Ottoman Ambergris: Kelantan

$3,999

Whenever you hear talk of ‘ghalias’ remember that many of…

Spray Bottle

Take Ottoman Ambergris’ opulence, its thick jasmine-cassie-hyacinth floral heart, its diffusive rose-mimosa beauty, and the oud that pulsates strong through it all – and imbue the fragrance with vintage sinking-grade agarwood.

Kelantan 1983 lets the Ottoman gris overflow with sappy Malaysian oud resin that works like a dream with the floral-oceanic beauty of Ottoman Ambergris. Its old-world gaharu, floral-herbaceous profile exalts the ambergris facets with a dense oudy core, while transmuting the creamy floral arrangement as the heart notes emerge, not darkening but emphasizing the floral tenor, and reminding you why oud is also considered an exalting fixative.

Distilled in the early to mid 1980s, Kelantan 1983 predates even the legendary Kelantan distillation, Oud Ahmad, 2001. Not only is it on par with Oud Ahmad in terms of quality of the raw materials, the fact that it’s been aging for about forty years (and predates Oud Ahmad by two decades!) should tell you something about its olfactory depth.

I could have used the likes of Kambodi 1976 or Sultani 1975, but that signature floral-resin heart that defines the highest grade West Malaysian ouds makes Kelantan 1983 the ideal oud for the composition.

With a full 3 grams of it, we’re not talking about a subtle whiff during the drydown. So much of such a domineering oud heavily impacts the overall profile of the perfume, and no note goes unaffected…

From the Royal melange-like effect of pairing vintage oud of such caliber with the creamy-pollen scents of lotus, mimosa and cassie to what it does to the sensually sweet tango of vanilla and castoreum to how rose helps diffuse it further… it’s like you can still recognize Ottoman Ambergris – but an edition that smells fuller, darker purple, where the jasmine-cassie notes smell thicker, all while the ambergris rides the waves of oud and lets the whole brew go to the next level.

The result is an oudified ambergris perfume like no other, and a tribute to the fragrant legacy of the Ottoman era. And, I hope also, in my own little way, a continuation of it.

Picking up where the royal perfumers of old and their ghalias left off, Ottoman Ambergris is bipolar in that it at once takes you back to the heart of the empire: Abdul Hamid II’s mimosa, rose and vanilla, oud and amber… with an EO makeover to give you a glimpse of yesteryear but also project yesteryear into the future – no Sultan, no matter how powerful and wealthy, ever had access to Sumatran and Marokean oud. No vizier ever heard of Borneo oud. And oh that they could have composed with the lily’s narcotic blue!

If you’ve walked through Istanbul, you’d know that Ottoman art and decoration is ornate, sometimes mind-bogglingly intricate, a labyrinth of interwoven tapestries, patterns, and metaphysical meaning. This perfume follows suit. It’s not a simple composition, not a smell-it-once-and-you-know-what-it’s-about kind of fragrance.

I wanted that Ottoman opulence to ooze out of every spritz. The richness of classic royal melanges, dense with oud and exquisite flowers squeezing through the sprayer before a cloud of ambergris then lets it pop like fireworks.

This approach entailed downtoning your typical top-note experience. Most mainstream perfumes are almost entirely about light, fleeting ‘friendly’ top notes. Not here…

Dense jasmine, thick cassie and sticky hyacinth set the tone before a diffusive rosey patina wastes no time inviting the oud and oud and oud onto the stage. All awash in a pool of ambergris.

NOTES:
Kelantan 1983
Vintage Myitkyina Oud
Borneo Agarwood Resin
Sumatran Oud
Maroke Oud
Vanilla
Castoreum
Jasmine Juhi
Blue Lotus
Hyacinth
Mimosa
Cassie
Rose
Oakwood
Oakmoss
Black Tea
Peru Balsam
Ambergris SQ
Vetiver (Infused w. Tonkin Musk)

Ottoman Ambergris takes you back in time, but to a timeline that never was. One where Sultan Suleiman’s love for the smooth golden tone of sandalwood got infused with the vanillic creaminess of Borneo agarwood; where Sultan Selim’s favorite wafts of sweet amber were filtered through cassie and hyacinth; where Sultan Mehmet’s violets dance with juhi and oud-infused rose, and the last Sultan’s beloved mimosa’s soulful white gush over the wholesome narcotique of blue lotus. All drunk and drowning in fine, fine ambergris.

Reviews of the EO Prviée edition…

Peaches and blackcurrants on étagères.

In a shimmering wooden-golden palace living room.

View of jumping ambra whales in the salt sea. So much is happening here.

The whole thing opens with fruity nuances of blackcurrant (or maybe grapes?) and peaches. I think this impression lasts for a relatively long time before various ouds take over and take the whole thing in a woody direction. Further interwoven with the peach, which remains present for a long time, the result is a golden shimmer for me.

As if sunlight were falling into a wooden room. Flowers are also perceptible to me, but more enigmatic. Ambergris, the theme of the fragrance, comes on late for me. Then it gets a little salty. The whole thing continues to stay warm and the ouds complement it until the end.

I believe that Ensar has once again created a fragrance that many people will really like.

I love it!

—Jakob K / Germany

This one has ambergris in the name, yet I’d not place it in the same category as its Jamaican counterparts (there is a reason Br. Ensar didn’t call it Jamaican Ambergris “Assam Sultan”). Other than some of the top notes, the JA releases are profoundly different.

The fragrance starts off with extremely prominent and an in your face set of top notes. Sweet, yet slightly pungent animalic florals give off fruity nuances, the Jasmine is noticeable here and very pleasant, blue lotus also makes itself known. In the background, different ouds and the ambergris are also noticeable from the onset. But there is no barn here, as well all know, Hindi barn is more of a result of distillation technique as opposed to being an inherent trait of Hindi oud itself. I personally loathe strong barnyard (animal feaces) notes and again thankfully none of it is present here.

Once the top notes subside the fragrance progresses to a complex and extremely beautiful drydown. This is also the point where any subtle similarities to the JA releases end. The mid consists of a gorgeous floral/amber layer that is absolutely delightful. Complex florals with a soft rose, vanilla, sandalwood, oakmoss, more stuff that I’ve missed, all combine to give off wafts of regal beauty. In my opinion this is really where the Ottoman element comes in. The floral/amber phase is very Turkish and elegant in nature.

As the fragrance further progresses, the florals and amber subside giving way to a resinous oud and ambergris base, which is also very complex and multilayered.

Another enjoyable phase for oud lovers in particular where the floral, fruity and woody notes from the various oud profiles make fleeting appearances.

I’ve worn this fragrance several times and each time I’ve picked up a few differences, subtle and not so subtle differences. In my opinion this is one of the most complex and most beautiful releases from the house.

Straight into my EO top 5.

—Abu Z / Australia