Top Notes
Sugar
Heart Notes
Frankincense
Base Notes
Vanilla
Oud
Musk
Sandalwood
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Notes02/23/2022
Carlitos01
346 Reviews
Carlitos01
Very helpful Review
9
The Petticoat Lane Market scent
Today my nose took me to the whereabouts of Jack the Ripper, specifically to the narrow streets of Whitechapel in London. On that Sunday morning, the weather was perfectly normal, which in London means quite unpleasant. As soon as I left Aldgate tube station, the cold along with the drizzle was trying to get in through any gap in my clothes. I looked for the shortest route to Middlesex Street. To my disappointment, it was at the wrong end of the street, so I had to walk all the way to the other end, near Bishopsgate.
I'm not easily intimidated by a long walk, but in that nasty weather, I didn't feel like going through the hustle and bustle of Petticoat Lane Market. Around 1830, Petticoat Lane's name changed to Middlesex Street and the street marked the boundary between Portsoken Ward, in the City of London, and Whitechapel. Due to the popularity of the Sunday market, the old name continues to be used nearly two centuries later. It is the same filthy, badly paved street as it ever was. Although Middlesex Street is painted on the walls on each side of the lane, it is still called Petticoat Lane and is likely ever to be so.
Despite the hundreds of stalls selling clothes, the smell of the street was quite peculiar and extremely pleasant. Several pastry shops and cafes offered sweet cakes and the sugary aroma mingled with the smoke from incense sticks and sandalwood burned by oriental merchants. The smell awoke both the memory of warmer climes and woke up my stomach still waiting for the morning breakfast. Eventually, I reached my destination, a small coffee shop called "Caravela" where the owner, an eminent and very tall man wearing a turban, commanded operations at the counter.
"- Good morning, Nasir!" - I said completely chilled. "I need a hot "galão" and a custard tart quickly". Nasir was born in Rajasthan but as a child, he emigrated to Mozambique. From there he travelled to Portugal where he lived for half a dozen years. Like many other Indians, he emigrated to London where, remembering his years in Portugal, he served "pasteis de nata" (custard tarts) with a "galão" in his Indian Deli. The "galão" is nothing more than a very sweet cappuccino that can be spiced up with sweet spices and vanilla... what a delight! The aromas of incense and sandalwood, the pastel de nata and that sweet, hot drink comforted my body and soul. Only later when I first used Raghba, this vivid image of sweet, woody and balsamic aromas came back to my memory.
I don't think Raghba is an easy perfume to like or one that attracts crowds of buyers in Western countries. It is an oriental fragrance, with EDP concentration, and opens with a rather sweet aroma, kind of reminiscent of slightly caramelized sugar. The opening takes a while to let the latent evolution show, but it finally overpowers the burnt sugar accord. At the heart of the fragrance, we perceive a balsamic incense, and not at all liturgical, that comforts us and lets us perceive woody notes of sandalwood and yummy vanilla that completely replaces the sweetness of the initial sugar. For me a flask of Raghba contains a wonderful "pastel de nata" sprinkled with icing sugar and cinnamon, accompanied by a warm cappuccino with vanilla, sipped in a room where incense and sandalwood sticks burn.
I can't say it's a seductive perfume, but it's undeniably very cosy and comfortable. For me, it has the added advantage of being quite unique. Other oriental perfumes like 24 Gold or Kalemat have some similarities, although they are woodier and with a more prominent oud note.
My ratings for Raghba:
___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___
- Aperture: 7.5 (Caramelized sugar)
- DryDown: 8.5 (Balsamic incense with nuances of smoke, sandalwood and lots of vanilla)
- Longevity: 8.0 (3 sprays last up to 7~8 hours)
- Sillage: 8.0 (up to 6 feet of sillage and 2.5 hours of projection, with 3 sprays)
- Singularity: 9.0 (Quite unique although it shows slight similarities to Kalemat, 24 Gold and Al Mazyoona).
- Wearability: 7.0 (Mostly for cold weather)
- Versatility: 7.0 (Mainly at leisure, at least for westerners; Never wear it to the office)
- Praise: 7.0 (I like it but it's not consensual)
- Quality: 8.0 (Above average impression quality, although some notes seem a bit artificial)
- Presentation: 6.0 (Better than usual for a UAE fragrance bottle)
- Price: 10.0 (This perfume price is quite variable, depending on the shop where you buy it.... My 100ml bottle cost me 12 Pounds a couple of years ago).
