Reviews of Honey Oud by Floris
Honey Oud by Floris (2014) is the more-popular side of a coin shared with Floris Leather Oud (2014) released in the same year. Whereas Leather Oud is much drier and more about geranium and oud, Honey Oud is the sweeter, muskier, more conventionally rose-oud part of the duo; with vanilla and honey joining the ensemble, Honey Oud makes for the closest Floris would ever come to being fully within the "oud craze" trend many Western brands pursued into the 2010's. Now, Montale would also release Montale Honey Aoud (2015) on the heels of this here Floris, but it isn't a rip on it nor really anything like it, so the name is just coincidental. I find Floris Honey Oud to be far superior to the Montale offering, even though Montale has the greater track record overall with anything oud. My best comparison to those familiar with the genre would be some of By Killian's offerings or a few of the oddball ouds coming from Trish McEvoy or Lancôme from around this period, but better.
The opening is voluptuous honey, citrus, rose, and something almost pasty. Perhaps this is the way the labdanum is interacting with the rest of the composition, or maybe it's the somewhat chocolatey patchouli countering the vanilla. I'm no expert on reactions between materials, but Honey Oud nonetheless comes on smooth and sweet, then goes pasty, and finally musky but smooth, like all the usual phenolic tells of skanky barnyard oud have had their wrinkles ironed out so they fit like a brand-new zipper with the nicer bits. The sweetness is honestly much greater in the opening than in the drydown, where this stuff takes on something like Oud Satin Mood by Maison Francis Kurkdjian (2015) quite handily, but will never be compared to it despite being more natural-smelling because Floris has no clout with TikTok influencers. Honey Oud is also much louder than your typical Floris, being louder than Leather Oud too, so a little bit of this goes a long way, astonishingly. Marketed for women by some outlets, this is officially unisex by the brand.
This is the closest thing any Floris in modern times has come to being wildly popular in the online fragrance community, because it has just enough name recognition (most people online are aware of Floris even if they haven't sampled any), and the right combination of big sweet musky rose oud notes to put it in runnings with all the usual suspects people go gaga over; and since it punches way above its own weight price-wise, ends up being what these guys get in place of something from By Killian, meaning that discounts are sadly not as heavy on Honey Oud as Leather Oud, or even other Floris fragrances. Online discounters sell a healthy amount of bottles not to need marking Honey Oud down much, and as a result it fetches designer retail prices, which is still cheaper than what Floris themselves want for it direct. If you bought either oud fragrance from them, it's almost $300 a take. For as much as I enjoy Honey Oud, if I had to pay that, I'd just stick with Montale. Thumbs up
The opening is voluptuous honey, citrus, rose, and something almost pasty. Perhaps this is the way the labdanum is interacting with the rest of the composition, or maybe it's the somewhat chocolatey patchouli countering the vanilla. I'm no expert on reactions between materials, but Honey Oud nonetheless comes on smooth and sweet, then goes pasty, and finally musky but smooth, like all the usual phenolic tells of skanky barnyard oud have had their wrinkles ironed out so they fit like a brand-new zipper with the nicer bits. The sweetness is honestly much greater in the opening than in the drydown, where this stuff takes on something like Oud Satin Mood by Maison Francis Kurkdjian (2015) quite handily, but will never be compared to it despite being more natural-smelling because Floris has no clout with TikTok influencers. Honey Oud is also much louder than your typical Floris, being louder than Leather Oud too, so a little bit of this goes a long way, astonishingly. Marketed for women by some outlets, this is officially unisex by the brand.
This is the closest thing any Floris in modern times has come to being wildly popular in the online fragrance community, because it has just enough name recognition (most people online are aware of Floris even if they haven't sampled any), and the right combination of big sweet musky rose oud notes to put it in runnings with all the usual suspects people go gaga over; and since it punches way above its own weight price-wise, ends up being what these guys get in place of something from By Killian, meaning that discounts are sadly not as heavy on Honey Oud as Leather Oud, or even other Floris fragrances. Online discounters sell a healthy amount of bottles not to need marking Honey Oud down much, and as a result it fetches designer retail prices, which is still cheaper than what Floris themselves want for it direct. If you bought either oud fragrance from them, it's almost $300 a take. For as much as I enjoy Honey Oud, if I had to pay that, I'd just stick with Montale. Thumbs up
Released alongside the magnificent Floris Leather Oud (which is one of the best modern leathers), Honey Oud borrows the same base but goes for something tamer, more versatile, and a bit more conventional in comparison: a honey-dipped floral-vanilla with a gentle, smoky-medicinal oud base.
