Eliassport

Widian London has rightly joined the bestseller list of niche perfumes, as its leather-raspberry combo is simply irresistibly fine/beautiful, yes, finer than Tuscan Leather!
After a while, there were more and more discussions about possible weaker batches, or fruity/leathery etc... You might think that the London has changed or been changed over time, I can't say whether that's true or not, but personally the new batches seem a little weaker and leatherier to me than the older ones. And that's exactly what I miss, that beautiful, fruity raspberry note that set the fragrance apart from the TL and made it more unique/sensual, more refined, because, as already mentioned, the new batches have been toned down in this respect. Nevertheless, I compared both fragrances (Sillage and London) at the same time on the back of my hand and the result was amazing. The price of London is also astonishing at just under 260 euros for 50ml, whereas Sillage costs just 190 euros for 100ml, which is definitely something to consider! First of all, both fragrances smell extremely similar, only the nuances as well as the durability and projection are different

I won't go into detail about the fragrance, I think that should already be clear and obvious. I will merely point out the differences.

I can't adequately comment on the quality either, as I'm not very familiar with the specific ingredients (apart from oud), but I'll still rate my feelings and the composition!

Fragrance/subtle: To put it succinctly, the sillage is more fruity, less leathery and that's exactly what makes it better/subtler/sensual, more beautiful and more pleasant for me! In plain language: Sillage is fruitier due to the more present raspberry!


Longevity and projection: An important characteristic of a perfume, especially in this price range, but it must also be specifically mentioned here that especially the durability and projection is different for each skin and factors such as temperature, weather, daily form etc. are relevant to be able to judge at all, so I refer this to my own personal experience! Sillage surprised me, as this fragrance was always longer and more intense than London. Where London was almost gone, I could still hear the sillage, especially the raspberry-vanilla note, it was melting! Do you have an intimate date in the evening? Then spray it on in the morning and in the evening you have an extra booster for the pleasure of two - basically! Specifically: Sillage radiates longer and stronger than London! Both lasted more than 10 hours, yet sillage with much stronger projection from 3 hours onwards!


Conclusion: Why the hell should I spend almost 260 euros for 50ml when I have a fragrance for 190 euros 100ml that is far better for me! The only argument would be a nicer box, nicer/better bottle and more leathery character - not mine!


PS: The sillage is almost 1 to 1 with the older batches from London!


Conclusion: Sillage is one of my favorites, not an Artisan, not a specialty, but it doesn't always have to be! I feel very comfortable with this fragrance and it stays with me all day - that's enough for me.

PS: I deliberately leave out obsolete complimentary arguments because they are pointless and trivial!

I approached the matter completely neutrally, only the fragrance counts! When I found it here in Munich at Parfümerie Brückner, I was initially delighted to be able to test the fragrance for free, and I found it quite interesting, as it was supposed to contain real oud and this in high quality, according to Kai's formulation. I also wrote to Kai's service department or rather his employees, who replied very nicely and jovially. I was answered as follows:

"Hey Elias, I have consulted with Kai. The quality of the oud is similar to Ensar Oud or Nabeel. However, we can't say where the oud comes from as we don't receive any information from the perfumer. It is a trade secret. I'm sorry we can't give you any more information! :-("

And:

"100%. It was very important to Kai that only the best ingredients go into the perfume. Not just the oud, but also all the other substances that go into it. :-) As a little "proof": The perfumer behind it is already involved in many top sellers of well-known brands. Among others, bangers like Nefs, Erba Pura or Salam. If the quality were poor, the perfumes would not have made it to global success. Whether you can smell the oud strongly depends very much on how "sensitive" or good your nose is. Some people only notice it a little, others find it far too much. Kai and I would say it's just the perfect blend: not overpoweringly strong and not too faint that you barely notice it. If you wear pure oud oil, then you can't go wrong with Oud31. At least then you don't have to worry that you won't like it. You should be an oud lover if you buy Oud31. It's definitely not for beginners - they would clearly find it too strong. For real "oud freaks", the oud might even be a little stronger. As I said, Kai and I find it perfectly balanced. :-)".

