Hajar Aswad

This wasn’t going to be just another Oriental perfume. I wasn’t chasing the 1001 Nights, nor was I out to capture the scent of Medieval Arabian bazaars.

For an oud perfume to smell resinous is one thing. Smokey is another. Quality oud oil can imbue almost any fragrance with a resinous undercurrent. But to have the vaporous heated scent of oud smoke wafting from your shirt is harder to capture. Harder, because distilling oud that smells more smokey than resinous is difficult (think Aroha Kyaku or Maroke LTD compared to… most ouds). Reigning in those smokey oud vapors and imbuing a perfume with its presence is equally challenging.

But Hajar Aswad isn’t just oud smoke bottled. It’s that heated resin smoke gushing out of a fusion of old Arabian spices, raspberry-coated rose petals, and precious flowers arranged all over.

A fragrance at once Jamali and Jalali — beautiful yet powerful — Hajar Aswad leads in with a soft cedar frankincense-infused suave entranced by vintage Maroke and smokey, wild Sumatran oud.

Slowly saffron-draped rose petals submerge into a jasmine cinnamon sandal note which steadily gets incensed into wafts of oudy smoke that give Hajar Aswad its beautiful sillage and longevity.

The rich flowery incense heart infused with the faintest hint of Arabian spices (think pepper and cardamon dipped in cacao) continues to fuse and drift toward a note I call agarose, that takes you through the drydown — that unitone achievement in perfumery where you find complete aromatic synergy, a unique olfactory chord that never existed before.

TOP
Melissa
Lavender
Cardamom
Raspberry
Cedarwood

HEART
Saffron
Jasmine
Orange Flower
Cinnamon
Rose

BASE
Cocoa
Maroke Oud
Sumatran Oud
Hojari Frankincense
SQ Ambergris

To jack up the whole brew, you’ve got Sultan Qaboos’ prized ambergris tincture as the sole carrier. The stunning old ambergris imparts its sandy beach vibes to the oud smoke and sweet spices and gives all the artisanal ingredients that make the perfume impressive lift and projection.

This is the pilgrim’s perfume. It’s not meant to inspire the ego, worn only to impress others. Its enchanting smell will do just that, regardless. The scent penetrates your senses and goes great with a cup of introspection; instills a humble reverence, with a whiff of what lies yonder.

Reviews of the previous edition Hajar Aswad…

When I opened the bottle, I got an immediate burst of undiluted happiness, simple, carefree and luminous, the kind we experience as kids.

As the middle notes began to unfold, this lucid sweetness slowly evolved into a more quiet feeling of cleanliness and inner purity, but the magical childhood joy was still there. I immediately thought of a high quality Majmua attar I happen to own – not because of the scent similarity, but because it equally inspires you to dive inwards in a search for inner peace. It stayed very present on my skin for more than 6 hours and just like my Majmua attar always does for me – continued to inspire me to bring attention to my inner self.

But Hajar Aswad is much more than this. It somehow brings you a feeling of strength and softness at the same time, celebrating life, yet staying reserved, meeting the world with an open heart, yet remaining centered.

I have no idea what a Muslim man or women might experience during a holy month of Ramadan, but I think I got a glimpse of it today.

Thank you for this gift, what a great way to try this magic scent, this is really something to treasure. – Elina, USA