Our Story
Many years ago our founder was frusrated with a lack of integrity among vendors and the quality of oud available. And with that began an endless journey of sourcing the finest oud, incense and perfumes world wide.
For us fragrance is not merely a scent, but rather something which transcends the material realm. Our scents join us in our journey throughout life, creating fragrant memories and allowing us to bask in their unique and mesmerising aromas with our loved ones.
Each and every one of our products has a story, a purpose and an origin; like each and everyone of us. Our fragrance reflects us a person, our tastes and our journey. They define their wearer and embed into their environment.
Throughout the rest of this page we will slowly introduce you to the concept of artisan oud, common terminology and help you to learn what makes our oud so special.
Oud Explained
What Exactly is Artisanal Oud?
So you've seen the word "artisan" in abundance and now you might be wondering what do we mean by artisanal oud?
Artisanal oud refers to a new generation in oud production and evolution in the way we think about, procure and enjoy oud.
Artisans spend years mastering their craft, focusing on the art and their passion for their respective disciplines. Money is not the priority, that would be the antithesis of the artisanal approach to oud.
Artisanal oud, represents a shift from mass produced, diluted and dishonest oud offerings throughout the world. To us it means going back to basics, at ground level, and working with the folk on the ground to recapture the essence of oud tradition.
An artisan needs to have control of every parameter, knowledge of every part of the puzzle and above all, a vision that brings all the moving parts together.
At The Attar Store, we have deep relations with the finest and most legendary of distillers of essential oils, the best perfumers & the veterans and legends of the Eastern oud tradition.
This gives us an unparalleled understanding and insight into each of our products, from origin to conception.
What Exactly is Oud Though?
Oud is one of the rarest scents ever known, a treasured and sought after rarity for millennia even featuring in the bible. Initially revered by cultures all across Asia and the Middle East, oud has since come to the West, featuring in products by the most famous western houses.
With mass produced perfumes by designer brands and even niche brands it should come of no surprise that most of the oud used in these perfumes is synthetic - produced in labs - that doesn’t even come close to the real scent.
So What is Oud? Oud is the resinous product produced by agarwood trees after they have sustained an infection. Only a handful of trees will have enough oud to be harvested, after which it is cut up and graded with the highest grades being used as incense chips for burning on coal and the lower grade going towards products such as oil, incense sticks and bakhoor.
Oud oil is what is used in perfumes and on the skin as a scent, it is made by distilling oud chips and shavings (think whiskey) in a painstaking process lasting weeks. The yield for such distillations is typically between 1-2%, it takes kilograms of oud wood for millilitres of oud oil. This is why oud oil is impeccably rare and not suited for mass produced designer perfumes.
When you’re looking for fine cigars, whiskey, art or vintage cars, you go to a specialist in this area, not a generic brand attempting to cover all.
This is why for oud perfumes and oil, we advise buying from artisans specialising in fine fragrance and oud.
Many traditional oud brands place their mass produced products in front of new and regular customers, with the best products locked in vaults for their existing customers spending small fortunes.
At The Attar Store we connect you with oud from best distillers and collectors all across the world, connecting you with scents made for Royalty and the most legendary of our collector clients, we believe in equal access to the best fragrance money can buy.
We help introduce you to oud in stages allowing you to understand and learn this majestic scent and the story behind each oil and incense. Oud is a wonderful and an almost spiritual journey, it is a passion like no other and a scent unrivalled by anything else.
Why All The Different Products?
Oud is an extraordinarily versatile scent, oud like scents feature in your favourite western perfumes, candles, diffusers and more. In the oud tradition, oud can be used as incense chips upon coals the most common form of enjoyment among the Arabs.
In the Eastern tradition oud is used in incense sticks giving them a transcendent aroma varying depending upon the oud used! Some even use it in bakhoor, a familiar form to those acquainted to the Middle Eastern culture.
Now as for the most useable form, oud oil, it simply is a mesmerising extract of some of the finest aromatics produced by nature. An oil produced by distilling oud wood to extract mere millilitres per kilogram of wood. The results are wonderful, an enthralling blend of aromatics including fruits, spices, smoke, camphor, menthol and so many others - even kinam (we'll get to this later).
What Products Should I Start Off With?