As you can see, very nice employees, but I have to be honest and mention that these personalities unfortunately do not have that much knowledge about oud or the quality of the ingredients of Oud 31. Especially the statement that the perfumer has brought out many hits like Xerjoff etc. is absolutely no reference of quality, this is absolutely not the case

Well, I don't want to write another long text about oud, but let's get to the fragrance :

Adequately explained, the fragrance is not bad, no, but the price in relation to a Xerjoff Oud Star, Fragrance Du Bois or even Bortnikoff is a cheek and that as someone who basically sells online himself. Furthermore, I would like to make the assertion - you are welcome to provide me with proof that this is not the case - that the oud in Oud 31 contains a cheap plantation oud, just like in Xerjoff etc.. For me, this in no way justifies the price in relation to the quality of the fragrance. If you compare the fragrance to the somewhat cheaper Bortnikoffs, you can only laugh and Bortnikoff doesn't have the big buyers and you can smell quality there
In itself, the fragrance is not bad, especially the drydown knows how to please, because it becomes cuddly, but initially this cheap oud is really bad for me, but of course, I'm used to other qualities it's primarily about the theme and the price and that's just (oud) and that's exactly what I criticize! If it were a subordinate component, my assessment would be different, but the price doesn't justify itself for me!!!

The durability and projection are very strong, I like that!

Overall not my cup of tea!

Read the staff comments, test the fragrance, get into oud and you'll know what I mean!

Kai may be a really cool guy, I don't know, but the fragrance is really not mine, sorry!

After a somewhat longer break or rather perfume break, I have ventured back into this beautiful topic or hobby to possibly test new fragrances, as an old phase of my life was/is coming to an end, so I no longer want to wear fragrances that I wore more often in the past. I still love/appreciate the (natural) raw material oud in its purest form, I probably won't let go of it until the grave, which is why I was looking for a fragrance that contains exactly that - a beautiful, high-quality oud, admittedly quite boldly formulated, since oud in its purest form comes along/acts extremely complex. There are many fragrances with oud, but only very few perfumes contain natural eagle wood in a usable quality, even here, I don't want to judge whether high-quality oud is used here or there, the time has become too modern for that, or rather you can imitate a lot (authentically), but I still orient myself according to what I have been able to smell of oud so far in different forms/types/qualities, that's how I (judge).
After my research began, I found the fragrance house Nabeel and the line (Spirit Of Dubai) as well as the oud relatively quickly - not difficult to recognize. After looking at several reviews and communicating with the fragrance house itself and its employees, I found out more information. According to them, the oud in the oud should come from a 200 year old tree from wild growth and indeed it smells very similar even nicer/rounder/deeper than the Indian oud I have with me - beautiful! I don't think I need to explain much about the fragrance notes, as for me some many fragrance notes that are given are obsolete for me, as I mainly only perceive oud and in the background notes that support, not relevant for me to perform these, too complex built.

In any case, this perfume is a blessing for me and exactly what I was looking for, namely a very strong oud fragrance that knows how to convince me, which has become quite difficult, as I have already experienced many things in this regard.

For me, Nabeel - Oud smells simply dreamlike, expressed in associations: profound, complex, intense, high-quality, sexy, woody, earthy, somewhat animalistic, calming, centered, deeply connected to the earth, divine, attractive, as if I would come into purity with my spirit. Soo, I've just thrown a lot of thoughts into the fountain to express what I feel or feel for this fragrance.

To be honest, I have to mention that I have developed significantly when it comes to oud, so that I would no longer classify some of the perfumes I have rated in this way, but that's the way it is, you don't stand still but continue to develop.
I am curious to see what other fragrances from the house will smell like and now we come succinctly to S&H

Longevity: More than 10 hours are easily inside, even the next day or 24 hours are no problem for this perfume.

Projection: Varies from day to day or weather conditions, but I find the projection to be strong/intense, which only slowly decreases throughout the day.

Top!!!!!

With this in mind, I would like to wish you a Merry Christmas in advance and a Happy New Year 2024

Honestly, this fragrance was a blind purchase, since I could not test him anywhere, since he is also not particularly known, there are also no souk offers - eiso buy! Since here Oud is specified as the only ingredient and in addition represents a real Arab, I have to buy it immediately :-)

When the fragrance arrived, I unpacked it first from the less valuable box or box, which is nevertheless very beautiful for me. The flacon pleases me as well - beautiful glass.

The spray head is generous, so two sprays are enough - more on that later.

The fragrance is full of oud from beginning to end - at the beginning still very aninalisch, yet the certain extra always remains present.
After an hour, it transforms somewhat, it seems deeper and less animalic. From the third hour, it smells very identical to the Night by Frederic Malle, the Thai oud seems to be very present in the heart note of the fragrance. From the sixth hour, it gradually softens, yet this hardcore masculine oud remains strongly present - it never goes for a cuddle, but tries to attract the fullest attention from start to finish.

Oud is such a topic, real, pure oud can be very expensive - for 1ml you pay up to 5000 euros - depending on the origin, age, distillation and of course the quality.

