Albanian Van Gogh: Nha Trang

One of the highlights of my journey has been my fascination with iris.

I guess it’s because I’m difficult to please – and iris is difficult to tame. And we somehow complement each other in a funny way.

It’s easy to work with rose. Even easier to work with jasmine. But mastering iris is almost like taming a stallion that was born to be wild. It’s why I ended up with God-knows how many iterations of Iris Ghalia. And why Iris Noir keeps getting tweaked.

It’s also how I learned some of its nuances, its tricks and its spells.

That’s what you’ve got on display in Albanian Van Gogh. Iris impressionism. Paired with the ultimate impressionist oud Nha Trang.

An eccentric crowd-pleaser that wrings your typical accords beyond recognition to morph them into an eminently elegant iris canvass with an impressionistic twist. Iris, reimagined.

Georgian rose and pineapple clash with sage splashed with bitter orange. Red mandarin smeared into ambergris, orris butter churned into grains of musk.

A fragrant night spent smelling what Florentine iris does to capsicum grated over frankincense, setting a creamy citrus backdrop to this playful, erotic come-hither I’ll… cut my ear for you… kinda fragrance.

Featured Testimonials…

Thanks for reaching out and sharing my enthusiasm of such a wonderful olfactory experience. I was first mesmerized by the beauty that is Oud when I visited Dubai in 2007. It was like a spell that came over me, and I was so intrigued as it was like nothing I had ever experienced before. Unfortunately, I was unable to get any legit fragrances while there and it haunted me until I found Ensar Oud years later. In the meantime, I bought many different oils from different souks but nothing compared to that real OUD. So I was disappointed, thinking that one moment in time would be lost to me forever as I searched for that scent in the wrong places. Looking for real Oud in the United States was like looking for a lost lover in a vast sea of a faceless crowd.

After gathering up some courage I placed a small order with Ensar, hoping that it would be the one. And- oh my- not only was it the one, it was actually BETTER than what I had experienced in Dubai. I was so blown away just by the samples I got from Ensar that just a couple weeks later I placed another order!!!! I found the lost lover and so much more!!

It’s hard for me to pin down a favorite scent, as every vial of precious liquid gold revealed to me another epic and beautiful olfactory journey. But, if I must narrow it down to three, in descending order, it would have to be the 1) Yusuf Royale with its bold spiciness and smoked scotch-whisky like undertones, and 2) the Crime and Punishment perfume, and 3) Albanian van Gogh – which came as a surprise sample- it’s so complex and rich and just blows me away- so much so I had to get some more in my second order from Ensar!! I am so glad to have found Ensar after all these years. I discovered it online after having given up on finding real Oud, and am happy to recommend it to others. I had heard about Ensar a few years ago but was distrustful about the quality until just a month ago I felt like, “Why not just give it a try? The worst that can happen is that I’m right back to where I started!”

It is a blessing to have finally found legit real Oud! Thank you so very much!!!May you and your loved ones have a blessed day!

—Asia

Right at the start, a nice tart pineapple and rose with some orange peel. It dries down to a nice buttery note, frankincence, and also keeping that fruitiness from the opening.

I like having those few fragrances where I can just grab and spray on the go. This definitely being one of them. – Reda S. / USA

Starts like a pineapple & rose starburst for me. I will say that I’m a bit biased, pineapple and rose are two of my favorites scents, and Iris is probably somewhere towards the top of that list as well. This fragrance has an energetic bitter orange vitamin C burst for the nose that leaves a smile on my face. Fruity and very likable while still being unique. Super easy to wear.

Not sure if it’s Provence, Albania or the Italian countryside but I get flowers and fruit under the yellow Sun. Like a scratch & sniff Van Gogh painting. Full of life.

The iris is a gorgeous note, just a beautiful flower that is bright while also powdery and suede like. It’s embedded in and I pick it up here and there. And really almost like segments of it. Sometimes stronger sometimes elusive. I wonder if that’s what Ensar meant by the impressionistic approach.

The Pineapple frankincense mixes with Iris. It’s heavenly. Not sure how he does it, but this will be incredible to wear in the summer. Bold yet soft. Creamy citrus- creamsicle vibes with a lime mojito on the side. Plus the stems and the leaves (some green popped in). I love a good fruity floral fragrance. This one makes me say “mmm” again and again. Oh and there is the touch of something that’s like a coconut but it’s not a coconut, it’s like the isolated abbreviated sweetness. Interesting.

The depth is good too, I get a very nice base in there- well structured. Butter backed with mysore vapors. Some Ambergris during dry down. And musk. Might be the rose, but something in there is hypnotic and relaxing.

It gets even more interesting for me is when thinking about the name.. lol. Ensar Oud’s work and Van Gogh – specifically in this case Van Gogh’s irises painting – a print of which hangs on my wall. Not sure how intentional but the overlaps are fascinating. When I think of Van Gogh’s Irises my mind goes to the unusual angles, the closeups, the color. “Irises” is known as being full of life, filled with softness and lightness (as opposed to some of his other work which can be more manic and have the presence of death). I can see how all of that is here in this scent. The way he works with notes as brushwork, bold but measured. Brimming with life.

Van Gogh brought his subjective intensity to the objective natural world and insisted on working directly from it (no synthetics!). And not as a dead still life but as living breathing thing, always using specific natural forms. Plus you have his use of color theory – how red and green, violet and yellow, both compliment and intensify each other – which sounds (smells?) a lot like what is happening in this fragrance to be honest. Notes interplay and intensify each other – taking nature beyond nature into expression. It’s like he’s showing us how you can get as smooth as a designer fragrance but using all naturals too.

I won’t go into the surreal artwork of this release, that would be another couple paragraphs at least lol

Overall, a beautiful release by the house of Ensar Oud.

Definitely has a lighter more playful feel than his denser earlier works – which I love, but I can’t knock this freshie. It’s laughter on a summer afternoon. I needed some of that today. – Chano V. / Mexico

The legendary Nha Trang oud, meets Georgian rose and pineapple splashed with bitter orange. Red mandarin smeared into ambergris, orris butter churned into grains of musk