Whether a veteran or novice, with our oud, you're entering a new dimension in oud and incense. To start off with we recommend everyone to try our sample sizes, these are the most affordable and efficient way to understand and enjoy our oils and appreciate the signature of our scents.
Sample sizes are also economical, many a time oud collectors buy full bottles without having tried the fragrance before. We believe firmly in value for money, and implore everyone to try first before committing to full bottles. Once you find your favourite scent, the one so to speak, we encourage stocking up as there's no guarantee it will be available again - given how rare and unique each oud oil is.
Understanding Our Artisanal Oud
If you're new to oud or an experience collector, we'd like to introduce our brand and story.
Our story originates from a time when artisanal oud was rare and secretive, a time when we were surrounded low quality and diluted oud oil. We set out on a journey to source the best oud possible, so that we could collect and share the pinnacle of true oud with the world.
Our oils are hand selected and curated for their rarity, scent and story. These are scents that are meticulously crafted and many of which come from the vault of legends of this tradition.
These are not oils which anyone can simply acquire, when you buy one of our oils, you're receiving a piece of oud history, a work of art revered and envied by countless collectors across the world.
Selecting an Oud Oil
This can be a daunting and complex decision, but fear not, we're here to make that decision easy.
The first thing is to consider what you seek in your fragrances. Are you looking for something raw, woody and powerful?
Or do you prefer something more subtle, sweeter and on the more floral side?
We list a series of notes for each oil describing the profile according to our noses, it's important to try oils to get a better understanding of the nuances in each scent profile.
Every oud is unique in its scent profile, and while we try our best to describe each oil's profile, every oil evokes something different to every user.
Understanding Price Point
Oud is costly, there's no doubt about that and although our oils can seem very expensive it's important to consider the value we deliver.
Our oud oil is pure and hand selected for its quality, we select from only a handful of master distillers and veteran collectors, ensuring you receive some of the greatest oud oil known.
Many niche fragrances and perfume oils on the market cost several hundred dollars a bottle, for fragrance that is often diluted and contains very little in the way of oud oil and natural essential oils.
Our oud oils are pure and can be enjoyed with just a drop, allowing you to make a small bottle last for a very long time!
Purchasing
Its important to consider one's budget and intention when purchasing oud.
For everyday use we typically recommend our standard oud fragrances, these are pure oils that are curated for their high quality as well as affordability, allowing you to use a nice helping each day.
For special occasions and for the connoisseurs and aficionados we recommend the zenith collection oils.
These are the greatest oils we have collected, curated purely for their scent, rarity and unique origin. These are a class of their own and distinguished in their own right, for they are indeed the pinnacle of artisanal oud.
Taking the next steps
That concludes our brief introduction to the process of buying oud. If you'd like to learn more about all things oud, we highly recommend reading our blog posts.
Click the button to head over to "Fragrant Thoughts".
If you'd like to begin browsing some products and purchasing some fragrance, we've highlighted a few collections below to start off with.
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The Zenith Collection
Click to learn moreOur most exclusive and highest grade oils. These oils are specifically curated to be the among the most exquisite and special oils known. While our oudh oils are already premium and outliers in quality when compared to the masses, these oils meet even stricter criteria.
Our criteria for the zenith collection are rarity, scent and story.
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Premium Oud & Incense
Click to learn moreA collection of our most premium incense and oud wood, this is the pinnacle of high end oud and the finest of incense sticks.
This collection curates some of the most special and exquisite examples of oud & incense for collection and special occasions.
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Daily Oud & Incense
Click to learn moreOudh is used everyday in some cultures proving its versatility and importance. It’s something we can use to unwind and relax, to scent ourselves before going out and to share with our guests.
This collection curates a selection of various woods and incense perfect for daily use, offering a terrific aroma yet utmost affordability making these perfect for regular use in larger quantities.
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Naturals
Click to learn moreTo any perfumer sourcing natural aromatics is key skill, similar to a chef sourcing their ingredients, it is imperative for artisanal fragrance that only the finest aromatics are used.
We collect and retail a number of aromatics including ambergris, rose, sandalwood & frankincense. As with our oud, we focus on sourcing the finest and most authentic of naturals for perfumery use, supplying several perfumers and incense makers across the world.
