Amouage Overture Man Eau de Parfum spends most of its time as a myrrh-oud combination that opens with citrus, ginger, and aromatic spices of saffron, cumin, cardamom (and a little later, cinnamon). The cognac accord was thick, rich, and fruity with undertones of leather, musk, and smoky incense all accentuated by myrrh.

After the opening, it was it turned musky, more and more animalic, and was almost barnyard at times, but it was almost overripe with fruit and resinous sweetness. Even in the drydown, the animalic accord was noticeably apparent, even when blurred with vanilla and smoky incense.

It is described as an “arresting woody scent” with “potent notes of myrrh, sandalwood and smoky frankincense.” These are the listed notes:

• top notes: grapefruit, cardamom, cumin, ginger, nutmeg, saffron, cognac accord
• heart notes: cinnamon, lentisk, benzoin, ciste labdanum, patchouli, geranium, myrrh
• base notes: sandalwood, smoky leather, clary sage, animalic accord, incense

It opened with bitter grapefruit accented with fresh ginger and a thread of saffron before a sprinkle of cumin and whisper of cardamom joined the spice mixture; it went from bitter and zesty to warm and earthy, nutty, and savory. Within a few minutes, the cumin was absorbed by the juicy grapefruit, now a little less bitter, and truer in its grapefruit zing.

Myrrh powered up significantly, adding a deeper, resinous sweetness with a vanillic bent with a slightly musky, animalic undertone and a dash of cinnamon. It put the zing of the grapefruit into last position, just barely detectable on the fringes. After 15 minutes of development, it seemed boozier, thick and rich, with leather, light musk, and smoky incense. The cognac was full-bodied with spiced, slightly sweet and fruit components amplified by the intensity of the myrrh.

It became particularly musky and animalic, smelling of oud (though it wasn’t listed in the notes) — it was teetering on barnyard but with the heavy myrrh, it didn’t quite get there but there were moments where I definitely questioned the proximity to it. As the scent made its way to the drydown, the animalic facets diminished slowly, eventually being blurred with warm, vanillic resin and smoky incense.

Application

For testing, I used 1/3 of a 0.7ml sample vial dabbed to the underside and topside of my wrist area on my left arm. I used an unscented moisturizer prior to applying the scent as this is also my swatching arm (aka, incredibly parched at any given moment) as I found scent did not hold well here otherwise. 

I purchased my sample in January 2022; fragrances are known to be reformulated over their lifetime , so be mindful of when a review was made, e.g. a review from 2010 may not reflect what the same-named perfume smells like in 2022.

Longevity

It lasted for eight hours until it was a skin-scent and about 14 hours before it was quite difficult to detect on my skin. The sillage was moderate and lasted around two to three hours before the trail started to shorten, while the projection was moderate for nearer to four hours before starting to really drop closer to my skin.

Personal Thoughts

I wouldn’t say this was a challenging fragrance per se, but the fruity sweetness combined with the oud was one of those things that sometimes I enjoyed and sometimes felt like too much of a good thing. I wanted something more to join the duo (in a more noticeable amount)–more incense or stronger woods.

Available Sizes

• 50ml for $265
• 100ml for $360
• 0.7ml sample for $4

Where to Buy

• LuckyScent
• Saks

Amouage Overture Man Perfume Review

Amouage Overture Man Perfume Review