Koh-i-Noor
Areej le Doré (2018)

Koh-i-Noor opens with a duvet-like whoosh of cheesy, stale musks that somehow manage to be saline and sweet all at once. Gardenia is probably responsible for the curdy, cream-cheesey saltiness, the Indian tuberose too. In general, I get the same ‘rancid floral butter’ impression as the wonderful lostinflowers by Strangelove NYC, which makes sense as lostinflowers also uses real gardenia absolute and an Indian attar approach to perfumery.

The florals, compressed into a big block of yellow butter, exhibit a texture greasy with costus, civet, and a goose fat facet that I can almost taste at the back of my throat. Like Oudh Infini (Dusita), the sensation is akin to swallowing creamy goat curd and getting that delayed response mechanism to the underlying funk, whereby you think at first, oh this is mild, but then that goat flavor starts to fill the back and sides of your mouth until there’s no room for anything else. Honestly, I’m both repulsed and attracted.

There’s an interesting dual texture thing going on, though. The oily costus-musk and big ole block of Indian floral butter is backlit by a hugely powdery rose or jasmine nag champa note. The dance back and forth is fascinating; sometimes you tune into the sweet powder, sometimes the scalpy wetness is all you can smell. The musks and florals smell expensive, luxurious – but the nag champa note is sweetly, cheaply powdery, like when you put your nose too closely to a stick of Indian incense and inhale too deeply, getting particles of incense dust in your nose hairs. This lurch between expensive and cheap is the real hook here. It’s what reels me in, making me sniff myself compulsively throughout the day.

Koh-i-Noor shares something of Chypre Palatin’s civety funk and powdery floral, but in truth, I find it to be far closer to vintage, pre-reform Gold Man (Amouage). I once worked with a guy who was drop dead gorgeous, but whose personal hygiene was so poor that every time he’d lean forward at a meeting, a waft of unwashed crotch, pasted down in several layers of deodorizing powders and sprays, would drift upwards to my nose. Gold Man, the vintage version at least, squirrels after much the same effect, which is to say it layers oppressively powdery musks and florals over a deeply funky base of unwashed crotch. However, Koh-i-Noor distinguishes itself from this company by way of that floral nag champa note. It’s the dance between the expensive (cream cheesey) musks and cheap, fizzy headshop incense powder that makes Koh-i-Noor such a fascinating fragrance. It’s the most interesting scent in the 4th generation of Areej Le Dore fragrances, although on a personal level, its constant lurch between greasy and dusty leaves me feeling a little queasy.

The far drydown is where the naturally powdery sweetness of the deer musk comes through, and fleshed out with sweet amber and florals, it smells incredibly moreish, chocolatey even. If you’re like me and love the collected smells of the incense aisle of your local Asian shop, the air thick with the powdery scent of individual nag champa sticks, musk cubes, cheap barkhour, and the entire range of Al Rehab oils, opened and sniffed by customers before you, then you’ll find 75% of Koh-i-Noor to be comforting and familiar. The stuffy, greasy wall of musk and florals at the start will be less familiar and even off-putting; but if you’re a fan of the powdered floral funk of the musks in vintage Gold Man, then you’ll be able to take the opening hour in your stride too.

Zephyr has nailed the extraordinary aspects of this Beautiful thing.
The Areej sweet, tart Lemon and Musk is trademark.
Jasmine Sambac Indol Benzoined sweetness, tames the wall of thick buttery Tuberose Indol that can for me suffocate.
The Lemon works to separate layers of Tuberose Heavy cream rot, to have it's Indol merely act as a mild exotic seasoning.
In this way, this scent holds some similarity to Aftel Cepes and Tuberose, for me.
High quality and number of ingredient provides for a denseness of texture and enveloping Symphonic.
It presents initially as a BIG feminine, however the absence of frilly Floral, plants it squarely in the Genderless.
The Animalic, nicely, rubs to the side of a Yummy ripeness.
I like, most scents Areej I have tasted.
Koh-i-Noor. I'm Sexy in Love.

Take generous helpings of ylang ylang, tuberose, and gardenia and whip them all together in a blender with a bowl of the most delicious lemony, banana custard. Add in a tincture of deer musk, a slight bit of oud, and some real-smelling sandalwood, and--voila!--the most gorgeous, deeply satisfying scent I have smelled in ages.

If you enjoy the vintage nature of indolic florals and/or slight animalics in your fragrances, Koh-i-Nor truly satisfies this itch. There is nothing overtly "stinky" here, although the florals seem almost like ones that could eat you if they wanted. The whole thing is richly dense and custardy, but not overwhelming. The sillage is strictly personal and doesn't send others scurrying for cover. It reminds me a bit of Inferno Russo, but I can definitely wear this one with more ease.

Also, in the dry down there is a note (or two) that smells both "cheesy" and slightly like beeswax. I have no true idea whether this is the gardenia or the oud, but regardless, it fills me with the most intense and warm sort of smelling-pleasure.

This is seriously intense - and has incredible longevity!

It's a very rich natural musk/floral composition that has so many "stages" it's more similar to an Opera than anything I can properly compare it to.

There is an incredible REAL tuberose - the kind that has that weird scent that you would only recognize if you have smelled it in its truest form - this is not camphorus, but rather dense - and is reminiscent of the composition in Mandy Aftel's Cepes and Tuberose - which I did not connect until reading Kafkeasque's review in which she mentioned the scent that real tuberose absolute has, and compared it to mushrooms.

But that is just ONE aspect of this very intense work - there are undulations of deer musk, Mysore, and Jasmine - and somehow these work so harmoniously, you don't quite notice the shift - oh, and the LEMON! I almost forgot - this is really noticeable! It's so neat, how it lifts the scent - like an Aria sung by a clear soprano.

I'm sure I can do a better review later - but I wanted to write something on this while I was wearing it - it is so complex!