Musk Quest, the Best White Musk You Haven't Tried: Royal White Musk by Abdul Karim Al Faransi Maison de Parfum

Except for Narciso Rodriguez I can't think of any other mainstream perfume house obsessed with musk. Go to niche and indie there is a definite love of musk there with quite a few specializing or putting out their magnum opus scents based on a beloved type of musk. If you were to take a survey of these magnum opus musks I would say probably 80% would be their idea of the perfect white musk. White musk may be the most known and liked of the musks, with good reason, it is easy, likable, and usually melds perfectly with wearers. There is a reason why people will devote time and effort to finding the best variation of it. It is the reason that when you look at mainstream releases of the last ten years a good chunk of them list white musk as a note. White musk has also been degraded to a screechy hot mess in many mainstream perfume releases. In niche and indie white musk is usually not all that innovative and especially in some large niche houses it is put out as a money making offering that really you are paying for the name of the house, not the perfume because if you really had smelled it you would have realized you could have probably gotten this perfume at your local health food store for about $15. My point is white musk is a ubiquitous, much maligned note. Finding a perfumer who elevates it to something more is rare.

Royal White Musk by Al Faransi is for me one of those rare elevated white musks. This is the musk for those that have been looking for an erudite, intellectual, refined, and tasteful white musk. There will be no accusation of cheap white musk with this scent.

Instead wearing this is finding yourself surrounded by the perfect melange of clean florals, creamy but pristine musk, and refined sandalwood. There is no laundrette quality to this musk rather the suggestion is the immaculately recently bathed. Yet, before you go on thinking that this scent is cold and unapproachable it isn't, no this is quiet tasteful serenity. This is clearly a scent meant to be worn anywhere, the point is the wearer will simply be known for smelling very good.  Royal White Musk is the other Al Faransi offering that I think deserves a following. It wouldn't surprise me if some sort of fashion maker found this offering and made it the "it" cult musk. Royal White Musk is a scent that is waiting to be discovered by a larger audience.

Try if you like white musk, Clair de Musc by Serge Lutens, Musk to Musk by Montale, or Essence by Narciso Rodriguez.

First image from alfaransi.com
Second image from http://www.mymodernmet.com/profiles/blogs/rainbow-clouds-united-kingdom
Third image from http://artistaday.com/?p=25737

Musk Quest, Smooth Operator: Dark Horse by Dame Perfumery

Sometimes you want to kick yourself for not trying something sooner. Dark Horse by Dame Perfumery is definitely one of those scents that I should have tried awhile ago because it is definitely worth your perfume loving time. Dark Horse is a scent on par with Frederic Malle's Musc Ravegeur for across the board sex appeal, man or woman you will smell very alluring wearing this scent. Yet, Dark Horse is a bit more on the the tasteful side, easier to wear. You can wear this in the office and no one is going to accuse you of being showy.

Sometimes a good non-suffocating warm musky scent is hard to come by. Frequently they can veer into a heavy stifling zone with no complexity. They smell good the first hour and then hours later you realize there is no letup. It's a bit like if the Hans Zimmer's trombone section from the Inception music kept going on and on. Sure it sounds cool and then after awhile you are exhausted from the never ending drone. Thankfully, Dark Horse is not that. Nope instead what you get is a lovely woody cider of a musk.

Dark Horse has one of the loveliest clove notes I have smelled in awhile. In fact I would say Dark Horse has one of the loveliest use of spices I have smelled in awhile there is no veering into the medicinal esoteric territory nor into the cupcake land of fake spice. No this is spices with clarity and warmth. Clove is coupled with sweet tangy citrus with hints of cinnamon. All of it is wrapped in cozy wood and musk with hints of sweet vanilla.

You will get wafts of Dark Horse through out the day. At times you will catch hints of roses and carnation, others will hint at the entwining of musky golden amber and lemon. Frequently you will get a spiced woods note that will leave you feeling embraced.

I will say this now if you are a fan of Fendi's now legendary and long discontinued Theorema then I must implore you to try Dark Horse. Is it a dupe no, but they are clearly of the same family of delicious easy going wooded musk scents.

Try Dark Horse if you like Frederic Malle's Musc Ravegeur, Lolita Lempicka's L de Lolita Lempicka, Fendi's Theorema, and Nicolai's Ambre Cashmere Intense. 