The honey is bright and light, adding a unique, slightly funky edge to what might otherwise come across as just another rose-oud (nicely executed with some depth, but otherwise unoriginal).
In the air, it all blends together in a seamless floral and medicinal accord with a slightly chalky texture. It's unusual, but pleasant.
Not an all-timer, but nevertheless a reference fragrance for its particularly beautiful execution of honey.
The honey is bright and light, adding a unique, slightly funky edge to what might otherwise come across as just another rose-oud (nicely executed with some depth, but otherwise unoriginal).
In the air, it all blends together in a seamless floral and medicinal accord with a slightly chalky texture. It's unusual, but pleasant.
Not an all-timer, but nevertheless a reference fragrance for its particularly beautiful execution of honey.
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Very nice and pleasant! I expected something dark and syrupy but instead was surprised with a nice light vanilla honey on a rose-musk, warm base. Clear cut bright honey notes in the opening and eventually it settles down to a very nice rose note that never gets soapy.
The longer I wore it the better the notes rounded out and the more I liked it. While it's definitely unisex, I can see myself wearing this more than my husband. Definitely a keeper!
The longer I wore it the better the notes rounded out and the more I liked it. While it's definitely unisex, I can see myself wearing this more than my husband. Definitely a keeper!
Honey Oud - a modern release from the house of Floris. And a very nice smelling one!
The honey in this one provides with sweetness, which I like, but I think I'm having a harder time picking out the oud. Not that it matters, I get the idea of the fragrance. It's like a warm, sweet and ambery fragrance. But it also smells clean somehow. That makes it more versatile considering day or night time wearings. It's smooth enough to wear it at evenings but since it's more clean than stinky oud smelling it can be used in daytime as well. In fact, I even wore to the office today.
The performance is not above average. That might help with the versatility. You can wear it discretely and that is how I like it. Put on a couple of sprays more and I guess it will project. I have been wearing it from a sample which might make it harder to rate in terms of performance.
Maybe my favorite from Floris!
The honey in this one provides with sweetness, which I like, but I think I'm having a harder time picking out the oud. Not that it matters, I get the idea of the fragrance. It's like a warm, sweet and ambery fragrance. But it also smells clean somehow. That makes it more versatile considering day or night time wearings. It's smooth enough to wear it at evenings but since it's more clean than stinky oud smelling it can be used in daytime as well. In fact, I even wore to the office today.
The performance is not above average. That might help with the versatility. You can wear it discretely and that is how I like it. Put on a couple of sprays more and I guess it will project. I have been wearing it from a sample which might make it harder to rate in terms of performance.
Maybe my favorite from Floris!
The Honey Oud opens with a distinct honey note, almost like sack mead, but already after a few minutes the oud and vanilla begin to dominate with a slight hint of rose and amber in the background. It starts off very original, but soon settles into a rather conventional (but elegant) vanilla, boozy rose and oud. After an hour, the boozy rose and a little oud is all that is remaining.
The base notes are fairly weak and both longevity and projection are average.
The base notes are fairly weak and both longevity and projection are average.
As clear as the name. A beautiful, strong but wearable honey, and oud. Sometimes I get the rose and think it's feminine. Sometimes I don't and I want my male friend to wear it. There's some saltiness in the dry-down.
I love it! I just don't know if I should wear it. No idea on how it projects. Longevity and sillage are both good.
EDIT a few hours later : There's a lot of sublime rose now! Definitely feminine. I keep it! Addictive.
I love it! I just don't know if I should wear it. No idea on how it projects. Longevity and sillage are both good.
EDIT a few hours later : There's a lot of sublime rose now! Definitely feminine. I keep it! Addictive.
I get the a beautiful fresh bergamot at the start, then it settles into a smooth, high quality and polite rose-honey-vanilla/amber combination. This accord gives off a play-doh like resonance in the background that makes the whole thing a tad immature. Overall nice, but not great.
Floris Honey Oud has received a lot of buzz lately, and in liking both main notes, seeing its positive reception in the online community, and really loving Montale's similarly-named Honey Aoud, I knew I needed to sample Floris Honey Oud.
First off, both eponymous notes dominate the fragrance--it's mainly honey and oud, simply put. Other notes factor in: bergamot provides a non-sweet citrus additive to the opening of the fragrance, and patchouli and rose support the heart, but very subtly. I don't specifically get labdanum but there's a general floral element that could just be the mix of rose and labdanum. And while I don't specifically get vanilla or musk, vanilla easily blends with honey and musk easily smoothens any dry down.
