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.

hello gents, I hope you are all doing well, its been long I haven't shared anything on this platform. I started my journey back in 2017/18 as far as I can remember with budget fragrances from the supershops and then gradually made my way to designers . Throughout my journey in the beginning having 10+ in my collection was a very interesting idea however the more I got into this hobby I realized I wanted a small collection, I dont like fragrances sitting in my closest collecting dust. I've had experience with designers such as Dior , Mont Blanc, Polo , Ysl , Hugo , Davidoff, Issey , Versace to name a few along with Middle Eastern fragrances such as Afnan Now at 23 , my collection is only 4 and I actively sold several of my other used fragrances. My go to is ADG 2024 edt (my signature) , Versace Dylan blue (2nd signature) ELDO You or someone like you ( one nich that I adore) and By the fireplace (a winter fragrance) and what i love about it that all the 4 serve a purpose and get used accordingly. I realized its not about what mainstream media tells you to buy or try , its about whether you will reach for that one fragrance over and over without getting bored or not . It took me quite a few years of trial and error but I'm pleased to say I found my genre of fragrances that I actually enjoy.

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