Al Shareef II

A swipe on the wrist, the surroundings pause. The mind rushes to decipher the heady notes of fragrant Oudh…this type of scent has not been experienced in decades.

If you thought you had experienced all that Malaysian Oudh had to offer, you are in for a surprise. For over three months we meticulously scoured the jungles of the Northern Mainland of Malaysia, sifting through hundreds of kilos of Oudh and handpicking the finest pieces for this creation.

The distillation of Al Shareef I was a personal quest; to surpass boundaries and blend creative inspiration with traditional perfumery…to craft a legendary Thaqeel from the great trees of Northern Malaysia.

A limited production, when word spread amongst our clientelle Al Shareef I soon become a collectible, to be cherished and exchanged in private circles of the elite as valuable tokens. In fact, a member of the ruling Al-Thani family in Qatar amassed an impressive 40 tola of the original Al Shareef oil.

It is no surprise I have a soft spot for Al Shareef I as I personally designed the distillation apparatus: a stainless steel pot, hand crafted stainless steel neutral pressure condenser (this differs to the condenser most other distillers use), a stainless steel transport tube, and advanced water balancing glass collectors. I can intrinsically recall every client who purchased it by name – the last few drops travelled in a 1ml vial to one of our discerning clients in Jordan.

When the first drops of precious oil eventuated in the collectors’ flask it was pure joy to behold. If you have observed distillations drops of oil usually flow successively into the collector – not with Al Shareef I. Due to the physical properties of Thaqeel, drops steadily roll up, one by one, like precious gems on a necklace and they do not flow. Even when the oil hits the Hydrosol in the collector flask the bejewelled drops do not not scatter…

Al Shareef I was released under a business model whereby we attended to the olfactory desires of select connoisseurs around the world. Noting a gap in the market of quality unadulterated Oudh oils, and increased requests to make our artistry available to a wider audience we launched our global footprint online with the crafting of Al Shareef II – working once again with North Malaysian Oudh trees to produce an oil capturing something special – a fresh interpretation of Al-Shareef I.

Our aim? To chase a defying scent, the addictive scent that haunts the Oudh hunters –“the scent of the tree”. The scent of the very tree that has been fighting off fungal attacks for hundreds of years – the scent that represents the spirit of the tree. The intrigue created by this narcotic-like scent fuels the hunters, seeping into their very being, propelling them from one one tree to another. Unfortunately, the Oudh connoisseur rarely experiences this bliss. It is simply gone by the time the tree is harvested, processed and distilled, no “scent of the tree” remains.

For this distillation we wanted to capture the complexity of Oudh trees before they are harvested – the aroma one would detect inhaling deep into the fungal-infected resin-saturated fighting zone of the Oudh tree. Oudh Al Shareef II is the rawness of an Oudh tree that has been defending itself from fungal assault for hundreds of years.

An active oil distilled at low heat to preserve its nutrients, when swiping this gem on your wrist you can immediately  sense the pulsating life in the oil.

Waves of sweet animalic notes with fruity undertones, glimmers of baby peppers coupled with the freshness of cane wood.

Indulge in a second whiff and you capture walnut skin, dusty woods and ripened fruits followed by the distinct note of leather filled wooden chests covered with a thin layer of ripened tamarind.

This is the spirit of the North Malaysian Oudh Tree. The Defying Scent.