Montale
Montale
126 votes
A unique visual signature based on accords, character, and seasonality
The oud and leather converge with almost jarring immediacy, joined by crackling saffron and clove that make your skin feel slightly warm and spiced. Elemi resin cuts through with a resinous brightness, preventing the composition from turning austere—this opening smells expensive and deliberate.
Rose and Egyptian jasmine begin their slow emergence around the 45-minute mark, gradually softening the leather's edges whilst ylang ylang introduces a creamy, almost coconut-tinged sensuality. The saffron persists but integrates more harmoniously, and by hour two you're experiencing a genuinely balanced floral-woody-spicy composition where no single note dominates.
Amber and Mysore sandalwood settle into a soft, warm base that retains surprising dryness despite the sweetness in the accords. The leather doesn't disappear entirely but transforms into a second-skin quality; the florals fade to abstract softness. What remains is a creamy-woody amber fragrance with just enough spice memory to prevent it from becoming purely comforting.
Aoud Melody is a fragrance that announces itself with leather-bound confidence before surrendering to a contradictory softness—a quality that makes it genuinely compelling rather than immediately likeable. The oud arrives not as the medicinal, animalic force many expect, but tempered by elemi resin's brightness and saffron's peppery bite, creating a spiced leather opening that feels almost tailored rather than raw. This is where the composition's central tension emerges: the saffron and clove insist on sharp definition, yet the rose and Egyptian jasmine in the heart are already conspiring to soften those edges into something sensual and intimate.
The floral accord dominates the composition's DNA (100% according to the accords), but it's anchored firmly by the amber (88%) and woody base (76%), preventing this from ever becoming a conventional rose fragrance. Instead, you're getting something more like a leather-wrapped floral—where the florals emerge as a seductive whisper rather than a declaration. The ylang ylang adds an almost creamy indulgence, whilst the Mysore sandalwood base refuses to let the fragrance drift into pure sweetness or powdery territory.
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4.0/5 (356)