I get year-round wearability out of this, as the comparably winter-leaning notes of honey and oud come off pretty fresh. I can't think of another way to put it: even in its dry down, there's something very refreshing about the honey and oud duo in this case.
I feel the need to mention that despite my initial suspicions, Floris Honey Oud is not terrible similar to Montale Honey Aoud, as Montale's take is simply heavier-handed on both the eponymous notes to make their fragrance both more of a gourmand and more oud-intensive. Floris Honey Oud is, by contrast, a fresher, more year-round-friendly use of both notes, but still performs well.
I like Honey Oud a lot and will strongly consider adding it to my collection. $235 for 100ml retail but available at FragranceX for $152, its pricing is viable for how much I like it, and frankly, for how different it is from Montale Honey Aoud, also on my to-buy list.
8 out of 10
First off, both eponymous notes dominate the fragrance--it's mainly honey and oud, simply put. Other notes factor in: bergamot provides a non-sweet citrus additive to the opening of the fragrance, and patchouli and rose support the heart, but very subtly. I don't specifically get labdanum but there's a general floral element that could just be the mix of rose and labdanum. And while I don't specifically get vanilla or musk, vanilla easily blends with honey and musk easily smoothens any dry down.
I get year-round wearability out of this, as the comparably winter-leaning notes of honey and oud come off pretty fresh. I can't think of another way to put it: even in its dry down, there's something very refreshing about the honey and oud duo in this case.
I feel the need to mention that despite my initial suspicions, Floris Honey Oud is not terrible similar to Montale Honey Aoud, as Montale's take is simply heavier-handed on both the eponymous notes to make their fragrance both more of a gourmand and more oud-intensive. Floris Honey Oud is, by contrast, a fresher, more year-round-friendly use of both notes, but still performs well.
I like Honey Oud a lot and will strongly consider adding it to my collection. $235 for 100ml retail but available at FragranceX for $152, its pricing is viable for how much I like it, and frankly, for how different it is from Montale Honey Aoud, also on my to-buy list.
8 out of 10
An uncomplicated oud scent refreshingly clear and direct. The honey note takes prominence in the opening. It's not a raw honey note it's been civilized by the assistance of vanilla. The accord is sweet but it is neither as sweet nor as tinkley as honey often smells. It is definitely classy after all, they do call it English honey. The oud begins and remains in the background and it, too, is neither feral nor raspy. As for the rose, I don't smell it and that doesn't bother me at all, because I've smelled more than enough rose-oud fragrances in the past several years. The amber, musk and laudanum that are listed in the base are definitely present, but not very stand-outish from the oud / vanilla… the composition of the base makes the scent rather linear.
I find this a quite pleasant and distinguished fragrance. The problem I have with Honey Oud is that, on my skin, it has quite limited duration as a sillage maker it lasts for only two or three hours; after that, its skin-scent stage lasts a couple hours more.
I find this oud fragrance very clean, enjoyable, and, surprisingly original (there have been so very many oud fragrances of late, so points for its uniqueness). What it lacks in breadth and depth, it makes up for in clarity, freshness, sweetness, directness, and even an interesting creativity. I was even planning on buying it until I saw the price… Nahh-aah!
I find this a quite pleasant and distinguished fragrance. The problem I have with Honey Oud is that, on my skin, it has quite limited duration as a sillage maker it lasts for only two or three hours; after that, its skin-scent stage lasts a couple hours more.
I find this oud fragrance very clean, enjoyable, and, surprisingly original (there have been so very many oud fragrances of late, so points for its uniqueness). What it lacks in breadth and depth, it makes up for in clarity, freshness, sweetness, directness, and even an interesting creativity. I was even planning on buying it until I saw the price… Nahh-aah!
I love this fragrance. It has good longevity without being cloying or overpowering. The honey is intense, with a softer finish from the oud. Just beautiful.
After much anticipation on my part wondering what an uber trad English house like Floris would do with oud, the opening of Honey Oud was underwhelming. It seemed a bit of a wallflower, too polite by half. The honey note resembled the clear delicate stuff that has a lightly floral bouquet but omits completely the animalic buzz.
But as the perfume began to bloom, I became more favourably inclined. While Honey Oud remains polite, it slowly begins to reveal the quality of its materials. That honey turns silky smooth with just a hint of vanilla in its depths, similarly there's a non-showy but ever so slightly boozy rose that merges seamlessly with the other sweet notes. The oud here is a caress and a whisper; the old trick of fortifying it with patchouli is used but the effect remains restrained and mysterious.
