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Three Days of Oud

Now THERE'S an endorsement!
Kemenyan smells clean and woody to me but dark enough to make it interesting - and it smelled very incense-like, too - very different from your interpretations. Thanks for sharing your thoughts, let us know what it's like around lunchtime, and happy hour, and after dinner!

I haven't enjoyed incense since my twenties so I don't have a comparison to make. The Kemenyan, however, is a gentler and perhaps for some an easier oud to enjoy. If one were to make a comparison to wine, the Oud Kampuchea was like a big, obvious and intensely rich red Zinfandel from Old Vines. The Kemenyan is more like a well made bordeaux in which the perfect balance of various elements is more important than any single note.
 
One of the first things I thought of after smelling Kemenyan for the first time was "smoke."It smells dark, woody & smoky to me. I like it a lot. Ensar's Kyara Koutan is in the same olfactory ballpark but it's much subtler, richer & more complicated -- think Kemenyan with rounded corners. Sadly, Kyara Koutan is no longer available. (It was also nearly twice the price of Kemenyan.)
 
Based on the three I've tried so far, if you don't like the smell of wood, then Oud is probably not for you. It's not the only component, but it's a dominant one obviously.

I love wood and find it has a vast array of possible scents.
I love wood too, as my incense collection shows. Many Japanese sticks are either straight woods or very subtle blends with a few additives. But for me, I think Oud works better as an incense than a body frag. Then again, I haven't tried many.
 
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