Oud Mahmoud

Some ouds only come around once. And you’d need a time portal to go back to be there for them. 

In most parts of Malaysia and Indonesia, distillation only took off in the early 90s, which makes the oud you have here one of the earliest harvests of Kelantan agarwood in history. 

It’s not only that it was one of the firsts, but what being one of the first means… just imagine the caliber agarwood you could have gazed up at if you could be transported back to that time. Just think of the sinking centennial insanities you could have unearthed if you were there before anyone else ever found out about the black gold hidden in those thick jungles… 

There were no rival hunting tribes, no Cambodian clans commissioned to compete with you. The China Market would not emerge for another two decades… 

At the dawn of the 1990s, oud oil would have cost you much more than raw agarwood. It took people with foresight and passion to give up the black slabs of resin that brought India, Cambodia, and Vietnam their fame. It took guts to grind up those sinking nuggets, watch them turn to dust, and ultimately into such incredible oil that would stir up ripples in the oud world forever after.

This is why ouds from those pioneering days are unmatched; why they’re the most soulful aromatic wonders to have ever emerged from the soil of Earth; why they give you the most immersive agarwood experience you could hope for.

That this happened in, or at the cusp of our lifetimes is bittersweet. We weren’t there then – but you are here now, with the chance to smell this – today.

I’ve mentioned the story of one of these pioneers before, who remembers fondly, sadly, and regretfully all at once the amount of Malaysian tigerwood they ground up. The wood was cheap, he said. There was no barrier to purchase the sickest agarwood you’d ever lay eyes on.

What does that mean? That they were there first and that purchasing power was strong?

It means that oud of such peerless opulence as Oud Mahmoud exists. 

Because it didn’t take long at all before the rival tribes caught wind of the discovery. In no time, Indian, Cambodian, and later Chinese brokers would swoop in to claim their share of the gold, while locals moved as fast as they could to delay the influx and put Kelantan and Malinau and Terengganu on the oud map for good. 

Every now and then, it would serve any oud lover well to go back to square one. To get a reality check. To be reminded that oud like this once existed – and that every now and then there’s a glitch in the Matrix, that a time portal has opened, unbeknownst to anyone, and that you could be transported back to that time and smell oud from that era.

But, think about it for a minute longer: It’s actually a greater privilege to smell Oud Mahmoud today than if you smelled it thirty years ago when it was freshly distilled precisely because of the thirty years that have passed…

By now, most people know that most big oud brands force-age their oils in order to mimic the scent of finely aged oud. While they may, for two minutes, trick you into thinking you’re smelling old oud, there’s no doubting that it’s not finely aged oud – or fine oud to begin with!

No technique or tweak can match: 1) The incredible wood Oud Mahmoud was distilled from, and 2) The genuine vintage scent of oud that’s been naturally maturing since before some oudheads were born…

How should you approach oud of such stature? 

I’d say live a little… but only a little! 

Most of the time, smell the oud straight from the dipstick then put it back. Nothing lost. But there are days, and you know those days, where nothing can stop you, when it makes sense, when the occasion demands it, when you just must take a swipe. And you do. And it’s so worth it. And you’re back there, back then. That time portal is real – one swipe is all it takes!

Think Kambodi 1976, Oud Sultani, Oud Royale. Think of what they all share. The greatest ouds from a given region, aged for years and years and years. A definition of ‘oudy’ that’s been out of print since the miskeen new-gen stuff hit the scene.

This oud is for two types of oud lovers:

There are so many subpar ouds out there, so many laced and diluted oils sold as ‘pure’ and ‘wild’, so many fractionated, scatter-spectrum ouds whose attempts at novelty have turned them into skeleton aromatics with almost no ‘oudy’ factor at all.

We all need oud like Oud Mahmoud to recalibrate the oud scene. But it’s not just about setting things straight, but what it’s ultimately about: to enjoy oud of such sheer splendid oudiness. 

Oud Mahmoud is first-and-foremost for seasoned oudheads. If your nose has been around the block and through every back alley, you’d know what this oud means. 

But it’s also for anyone, even if you’re only now getting your nose wet in oud waters, who is serious about their olfactory journey. Oud Mahmoud sets the standard because you’ll never smell any other oud the same way again…

For the veterans: If you can imagine it, the profile is smoother than Oud Ahmad. Even more floral, and bluer. And that deep resinous kinamic tinge is even sharper. The scent is so soulful, so natural, it’s like you’re smelling the oud straight from the mighty aquilaria it came from.

Oud Mahmoud is Oud Ahmad’s predecessor, after all…