Honey Oud is a perfume of quiet distinction rather than the thrust and daring normally associated with oud. It may have seemed subdued to begin with, but its projection was fine once it warmed up.
But as the perfume began to bloom, I became more favourably inclined. While Honey Oud remains polite, it slowly begins to reveal the quality of its materials. That honey turns silky smooth with just a hint of vanilla in its depths, similarly there's a non-showy but ever so slightly boozy rose that merges seamlessly with the other sweet notes. The oud here is a caress and a whisper; the old trick of fortifying it with patchouli is used but the effect remains restrained and mysterious.
Honey Oud is a perfume of quiet distinction rather than the thrust and daring normally associated with oud. It may have seemed subdued to begin with, but its projection was fine once it warmed up.
Not being an Oud connoisseur nor a Floris disciple I may be under-qualified to proffer an opinion - however my critique may be taken as a kid's in an art gallery: I know what I like!
On the face of things there is a bit of a clash here between traditional English gentleman's brand and the usually uncompromising oud more common to equally uncompromising Arab houses. This clash however, yields happy results.
First up is oud and rose in equal measure - singing together in loud harmony. Rose Oud probably would have been a better name if that weren't already a perfume double act to match Laurel and Hardy. Anyway the oud gives pure presence, combining with the dark rose to give an oily texture that clings to the skin like a luxury scented bath oil. The honey here offers a natural sweetness to the floral accord whilst patchoulli does veer toward a powdered feel.
All this is going on in the background but the rose dominates all early stages, the oud maintaining a masculine edge. This can be plainly categorised as a floral scent, ideal for a modern English-dandy, happy to exhibit and celebrate his own sense of fashion and unique appearance. The oud is well-buffed with no stank. Here I believe Floris successfully combine [what I imagine to be] a house-style whilst brining in new ingredients and keeping up with modern trends.
The dry down is to a decent dark rosey-wood - imagining a highly buffed, French-polished mahogany or rose-wood antique. With such floral dominance you probably wouldn't want massive projection or silage, and this is indeed polite, with seemingly good longevity.Overall, a must try for a dandy looking for a rose-oud for special occasions demanding a floral edge. It may not be so exciting for some oud afficionados well versed in the myriad rose-oud double acts.
70/100
On the face of things there is a bit of a clash here between traditional English gentleman's brand and the usually uncompromising oud more common to equally uncompromising Arab houses. This clash however, yields happy results.
First up is oud and rose in equal measure - singing together in loud harmony. Rose Oud probably would have been a better name if that weren't already a perfume double act to match Laurel and Hardy. Anyway the oud gives pure presence, combining with the dark rose to give an oily texture that clings to the skin like a luxury scented bath oil. The honey here offers a natural sweetness to the floral accord whilst patchoulli does veer toward a powdered feel.
All this is going on in the background but the rose dominates all early stages, the oud maintaining a masculine edge. This can be plainly categorised as a floral scent, ideal for a modern English-dandy, happy to exhibit and celebrate his own sense of fashion and unique appearance. The oud is well-buffed with no stank. Here I believe Floris successfully combine [what I imagine to be] a house-style whilst brining in new ingredients and keeping up with modern trends.
The dry down is to a decent dark rosey-wood - imagining a highly buffed, French-polished mahogany or rose-wood antique. With such floral dominance you probably wouldn't want massive projection or silage, and this is indeed polite, with seemingly good longevity.Overall, a must try for a dandy looking for a rose-oud for special occasions demanding a floral edge. It may not be so exciting for some oud afficionados well versed in the myriad rose-oud double acts.
70/100
Maybe it was hyped just a bit too much in my head after reading the numerous positive reviews for this scent on another website.
Also, according to other reviews I've read the honey seems get noticed a bit more than the oud note. All I'm getting is oud with a sweet type undertone that to me just does not conjure the image of honey.
It seems okay but just doesn't impress me. It seems to project well and after about three hours seems like it isn't fading away any time soon.
I don't get any rose either, this is my second wearing and I really applied quite a bit this time.
On to the next oud scent..............
Also, according to other reviews I've read the honey seems get noticed a bit more than the oud note. All I'm getting is oud with a sweet type undertone that to me just does not conjure the image of honey.
It seems okay but just doesn't impress me. It seems to project well and after about three hours seems like it isn't fading away any time soon.
I don't get any rose either, this is my second wearing and I really applied quite a bit this time.
On to the next oud scent..............