Montale Kabul Aoud Edp Sample/Decants

Named after the capital of Afghanistan, Kabul Aoud is one of the better Montale exclusives.

All in all, it’s a balmy oud composition, featuring resin-infused swirls of coffee, oud, rose and cedar. Stylistically reminiscent of Dark Aoud, the roasted darkness of the coffee dominates, while the woody components linger in the background.

Any further development is minimal but it does become sweeter over time. As with many of the recent Montale ouds, the oud isn’t the main player, with the guaiac wood being much more pronounced. During the drydown, a musky woody nuttiness becomes more perceptible.

While longevity and sillage are both good, it’s still lighter than the Western Montale releases, yet possesses a reasonable amount of presence on the skin.

A black bottle containing myrrh, cedar and thyme as top note followed by labdanum, patchouli, melilot and coffee as mid note, ending up with guaiac wood as bottom note.