First image from Dameperfumery.com
Second image: Viggo Mortensen by Norman Jean Roy

Snippet Review: Part 2 Abdul Karim Al Faransi Maison de Parfum

Bakhoor Hindi
If you are fan of blackberry musks then Bakhoor Hindi is definitely worth your attention. For me Bakhoor Hindi is a bit like if Narciso Rodriguez had used a blackberry musk instead of an Egyptian musk for his original scent. Bakhoor Hindi is smooth and luminous, it takes away the vanilla note used so often in blackberry musks ex. Falling In Love by Philosophy or Bath and Body Work's
Black Raspberry Vanilla and instead creates a sleek stylish take on the blackberry musk genre. It's not citrus forward like L'Artisan's Mure et Musc, but rather keeps the berries smooth but supports them with a rather chic supple jasmine note, below all of that is a sweet luminous musk with a hint of woods. Try if you like berry musks or Narciso Rodriguez.

Dulcedinis Moschus
If you are a fan of Egyptian musks this probably the closest in the Al Faransi collection to that type of musk. This has a sweet tangy clean floral quality I associate with Egyptian musks going through it. I did find it had a bit of animalic note going through it that caught me off guard but eventually Dulcedinis Moschus softened into a very clean sweet soft scent on me. Try if you like Auric Blend's Egyptian Goddess.

Musk Massilia N.2
I would say that Musk Massilia N.2 is Al Faransi's other take on the blackberry musk genre. Instead of going sweet and smooth though, Al Faransi takes blackberry musk into a whole new direction, the fougere direction. The fougere quality is created with a high quality high altitude lavender, the smooth fluffy quality of the lavender tells me it is high altitude lavender. Complimenting the berries is a spicy woody note that makes me feel that Musk Massilia N.2 does best in cooler weather. Below this is a rather luminous salt tinged musk that amplifies the spiced berry quality of the scent. Try if you like Guerlain's Jicky, Montale's Fruits of the Musk, or Bois de Paradise by Parfums DelRae.

Sundus
I'm calling this the night cousin of Lancome's Mille and Une Roses. Now here is the thing Lancome's Mille and Une Roses has always struck me as a warm ambery rose musk. Sundus takes that same damask rose found in Mille and Une Roses and layers in animalic honey, jasmine, musk, and amber. Overall the effect is heady and intense, the rose is sweet and velvety. Sundus is probably the most animalic of Al Faransi's offerings I have tried. Try if you like Calligraphy Rose by Aramis, Velvet Rose & Oud by Jo Malone, or Magie by Lancome.

Image by Olaf Hajek

Snippet Reviews: Abdul Karim Al Faransi Maison de Parfum edition

Musk Warda N.3
If you are a fan of clean rose scents and clean musk scents then this scent is for you. Very much a dewy rose scent with leanings toward the tea rose category, but thankfully nothing overbearing. Definitely of the aldehydic musk variety. Try if you like Serge Luten's Clair de Musc or Sonoma Scent Studio's Velvet Rose.

Hind
Sample this immediately if you love Parfum d'Empire's Ambre Russe or Ava Luxe's now legendary long discontinued Madame X. This has the rich baroque spice and amber of Ambre Russe combined with the slinky animalic labdanum and leather of Madame X. The florals used remind me a bit of Caron's Narcisse Noir, a rather narcotic combination of grape-y orange blossom and jasmine with an herbal rose. Very animalic.

Musk Abiyad Optimum
Ever wanted to smell a white musk of high caliber ingredients, such as when a perfumer is using good quality ambrette? Then this scent is for you. I imagine this is originally what white musk smelled like before the note became overtaken by the laundry detergent note that has over the years taken over white musk. An intensely animalic anise opening that settles into a pure white musk note. If you consider yourself a true white musk aficionado then you need to try this.

Musk Al-Qurtabi
If you want a musk with an intense floral opening a la the grape florals as I like to call them, a combination of orange blossom and jasmine, then this musk is for you. Unfortunately this blend never really settled on me so I really couldn't tell you about the musk. My floral wonky skin didn't really allow me to enjoy this.

Habibati
If you love Jeffrey Dame's New Musk or Narciso by Narciso Rodriguez this scent is worth your time which tells you it is not for me. It has that unique musk on me that goes strangely screechy.

Image by Olaf Hajek

Musk Quest: Musk Tahara Al Faransi by Abdul Karim Al Faransi Maison de Parfum

I have often jokingly said that if heaven has a scent it would be the scent of the Italian hazelnut liquor Frangelico. It is one of the most delicious things you will ever smell and over the years I have often wondered why the hazelnut note found in Frangelico is not used more often in perfumery. Well the thing is when hazelnut is used as a note in perfumes most of the time it is in the form of nutella on steroids, overbearing, intensely sweet, and frequently paired with chocolate; not what I want to smell like.

