Comparing Amouage Interlude to a few clones

I want to preface this post by mentioning that I understand Interlude is NOT for everyone - by a long-shot! If you're not into that Middle Eastern vibe (in this case very intense smoky, incense, etc) this is not going to be your thing. In fact, you may (probably will) hate it. Unfortunately, this is not the case for me. At first sniff (damn you guys at the House of Dubai in Rosemont, IL - Basheer, Aftab, Rahil) was hooked like an addict. Since my first smell of Interlude, I drained my bank account, sold all my worldly possessions and started living on the street just so I could get my next fix of Interlude and the flankers. I lost all my friends and my family doesn't speak to me anymore. It's been rough...

That being said, my good friend

@Thomas Chavez

exposed me to a clone of Interlude, Midnight Oud by Ard Al Zaafaran, in an effort to placate my jones for Interlude with a much more affordable option. Given I am currently holding on to two other Interlude clones (plus the OG and a couple of flankers), I thought I would revisit my two clones along with Midnight Oud.

Let's start with the OG, Amouage Interlude (aka The Blue Beast) (currently going for about $300 online):

This starts off with a (serious, but controlled) blast of spicy, smoky, incency, ambery oregano. It becomes immediately apparent that this fragrance is not here to make friends. Then it transitions to a dry down of a very rich "smoky" scent that perfectly exemplifies that Amouage frankincense, agarwood(oudy) scent. If you're not hooked by this time, count your lucky stars and move on. It's deep, powerful, yet always in control. If you foolishly spray it on your clothes, it will own that article of clothing for a few days whether you like it or not. To summarize: smoky, incensy, deep and intense.

Midnight Oud by Ard Al Zaafaran (about $25 online):

This is a very good interpretation of the OG. It captures the smokiness and the resin for the most part. It's a drop "sweeter" to my nose and a bit more synthetic (no surprise there) but an outstanding value. After several hours, it stays true to itself and maintains that Interlude DNA to the best of its ability. You can expect it to last every bit of 7-9 hours.

Supremacy Incense by Afnan (about $30 online):

This is a "safer" more crowd-friendly (?) interpretation. It's unquestionably sweeter (for whatever that's worth) than the two other clones, and most would agree it's smoother and more wearable of the four discussed here. Afnan did everything it could not to offend anyone here while still trying to capture as much of the DNA as possible. This comes at a cost. Of the three clones, it loses a lot of that Interlude intensity and magic. Don't get me wrong; you're not going to find this at the Macy's counter, and you WILL see my bottle up for sale. IMO, this just can't hang with the big boys and it's time to let it go for me. You'll get about 8 hours out of this with a faithful dry down lasting throughout...

Swiss Arabian Shaghaf Oud Abyad (about $25 online):

This wins the loyalty award to the OG. Of the three clones, it is closest in intensity, smokiness, and overall Interlude vibe and it gives you something very close to that Amouage feel. You will pick up on that smoky, incensy, frankincense/myrrh that is so often found in Amouage. It's reasonably thick and well-made, and for $25, it can be your gateway drug - especially after dry down. Truth be told, if I'm in an Interlude sort of mood on a Tuesday late afternoon/early evening at home and I don't feel like spraying the $300 OG, I may reach for this a couple times a year (don't tell anyone...)

To summarize:

AGAIN, Interlude (the OG) is not for everyone. Actually, I prefer Interlude 53 (probably my all-time favorite) and Interlude Black Iris, depending on facts and circumstances. But that's a different discussion. The OG is quite polarizing and will react differently on some skins.

All three clones do very well on dry down and you can expect at least around 8 hours from all. If you are not compelled by the DNA sufficiently to fork over $300+, any of these three will give you a good enough vibe to satisfy your curiosity/urge.

For me? I'm 100% in the OG/53/Black Iris camp with little to no exceptions. The richness, quality of products used and the blending is well worth the extra cost. At this point I have about 2 or 3 dozen different bottles of Amouage fragrances (and growing) and it all started with Interlude. Best of luck to you.

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Comparing Amouage Interlude to a few clones