Mancera Sand Aoud

Spice, Black Currant, Rose, Saffron, Incense, Patchouli, Agarwood, Vanilla, Musk.

The first thing I'd like to say about Sand Aoud by Mancera is that the longevity is not of the nuclear variety on my skin. I mention this because its reputed 24 hour hang time is readily available to read, yet it's simply not the case for this reviewer. It's very good mind you, but let's keep it real shall we ?

Sand Aoud opens with a nice rendition of Black Currant. You can smell the oud churning underneath, but you can also immediately tell that this "oud" will not gobble up everything in its path like Pacman. The Black Currant stays lucid while Rose and Saffron quickly begin to augment what will be the top and heart accords. This is an "oud" I can not only tolerate, but enjoy because of its team player attitude.

The initial transition from top to mids is an enjoyable experience of spicy woods embellished by Rose and Saffron. These two stages are long lasting before finally succumbing to the base and drydown. I admit to liking the base through extended drydown even more than the beginning of Sand Aoud. These are two distinct stages and each one is very good in its own right.

By the time Drydown arrives, Sand Aoud has softened its pricklier edges and evolves into a comfortable woody musk with a splattering of spices. I applaud the tuning of Vanilla here as it never really rears its head enough to steal the spotlight, but adds just enough of a comfort factor during the outro of this fragrance to finish this off properly.

Sillage is average with longevity approximately 5-6 hours on my skin before I'd contemplate reapplication. Thumbs up from Aromi for Mancera's Sand Aoud. As always, a sample wear is highly recommended.