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Omar Sharif Pour Homme

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Omar Sharif was a movie star and my mom was a fan. Swarthy and handsome, I also remember seeing him in a number of films. In 1992, this leather chypre was released under his name and only very recently did I even know about it. I have no interest in "celebs" endorsing this or that, but the accords intrigued me along with the year this was made.

Obviously, Omar is of middle eastern descent and ( for me) this usually conjures up images of spices, aromatics,etc....I didn't know what to expect in terms of note distribution, but once applied, I am pleased to say that Omar Sharif Pour Homme begins with a smooth, spicy green citric accord enhanced with aldehyde. This isn't mysterious or cloak 'n' dagger construction, but rather conventional and comfortable. The artemesia is subtle but augments the opening accord with substance.

The floral heart of carnation, jasmin, geranium and rose is courted by cypress and this is a shrewd choice. The florals are at the same volume as the wood note and the cypress facilitates the spicy green theme that has been apparent from the very beginning. This is propelled through the life of the scent.

 There are some heavy hitters in the base of Omar Sharif. Listed are Amber, castoreum, Labdanum, leather, moss, oilbanum, patchouli, tonka and vetiver. The leathery moss become apparent in the drydown and they are the dominant players the scent is handed over to. The volume of the other base notes are too low to be heard here and it would have been a terrific transition had a resinous amber with animalics and a touch of powdery sweet been able to bleed through.

Omar Sharif is a decent masculine. It's spicy green with wispy wood and mossy leather. It's such a shame all the players in it don't get to reach their potential. If that were possible, this would be a BOMB frag......but the reality is that it is simply okay. No harm, no foul. One can do far, far worse than to end up with a bottle of Omar.
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  1. SugandarajaJuly 5, 2010 at 2:09 AM

    Thanks for the review! I've always been curious about this one. My curiosity is now sated.

    ReplyDelete

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