Harrods Oud Patchouli Bond No 9 for women and men

Bond no 9 HARRODS OUD PATCHOULI is certainly not my favorite perfume from this house, but I do not think that it is a bad fragrance. The oud facet evokes memories of some of the other Bond no 9 offerings, but the savory patchouli note is strong enough to make this creation distinct from the others. The davana and leather also help to set this one apart.

I sprayed through a couple of sample vials of this composition over a few wearings, which probably does indicate (as another reviewer has lamented) that the concentration is a bit lower than usual. Or perhaps it just means that it's a lot easier to use up a sprayer vial than the original dab vials? As an aside, I myself preferred the sleek test tube sample vials, although I understand why Bond changed--lots of people were complaining about the difficulty of removing the corks, having not understood the proper technique: hold the vial in one hand and push the cork away using one's thumb...

In any case, I came away from this pretty thorough testing of HARRODS OUD PATCHOULI with some ambivalence. I definitely do not need a bottle of this, but I do rather like the savory presentation of the patchouli, oud, and leather. I would characterize this as more of a men's than a unisex fragrance. For myself, I prefer the decadent and feminine syrupy white flower patchouli perfume of this house, NUITS DE NOHO, which to me offers some of the virtues of Thierry Mugler ANGEL with none of the vices.

For guys and more daring gals, I can heartily recommend H.O.T. ALWAYS, which I recently was sent in error (from a discounter) in place of the NEW YORK FLING which I had ordered. At first I was miffed, but then I decided to give it another chance and ended up falling in love with that animalic leather patchouli perfume, which is actually quite addictive (I kept the bottle (-;).

Waste of money, poor sillage and longevity!

This latest Bond feels like a commercial scent done in a hurry...!

It starts with a bright medicinal oud note that is followed by sweet fruity notes with hints of leather which last for about 3 hours max; the drydown is generic musky ambery and woody. I cannot detect any patchouli in here.

I like it but not love it and certainly will not cough up 215 GBP for a small bottle of a juice that has not earned such price. In honesty, quite disappointed with this latest Bond release.

Medium longevity and sillage.

Medium Thumbs...just about...