Today’s gonna be a sample day for me and to start off the new year I’m going with this surprisingly good under the radar Oud gem. I know “jazz club” and “by the fireplace” usually get the spotlight in the colder weather but one thing I can say about this house is they’re putting out some solid juice 👌🏼. This has a simple note breakdown and you pretty much get what you see. Leather, oud, pepper and spice. Extremely mild skank in the mix and pleasantly tolerable. Especially for more sensitive nostrils on the non animalic side of things. One thing I notice though is that this isn’t too distinct in terms of uniqueness. It’s comes across as just another oud frag imho🤷🏻‍♂️. If you’re in the market for a pretty solid generic Oud scent, maybe the first to be in your collection, this is definitely a contender for a relatively fair price. Smell great on this new year day frag family. Have the best blessed day out there.

Happy New Year’s Eve, Brotherhood! Today I’m rocking Russian Leather by Molton Brown. Released in 2017 and created by the nose Loïc Bisceglie, this one is technically “discontinued”… but not quite. It was essentially re-named due to sensitivities surrounding the Russia Ukraine conflict. So yeah, safe to say I’ve got a little keepsake on my hands. This is an excellent pick for anyone who loves photorealistic leather, woody fragrances. Leather is clearly the star of the show, but the fusion of birchwood and vetiver gives it a beautifully dry, masculine backbone, while a touch of pine lifts and brightens the vibe just enough to raise it off the skin. If I had to compare it to anything, I’d say it shares a similar vibe with Encre Noire OG. It’s very office friendly, perfect when you don’t want to smoke anyone out of the room. Projection is solid for the first couple of hours, then it settles into a close skin scent, giving you about 6 hours total of detectable wear. It’s ideal if you plan on switching things up later in the evening. Honestly… now that I have gotten to get a whiff of Encre Noire Extreme, I think it’s a step above this one. Both in projection, and performance. So Ill keep this “Discontinued” beauty on the shelf for now. That’s all Hood!! Off to work and hopefully I’ll be able to send my boys home early. Have a fantastic, smelly day! Top: Black Tea, Basil and Elemi resin Mid: Tobacco, Birch and Siberian Pine Base: Leather, Vetiver and Cade oil