So let us bask for a moment in the genius use of hazelnut, lemon verbena, and lemon used in Musk Tahara Al Faransi. This perfume uses hazelnut in all its perfect nuttiness to create a sublime cuddly musk.  Al Faransi has made an excellent argument in Musk Tahara Al Faransi that hazelnut is an underused note to use in musk based scents.  Hazelnut combined with a candied lemon verbena followed by delicious zingy creamy lemon makes Musk Tahara Al Faransi have one of the most unique openings I have smelled in a musk in very long time. Musk Tahara Al Faransi is a part of the white musk family, but I have to say this now the white musk used by Al Faransi is clearly above average in comparison to all of the white musks I have encountered. The white musk used by Al Faransi showcases the rose and sandalwood notes of white musk. Yes, this scent is clean but at no point have I been reminded of dryer sheets or anything industrial, what I am mainly reminded of is cashmere, cream, and rosewater.

Musk Tahara Al Faransi smells like luxury comfort with a very friendly opening, there is something very warm and welcoming about this scent. At the heart of this scent is a rosewater vanilla laced white musk which keeps the tiniest reminder of delicious hazelnuts going throughout. The beginning reminds me of an Italian style hazelnut cake with has generous portion of lemon zest in it but as time progresses I am reminded of rosewater scented cream all of this plushly supported by Al Faransi's sweet white musk. Musk Tahara Al Faransi glows perfectly on the skin, this is the sort of scent that should have a cult following because it is just so good smelling. Yes, I do intend to buy a bottle of this.

Try Musk Tahara Al Faransi if you like Pearl by Sage Machado, Perfect Veil by Sarah Horowitz Perfums, Musc by Reminiscence, Opal by Sonoma Scent Studio, Vanilla Musk by Kuumba Made, Loukhoum by Ava Luxe or Montale's Musk to Musk.

First image from alfaransi.com
Second Image Alon Alvissar
Last Image from Pinterest.com

A List of Musks That Have Not Worked For Me

Let's discuss the musk scents that have not worked for me. The variation of how they have not worked is either I am anosmic/my skin sucked them up or they did something horrendous on my skin. I like to make these lists because well I feel like it gives me an idea of where to pinpoint the issue at hand:

Screech-tastic
Narciso by Narciso Rodriguez (I wanted that gorgeous milky white bottle in my collection but alas that was just not happening.)
Essence by Narciso Rodriguez (Too much laundry detergent in this)
New Musk by Dame Perfumery (I love many of his scents but this definitely turned screechy on me :-( )

Just Kind of Weird
Suaded Musk by GAP (what should have been a safe bet just sort of smelled off on.
Original Musk by Kiehl's (Not uber anything I just did not enjoy the powdery aspect of it)

Disappearing Act
Elephant and Roses by Marie Candide Gentle
Le Parfum by Barbara Bui
Silk Way by Ted Lapidus

Musk Quest: Musc by Reminiscence

As I've mentioned recently I'm on the mission for a new musk. My absurdly long lived Egyptian Goddess roll-on oil by Auric Blends recently turned and I need a new musk to wear. The frank truth is by the end Egyptian Goddess was no longer really me either. We had grown apart. I still consider it one of the best cheap thrills you can get in the perfume world and definitely recommend it to those that love Egyptian musk scents. Still I want a musk back in my collection that I can wear and feel great in. The pleasure of a good musk scent is that they smell like a natural awesome smelling extension of you.

I was recently going through my collection of samples when I stumbled on Musc by Reminiscence. It stuck out even more considering the recent review I read on Chez Pajama for it. Chez Pajama considers it a favorite of her's and that it has a rather intimate quality going on. Well I had to try it with that ringing endorsement and lets be frank if there is one place where mutations of scent on different skin can be smelled it is in the musk category of perfume.

Musc by Reminiscence smells good. It is one of those downy warm sweet creamy musks on me that some people say remind them of babies although I would say Reminiscence sidesteps that issue by keeping a lovely spicy bitter almond note running through out the musk. Musc is all about warm clean skin on me, whatever animalic edge other's encounter in this scent is sucked up on my skin (I can notoriously de-animalic scents that are considered super animalic and I can animalic scents that are considered safe). For me Musc is all comfort and ease with a little bit of spice running through it. I like that Musc is not a white musk or an Egyptian musk, it is closer to the old school 70s musks but a bit sweeter and more interesting.

It's not quite the musk I am looking for but I am most definitely going to enjoy my sample of it while I have it.

Try Musc by Reminiscence if you like Disco Nap by Smell Bent, Clair de Musc by Serge Lutens, or Dana O'Shee by Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab.

First Image from Fragrantica.com 
Second image by Jozef Wilcon