Nasomatto - Black Afghano

Is there any sheik romanticism still around? Do young western girls dream about visiting middle eastern countries and to be kidnapped by a darkeyed sheik? I belive that kind of romanticism is pretty much gone these days, after the attacks against World Trade Center and all the things that have come after that. Maybe it was something for women from my grandmothers generation, when Rudolf Valentino was a big moviestar? Well, I still consider "Arabian Nights", ladies of the harem and assasins to be very intriguing.

And it seem like the guys behind Nasomatto´s Black Afghano is with me on that, or actually Black Afghano is more of a drug romantic name than a sheik romatic name. The name refer to a very high quality kind of hash from Afghanistan. Well, no matter what´s behind the name, Black Afghano is so much more than the smell of high quality hashish. When I try Black Afghano... eeeh, sound a bit weird maybe? Well, when I put on some drops of Black Afghano I am greated with a top note that strongly resemblence the smell of hash, no not really resemblence it IS the smell of hash without doubt and I think it is the most spot on hashish note I have ever come across in perfumes, while the others I have tried have been kind of interprentions this is the real thing.

Ok, I realise that people somewhat less drug romantic than the creators of Black Afghano can be a little put off now, but please keep on reading. Black Afghano is sooooooo much more than a realistic interprention of hashish. Or... honestly Black Afghano takes me on trip. I am off to a barren and mountainous landscape, to a gropu of people around a bonfire, the day have been long, hot and filled with hardship. It is late evening and the sky above is filled with stars, finally some coolness. But behind the back you can feel the cold kreeping closer. A strange pipe is going around the fire as the most natural thing, a sweet, aromatic and also kind of brisk smoke, makes the tired humans relexed, soft and content. Someone starts to tell a story, a story that take place in this very area, but long ago, when the story tellers grand father was young. We have some tea and some halawa, stare at the starlight sky above and is drawn in to the exciting and suggestiv story, is it really true, can such things really happen? It doesn´t really matter, I am fully content and as transported to the realm of "Arabian Nights"...

Black Afghano is a very complex scent, the note of cannabis is constantly there, but also notes of light smoke, spices, warm wood, sweetness, flowers and something slightly animalic. The different notes constantly evolves around each other, like they are going in and out from the perfume. In it´s genre I must say that Black Afghano is pretty much perfectly made. Even tough the price is about 98 euro, for as little as 30 ml, I think the perfume is worth every penny for a person the perfume suits. I will cherish my few drops, but also realise that Black Afghano, no matter how good it is, isn´t really for me. It having troubles to agree with my skin chemistry, smoky and brisk notes often become a problem together with my skin chemistry, and even if Balck Afghano almost isn´t a problem, there is still a tiny disturbance in it. I think it is mselling extremly good, arousing and definitly wake my imagination, but I don´t think it smell that god on ME! My youngest daughter complained all day about how I smelled yesterday! And it was almost all day, because a tiny drop (I mean, really tiny, since I´ve paid 6 euor for about ½ml) on each wrist will go on smellling for hours and hours, and the sillage is huge. I suspect that people might think I have smoked the real thing when having it on!

But for those of you knowing you can pull off a scent with smoky, aromatic, woody and lightly brisk notes, I think Black Afghano is a must try! It would fit as well on the right man as the right women. On me it reminds a little about Serge Noire, but more accesable but at least as complex. Finally, Black Afghano become softer, rounder and sweeter and the basenote is a true pleasure. Despite that Black Afghano is to me more of an olfactory trip than a smell good-perfume.

Apart from that I´ve recived some samples this passing week. One of them is Amouage´s Reflection Women, and as the others I´ve tried from Amouage it smells good, it smells for a long time and it smells rich, but it doesn´t smell me, even tough it is Maurice Roucel that have created it!