A Masked Ball of the Most Unusual Significance

[zankoku_zen]

It was toward the close of the fifth or sixth month of his seclusion, and while the pestilence raged most furiously abroad, that the Prince Prospero entertained his thousand friends at a masked ball of the most unusual magnificence.

Opulent golden oudh, red benzoin, and bitter almond.

A very strong almond on wet, and it dries down to a golden oudh and resin blend. Medium throw and wear length.

 

 

[theredkilt]

The combination of notes conjures up a smell of vinyl leather with an almondy touch, not bitter at all. Smells expensive and refined, although this scent fades fast.

[milo]

Almond at first, slightly bitter.  It ends up smelling fake and chemically, like neoprene or a a fake leather pair of pants.  Definite fail, and I normally like almond.  Must be the oude

[mishi-bear]

Initially a very strong bittersweet almond on application, but it fades very fast, leaving behind mostly oudh and benzoin.

 

The oudh does have a perfumey quality, it is musky and nice. A touch woodsy. The benzoin is sweet and definitely resinous. That resinous quality works well with the woodsy oudh. It does have a hint of that vanilla like smell, but it's definitely not vanilla... it almost reminds me of sweet paper.

 

There is something dirt like and slightly plant like on wrist sniff that I'm not sure what to attribute it to. It's earthy, a touch vegetal, but sweet. It's not bad tbh, I'm just not sure what it is from exactly.

 

There is something that admittedly goes a little generic incense in the dry down. 

 

Overall this one isn't bad at all. Oudh lovers should give it a try. 

[artisjok]

A Masked Ball starts out just like The Orb did, with intense almond, but, just as with Orb it mostly fades away, a slight nuttiness in its wake. Not really foodie, though. The benzoin is definitely present, and at first I don’t quite like how it interacts with the oudh, a chemically/plastic tang. Luckily, this also fades away and the gorgeous woodiness of the oudh shines and a smooth resinous supporting benzoin makes it a bit slinky. 

My partner describes it as the “we-just-bought-our-first-yoga-studio” scent  

I do find it to be upscale and like to wear it when I want to feel put-together yet also intriguing and spiritually-inclined. Guess that fits his impression... hah! 

[Lucchesa]

I must share a skin chemistry quirk with Milo, because on me A Masked Ball of the Most Unusual Magnificence also has an unpleasant chemical smell, and I too am usually a fan of almond scents.  The plastic tinge is not disappearing fast enough for my liking.  Not for me.