Ajeeb Musk Blend
Abdul Samad Al Qurashi

ASAQ Wondrous/Ajeeb Musk Blend is a surprisingly modern dark dense oily musk which, despite being yet an hardcore well seasoned potion, performs (as well as Colin Maillard has previously noted) in a sort of versatile (somewhat or almost modern/glamour) way with its fist of chocolatey/resinous dark musk/suede accord just initially slightly "dirtied" but a touch of dissonant civet (or God knows by what of hellish). Wait twenty minutes or slightly more and the aroma will start waving in a creamy-liquorous cozy way and you feel yourself "projected" in to a lounge music type of cozy private licentious venue shimmering of precious bottles, massive iridescent glass decanters, starchy long dresses and red unmentionable sinful corners. The note of musk (as combined with a touch of agarwood resin and probably with rose) is deeply mossy, mouldy-camphoraceous, initially earthy, humid, slightly laundry-rosey and vaguely rubbery as often ordinary for a black kind of mossy raw material although it goes gradually losing its beastly dirtiness in order to indulge towards a more trendy/chic twist of night club-like contemporaneity. The note of amber (in its accord with vanilla and patchouli) is luxurious, furry, barely boot-polish type and vaguely boozy while the initial bergamot enhances the darkly glamour (vaguely bohemian) widespread vibe. Probably mild spices, saffron, hints of tobacco, rhum and olibanum enrich the potion or anyway the raw material complexity is so articulated to induce my inquiring nose to catch all those subtle nuances. Yes, I detect a sort of "Lutensesque" style but also fragrances a la House of Matriarch Bohemian Black, Slumberhouse Ore, Puredistance Black or Tom Ford Noir de Noir jump on mind for several of their characteristics. Finally the musky-woody aroma (with a mossy/waxy chypre soul in its dry down) takes performing in a really velvety, "perfumed", well rounded rubbery-boozy way which embodies a darkly elegant and well trimmed type of new yorker night clubs frequenting Vip fellow (somewhat far in style from the landmark ASAQ's ancient holiness or mystic oriental daring waxiness). Convincingly endorsed.

Ajeeb Musk Blend

Earthy dusty and slightly chocolaty patch, with what feels like a little bergamot on top to give a little sparkle to the opening. It's not even a semi-gourmande, but hints at things that may be edible under different circumstances, rather than refined cocoa think of dried cocoa beans trodden into dusty sun baked earth, I guess this is a facet of the patch which presents itself in this manner with green streaks on opening with slight powder. I've read marketing material that labels this as a full on "hippie" patch, and for me I'd associate that with pungent purple laced heady rawness, but I find Ajeeb to display a tighter arrangement with a green powdery side balanced against the tan dusty cocoa side. It feels to me built of a musky and resinous base adding softness and solidity to the later stages of development. A nice blend if you like a light-medium patch, living in the middle of the two extremes of almost psychedelic heady hippie patch and ultra sweetened examples like Coromandel. I don't think it wins me over for a FB purchase but it's nice nonetheless. $54/tola

Among the scents I've tested from this house so far, since the very opening Wondrous/Ajeeb Musk appears to be the most “friendly” by far, this meaning the most versatile, accessible and similar to a “normal” perfume which Western customers may be familiar with (it even reminded me of some Lutens', even if more exotic and thick). The price reflects this, since it is among the cheaper range of ASAQ – this making it appealing to a broader audience, and quality-wise, probably less charming and complex than others. This does not mean it is not a good scent, though: it's a terrific oil which doesn't lack in what makes ASAQ scents so special, which is their natural, rich, dense texture, that here too makes Ajeeb smell thick, “round” and nuanced. Basically, as the name suggests, it is a civilised, refined musk scent with unusual radiant and bright nuances that make it overall smell quite mellow, silky and soft, still keeping it shady and animalic; all wrapped up in a vanillic-ambery warm aurea, with a salty-camphoraceous base that may contain ambergris, plus a nice and earthy patchouli note with dusty cocoa hints, and a beautiful, gentle breeze of flowers (I think I get jasmine and rose) with a balsamic aftertaste. After a while a spicy accord emerges, “brownish” and pungently exotic, smelling mostly like cumin, saffron and ginger. Overall Ajeeb is a warm, exotic, refined Oriental musk-spicy-sweet scent with a mystical vibe all over, mostly expressed by a nice interplay of breezy-colourful notes and shady-earthy ones. The closest reference I may think of is, to some extent, scents like Borneo by Lutens, just richer, thicker, more animalic. As other ASAQ scents, the evolution is long and complex; after a couple of hours it all becomes woodier, spicier and more dry, with a bold salty-organic feel (ambergris again, and perhaps vetiver?), less warm and less soft than before, but still totally classy, elegant and with the right amount of sweetness. Plus, apparently it emerges also a note which was weirdly absent before, that is a citrus-neroli note, and that for a while creates a sort of classic fougère feel (citrus, woods, “dark” flowers...). A sophisticated, warm, unisex, faceted and unobtrusive scent, totally discreet and versatile. As I said, also probably “easier” to love by a broader audience if compared to other more challenging oils. The only flaw is that this oil is quite thick and dark: don't apply it on bright clothes.

8/10

This is really not my cup of tea. I've tested it three times at this point, twice from a sample provided by one seller, and again from a sample provided by another, and the impression I get is consistent from testing to testing, seller to seller: this is a heavy duty patchouli-musk-amber blend that wouldn't go amiss among hippies at a Samhain festival or a Grateful Dead concert.

Normally, I love patchouli, but the kind of patchouli I tend to like is the type in a composition with either amber or vanilla to soften the sourness/earthiness somewhat. Here, the patchouli is similar in tone to what you get in the simplest patchouli oils you buy at your nearest health food store - which is to say, an earthy brown-green oil with a sharp, almost camphorous edge to it. The opening blast left me puzzled as to why someone would pay for a blend like this when you can pick up a bottle of patch oil for peanuts at the local store. Almost right away, however, the smell of raw patchouli is joined by an aggressively soapy musk, and for the next three hours, what I smell is an unpleasant little power struggle between the sour, camphorous patchouli and the extremely 'clean' musk, the combination of which came off smelling like a bathroom disinfectant. The green-ish edge to the patchouli and the medicinal soapiness of the musk used here actually conjured up the ghostly image of a pungent neroli-type accord, which is obviously an olfactory illusion given the absence of neroli here.

The saving grace of the scent is a golden amber accord, thick and toffee-ish, that mercifully appears at the base to soften and sweeten the sour soapiness. This part is delicious, and since it lasts for a very long time (in fact, a whole day and a half if you let it), it means that the blend is actually pleasant for more than 60% of its life on your skin. Still, I have enough amber and patchouli scents that I absolutely love already, and don't feel the need to add something to my wardrobe that is actively unpleasant to my nose for the other 40% of the time. I am giving this oil a neutral, though, because I find the amber in the base to be lovely, and the strength and longevity of the scent are absolutely nuclear. I think this blend should appeal to men, mostly, and particularly those who want an olfactory time machine back to their hippy-ish teenage years or whenever it was they went to concerts. Hell, this should appeal to anyone who has ever worn and loved straight up patchouli oil in their youth (or even if you do now).