Midnight Oud by Juliette Has a Gun

I am just recently delving into a few releases by Juliette Has a Gun. Such a strange name for a house. Oh well.......I guess it has the ability to stick in your memory and that is all part of marketing.

Marketing, gimmicks, ploys and angles all avail nothing if that which you are presenting isn't very good. I am happy to report that what I am smelling here is  good indeed. Midnight Oud is marketed as a feminine, but I own Dark Rose by C&S which has similarities and would have no qualms owning and wearing this. I find Midnight Oud to be a shared fragrance.

LS has the notes listed as : Moroccan rose, Saffron, Geranium, Oud, Patchouli, Sandalwood, Amber and Animalic musks.

Midnight Oud opens with a nice rose and saffron duo. It really is similar to Dark Rose, but Dark Rose feels more "spread out" and Midnight Oud is tighter and a bit denser. The geranuim and oud make their entrance very quickly and these 4 give a good impression. It's an accord that doesn't get heavy or suffocating.

The musky element is present by the time you'd expect the heart accord to show up. It's there, but lurking underneath. It's a subtle implementation that stays that way, even in the drydown. The woody-amber appears just as shyly in the base accord and is noticeable once the rose, saffron, geranium and oud let them in. The amber is of the dry variety on me, neither resinous or very sweet. It's just enough to augment and nothing more. The patchouli is M.I.A. in my wearings and could simply be overwhelmed by the others. It doesn't matter since this smells excellent without me noticing it.

Juliette Has a Gun. If only other gunmen ( or should I say gunwomen ) smelled this good. Kudos to Romano Ricci for Midnight Oud. This is a very good fragrance and definitely gets a thumbs up from Aromi.