Skip to main content

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.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Oriental Lounge by The Different Company

Bergamot, Curry Leaf, Pepper, Red Rose, Tonka Bean, Labdanum, Satinwood. I suppose the first thing I noticed about Oriental Lounge is that as a man, this is a bit of a stretch to pull off. Since the core of Oriental Lounge is a powdery tonka and amber duo, it really does lean a bit too far feminine for me to wear. However, it would smell just as lovely on a woman and more appropriate as well. I bring this up simply because it's marketed as shared. I was wondering about the curry leaf. Actually, this "note" brought nothing to the table with the exception of possibly enhancing the pepper note just a bit. Even so, the pepper note itself was low key ( at least on me ) and both blended nicely with the citrus opening. From the onset of Oriental Lounge, it's unmistakable that this fragrance is.......well.....an oriental. From other opinions, I read some gripes about longevity, but it lasts on me quite awhile. This fragrance is uncomplicated and without much movemen...

Black Suede by Avon

Nutmeg, Clove, Amber, Musk, Moss, Wood Notes. Yes.........I am reviewing one of the Rodney Dangerfield's of fragrance. Black Suede has been gracing medicine cabinets, for better or worse, since 1980 my friends. If you're expecting me to inform you ( like others may have already ) that Black Suede is a nasty scrubber, you will be disappointed. On the other hand, if you're expecting a glowing review claiming it's a diamond in the rough, you won't hear that from me either. I will say though that Black Suede doesn't deserve the hate it's received and most of that is due to snobbery aimed at Avon products in general. I kid you not when I state that a close relative to this fragrance is Cacharel Pour L'Homme. The array of spice in both ensure comparison, but the "smoother" of the two is Black Suede due to its implementation of Amber. While wearing Black Suede, one can detect a hint of "drugstore". That quality doesn't manife...

Paco Rabanne Pour Homme

I am reviewing the original Paco Rabanne Pour Homme ( circa 1973 ) thanks to a generous basenoter who sent it to me recently in a swap. He also sent me the current formulation in order for me to do a side by side comparison. The side by side resulted in what I had already imagined would be the case. Not that the newer formula is terrible by any means. The original version simply is better by being deeper and a bit more masculine. No......you shouldn't go to ebay searching for the vintage formula and paying stupid prices. It's simply a notch or two better than the current and noticeable by comparing the two in real time. Rabanne Pour Homme opens with a slight shimmer in conjunction with lavender, spices and a subtle woodiness. It's an old school introduction, however a good one. The lavender takes about 5 minutes to raise its volume and evolve into a soapy rendition. I dislike when a boatload of soapy lavender takes over a composition, but here it doesn't go over t...