Oriental fragrances for beginners

The oriental family — in modern terminology often called amber — stands on three things: resins, spices and a sweet base. You recognise it because the scent stays dense even after several hours, by which time fresh fragrances have gone. For a beginner two things matter that descriptions mostly leave out. First, quantity: the same fragrance is pleasant with two sprays and unbearable with four. Second, order: oud and animalic notes aren't the introduction to the category but its more demanding end.

Al Haramain Amber Oud Tobacco Edition: The cheapest serious way into the category: €60 for 100 ml is €0.60 per millilitre, a 2 ml decant €6. Cinnamon, ginger and tobacco leaves up top, anise, cocoa and tonka in the heart, tobacco with dried fruit underneath. Despite the name it has no oud among its notes — it's sweet and spicy, not dark.
Lattafa Asad: The second cheap classic, but in a different direction: pineapple, black pepper and tobacco up top, patchouli, coffee and iris in the heart, vanilla, amber, dry wood, benzoin and labdanum underneath. A proper ambery finish for €10 for 5 ml — hard to go wrong.
Montale Arabians Tonka: A first step towards oud, but gently: saffron and bergamot up top, oud with Bulgarian rose in the heart, tonka, sugar cane, amber and musk underneath. The sweetness here wraps the oud rather than exposing it. €120 for 100 ml, a 5 ml decant is €14.
Parfums de Marly Layton: The Western version of the same idea: apple with lavender and bergamot up top, geranium with violet and jasmine in the heart, vanilla, cardamom, sandalwood and guaiac underneath. Warm and spicy without resinous weight — a good choice if the Arabian style interests you but you're worried it'll be too much.
Electimuss Puritas: Incense and resins, the more serious end of the family: elemi, absinthe and saffron up top, incense with jasmine and ylang-ylang in the heart, amber, labdanum, tonka and vetiver underneath. €340 for 100 ml — a level you move to only once you know the category suits you.

How to get into oriental fragrances: (1) Start at the cheap end, because quality there is surprisingly close to expensive. Al Haramain costs €0.60 per millilitre and Lattafa Asad €10 for 5 ml; if the category doesn't suit you, you've found out for the price of a lunch. (2) Don't start with oud. Raw agarwood is a scent you need to get to know gradually — Montale Arabians Tonka is the right intermediate step, because tonka and sugar cane support the oud. (3) Apply half of what you'd apply of a fresh fragrance. This family is denser by design, and two sprays are usually enough. (4) Wear them in winter, at least at first. The same fragrance on warm skin in July feels twice as strong, and that's the most common reason someone writes off the category. (5) Don't buy a full bottle until you've worn the fragrance for a whole day. Orientals develop for longer than other families; the first ten minutes tell you the least about them.

What makes a fragrance oriental?

A base of resins, amber, vanilla and spices — labdanum, benzoin, tonka, cinnamon, saffron. Such notes evaporate slowly, so these fragrances are denser and more persistent than citrus ones. Modern terminology often calls the category amber, because "oriental" is a historically loaded term.

Are oriental fragrances only for men?

No. In our catalogue Puritas and Arabians Tonka are listed as unisex and masculine respectively, and in Arabian tradition these scents are worn regardless of gender. Rose with oud is a masculine combination there, the opposite of the Western reading.

Which season is right?

Autumn and winter. In the cold a dense base develops more slowly and stays closer to the body; in summer it intensifies. If you want an oriental in summer, choose a lighter one and apply a single spray.

Why is Al Haramain so cheap if it's good?

Because the compositions are simpler and the house doesn't pay for Western marketing. At €0.60 per millilitre you get a clear idea without complex development — it's not the same as Puritas at €3.40, but it's enough to find out whether the category interests you at all.

What does it mean when a fragrance has oud in the name but not in the notes?

That the name is marketing. Al Haramain Amber Oud Tobacco Edition is such a case: there's no oud in the pyramid, but there is tobacco with cinnamon and cocoa. That's not a scam, but it's a reason to read the notes rather than rely on the name.