Jardin Nocturne
Shalini (2017)

there are reviews on fragrantica that complain of the fecal-ness that this fragrance has, but I imagine that can be only because 1) they never sprayed it onto their skin, 2) they couldn't wait literally 5 minutes for the fragrance to settle, 3) they're really unlucky with the skin chemistry, or 4) they've never experienced indian oud.

it's a pretty good, solid oud and has some warm notes of saffron in there to make it sociable. as a bit of an ouddict, however, it is a little pricey while not being super groundbreaking. perhaps that's the price tag of getting someone like Maurice Roucel to create this scent which is, undoubtedly, very well blended together.

the opening can be a bit challenging, but the other 95% of the journey is heavenly. Shalini said that this fragrance was about coming into her sexuality as a young woman, and indeed this smells a bit sweaty and dirty with a lot of musk coming through. it dries down to being surprisingly mellow and sweet, with fragrant jasmine echoing in the distance.

I would probably wear this to either somewhere like a sweaty nightclub where I might get lucky, or to a sunny beach donning an expensive bikini. this smells like beautiful, transcendent lust.

another jasmine oud to consider is Oudh Jasmin by Sama, which is more affordable but a bit more spiritual/asexual to me.

Indolic jasmine with a spicy, leathery saffron that ushers in a Hindi-like oud accord. It's all at once floral, woody, leathery, spicy, and a bit dirty. Faint wafts of woodsmoke sit in the background, growing more prominent as the perfume dries down. This is quite persistent on my skin, with a prominent sillage around me and longevity that easily lasts into the next day. The composition is a balance of light and dark, like a cool summer evening just after the sun has set. Images of driving through the desert with the top down and a cool wind in my hair.