Many perfumes advertise with oud, that nevertheless in either synthetic form is applied or in very small quantities is used.

I must say for 50 euros at 100ml one should expect purely theoretically a highly synthetic oud fragrance, so this one has surprised me extremely.

Malaki actually smells like authentic Oud in several varieties - Thai , Cambodia and Vietnam.

It smells from the quality just to just as high quality as the night of Frederic Malle - but there everyone must form his own opinion. It smells amazingly high-quality.

Since this perfume has been manufactured in the Arab Emirates, I think that the for real Oud have better conditions than z.b brands like Xerjoff, Roja etc...
Clearly, Ensar Oud etc... act higher quality, but are accordingly quite expensive - but rightly so.

The durability and projection is extremely good.

After now eight hours, it is still clearly perceptible and the sillage in the first hours is atomic - less is more

With this fragrance you get an authentic representation of oud, without any synthetic component. Whether high-quality or low-quality oud was used, the fragrance smells high-quality and on me it acts just like pure, genuine oud.

For little money, you get great performance.
With The Night you could turn it around exactly, although the fragrance smells very good, is the outrageously expensive!

In the sense I give a clear buy recommendation out!

I was long - very long - looking for an oud fragrance that meets my criteria -real oud (oud content), intense, extraordinary, strong oud presence, noble bottle and uniqueness.
Does Zafar meet all my criteria? More about this later!

First of all, I now have every Oud Star through as well as almost all Kemi fragrances to make me a nice picture of all the fragrances.
My three favorites from the Oud Star collection are Alexandria II, Zanzibar and of course Zafar. For me, the fragrances have that certain something.

Zafar is for me the fragrance where you perceive the oud most beautiful and strongest.

The oud in Zafar is present at all times, yet wonderfully enveloped by other notes such as incense, cedar and subtle florals that are perceptible to me.

The scent progression is not so spectacular as I find, but I always find new facets of the fragrance, which impresses me so much - but this is normal for natural oud fragrances.

The oud in Zafar is beautiful - deep, slightly animalic, dark, powerful, present and high-quality. You notice the naturalness of the fragrance, especially just the Laotian oud.

According to the manufacturer, the oud is matured 15. years, but this tells me honestly little. The factors: distillation, location of the tree, age of the tree, extraction of the oud or its processing, etc., all these factors are crucial.
The oud in Ceylon - Malaysia - for example, smells more animal and fecal than the oud in Zafar, this can be recognized relatively quickly.
The oud in ilm is also softer, brighter and broader set up, but designed a little softer.
The oil content is equally crucial, where in Zafar has not been saved in any case!

Zafar acts very protective, self-confident, clear, profound on me, like no other fragrance.

It is for me real quality in a beautiful bottle.

A pure oud perfume would be boring for me, because I can then buy me the same pure oud oil, as well as a fragrance that reflects only light nuances of oud would also be boring, because if I am looking for an "oud fragrance", also wants a perfume where just the oud in all its glory radiates.
Therefore, Zafar has for me the perfect balance - at any time the eagle wood is beautifully coated.


With the durability and projection I struggled at first, but can now say that it is very high, especially on warmer days. The fragrance actually reacts differently on the skin every day. Also, it is clear to me that the scent habituation plays a role in the assessment, as well as moisture and warmth of the skin and the humidity, temperature or weather outside.
Therefore, I have also often asked my environment.

Conclusion to H&S : The shelf life is except neatly good with mostly over 10 hours.
The projection is very strong in the first hours and mostly beyond that still strongly perceptible - top!

I can every oud lover Zafar warmly recommend and maybe it is soon your treasure.

Finally a fragrance where the oud in the name really fits! Since Creed with their Royal Oud can cut off a slice!
Royal Oud is included in the Zafar.
Fake Royal Oud is present in the Creed.
Well well....



If you are looking for a beautiful, loving as well as strong fragrance where the oud is more active in the background, choose Alexandria II.

If you are looking for a rather smoky, spicy, osmanthus fragrance with already rather superficial oud, then choose Zanzibar.

If you are looking for a royal oud perfume, where the oud also shows full presence, choose Zafar.



Addendum : Since I have now tested Oud Luban extensively - since private property - I can mention that Oud Luban for me nobler, higher quality, more beautiful, (oud-heavy) works, than Zafar. Too times one must mention - at least my perception - that both fragrances act very similarly, nevertheless Oud Luban is simply more beautifully arranged. No alcohol, more oud, stronger intensity, on the whole, the fragrance seems (higher quality).

Should you like Zafar, I think you feel more comfortable with Oud Luban :-)