticed it seems weird the brand does not list fruity notes since there is a more than subtle apricot/peach-like undertone which seems combined with balmy amber, musk, undiscerned floral notes (rose-jasmine-ylang-ylang??) and a huge amount of yummy spices (saffron, cinnamon, cumin??). The aroma is graceful, versatile and sophisticated, basically unisex but leaned over a sensual feminine side. I detect a bergamot/orange blossoms presence throughout and patchouli backbone. May be hints of benzoin support the smooth amber. ClaireV fairly notices the basic light-musky chypre nature of this fragrance which effectively could revealing points in common with the Narciso Rodriguez for Her's "pink" muskiness. I see the association with the diverse Coco Mademoiselle just in the aromatic (somewhat cool) patchouli presence which, while in the Chanel's concoction is minty aromatic, aldehydic and talky/anisic/balsamic, in here is fruity/spicy fresh and laundry. Anyway a great modern and fruity take over the oud/patchouli theme for all the lovers of fruity floral brighteness and fresh musk.

Very, very pretty! In the opening, I get a little hit of what smells like oud (although I am probably wrong, since this is priced on the reasonable end of things in the ASAQ inventory) and then a melange of fruit on top of a gentle amber and musk base. It is odd to me that fruit isn't listed in the notes list here on Basenotes, because this is clearly a fruity scent. I smell grapes, plums, and maybe some red apples. In fact, the opening was so reminiscent of red grapes and bubblegum I thought it might be a fruity jasmine at first. The fruit accord here is sweet, honeyed, and smooth, rather than sharp or aggressive. In any event, the scent relaxes into a sweet, vaguely fruity amber that is resting on a white fluffy musk. Later on, I sense a tiny bit of patchouli, but not the earthy, camphorous kind, rather the purple, fruity kind they use in patchouli fragrances these days. The scent is gentle, but persistent, and leaves a pleasant trail.

In general, I would say with confidence that Abdul Samad Blend would be an excellent starting point for anyone wishing to expand their knowledge of Arabian oils and attars, and who are drawn to soft, “pink”-smelling fruitchouli or musk fragrances. There is nothing challenging or funky about this at all. The blend reminded me strongly of the delicate pink chypres or nu-chypres wherein perfumers have replaced the traditional oakmoss base of the traditional chypre with woody patchouli. A famous example of this would be Coco Mademoiselle. Abdul Samad Blend does not smell like Coco Mademoiselle, but it does have something of that same pink, balmy, soft fruitchouli feel. But since this blend has rather a lot of musk, it might be more accurate to say that it lies in the same general category as Narciso Rodriguez for Her. In any case, I see this blend as being a very attractive option for women who like and wear these nu-chypres, the ones that smell of soft patchouli, musk, and flowers. The image of the wearer of Abdul Samad Blend comes to mind quite easily: she is an attractive girl with a sparkle in her eye and a fun, flirty manner. She is probably young, but is no naïve ingénue.