___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___
Overall rating: 7.80 / 10.00
- between 7 and 8 = above average;
- between 8 and 9 = recommended;
- above 9 = definitely not to be missed;
My opinion: It is not a consensual perfume. Some people hate it and others love it. This is the fragrance that put Lattafa on the perfumery map, and it collects a lot of praise in the Middle and the Far East. I love wearing it at will when I'm at home. If you like the description, you can risk a blind purchase due to its very affordable price.
Music: Neil Diamond - Sweet Caroline
I'm not easily intimidated by a long walk, but in that nasty weather, I didn't feel like going through the hustle and bustle of Petticoat Lane Market. Around 1830, Petticoat Lane's name changed to Middlesex Street and the street marked the boundary between Portsoken Ward, in the City of London, and Whitechapel. Due to the popularity of the Sunday market, the old name continues to be used nearly two centuries later. It is the same filthy, badly paved street as it ever was. Although Middlesex Street is painted on the walls on each side of the lane, it is still called Petticoat Lane and is likely ever to be so.
Despite the hundreds of stalls selling clothes, the smell of the street was quite peculiar and extremely pleasant. Several pastry shops and cafes offered sweet cakes and the sugary aroma mingled with the smoke from incense sticks and sandalwood burned by oriental merchants. The smell awoke both the memory of warmer climes and woke up my stomach still waiting for the morning breakfast. Eventually, I reached my destination, a small coffee shop called "Caravela" where the owner, an eminent and very tall man wearing a turban, commanded operations at the counter.
"- Good morning, Nasir!" - I said completely chilled. "I need a hot "galão" and a custard tart quickly". Nasir was born in Rajasthan but as a child, he emigrated to Mozambique. From there he travelled to Portugal where he lived for half a dozen years. Like many other Indians, he emigrated to London where, remembering his years in Portugal, he served "pasteis de nata" (custard tarts) with a "galão" in his Indian Deli. The "galão" is nothing more than a very sweet cappuccino that can be spiced up with sweet spices and vanilla... what a delight! The aromas of incense and sandalwood, the pastel de nata and that sweet, hot drink comforted my body and soul. Only later when I first used Raghba, this vivid image of sweet, woody and balsamic aromas came back to my memory.
I don't think Raghba is an easy perfume to like or one that attracts crowds of buyers in Western countries. It is an oriental fragrance, with EDP concentration, and opens with a rather sweet aroma, kind of reminiscent of slightly caramelized sugar. The opening takes a while to let the latent evolution show, but it finally overpowers the burnt sugar accord. At the heart of the fragrance, we perceive a balsamic incense, and not at all liturgical, that comforts us and lets us perceive woody notes of sandalwood and yummy vanilla that completely replaces the sweetness of the initial sugar. For me a flask of Raghba contains a wonderful "pastel de nata" sprinkled with icing sugar and cinnamon, accompanied by a warm cappuccino with vanilla, sipped in a room where incense and sandalwood sticks burn.
I can't say it's a seductive perfume, but it's undeniably very cosy and comfortable. For me, it has the added advantage of being quite unique. Other oriental perfumes like 24 Gold or Kalemat have some similarities, although they are woodier and with a more prominent oud note.
My ratings for Raghba:
___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___
- Aperture: 7.5 (Caramelized sugar)
- DryDown: 8.5 (Balsamic incense with nuances of smoke, sandalwood and lots of vanilla)
- Longevity: 8.0 (3 sprays last up to 7~8 hours)
- Sillage: 8.0 (up to 6 feet of sillage and 2.5 hours of projection, with 3 sprays)
- Singularity: 9.0 (Quite unique although it shows slight similarities to Kalemat, 24 Gold and Al Mazyoona).
- Wearability: 7.0 (Mostly for cold weather)
- Versatility: 7.0 (Mainly at leisure, at least for westerners; Never wear it to the office)
- Praise: 7.0 (I like it but it's not consensual)
- Quality: 8.0 (Above average impression quality, although some notes seem a bit artificial)
- Presentation: 6.0 (Better than usual for a UAE fragrance bottle)
- Price: 10.0 (This perfume price is quite variable, depending on the shop where you buy it.... My 100ml bottle cost me 12 Pounds a couple of years ago).
___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___
Overall rating: 7.80 / 10.00
- between 7 and 8 = above average;
- between 8 and 9 = recommended;
- above 9 = definitely not to be missed;
My opinion: It is not a consensual perfume. Some people hate it and others love it. This is the fragrance that put Lattafa on the perfumery map, and it collects a lot of praise in the Middle and the Far East. I love wearing it at will when I'm at home. If you like the description, you can risk a blind purchase due to its very affordable price.
Music: Neil Diamond - Sweet Caroline
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