Koh-i-Nur

Why did we name this Koh-I-Nur?  Well to know this, you need to know some history.  If you aren’t already aware, the Koh-i-Nur is a diamond that was originally part of the Mughal Emperor’s “Peacock Throne” and taken as war booty by Shah Nader Shah of the Afsharid dynasty of Persia when he invaded Delhi, the Mughal capital in the 1740s.  The diamond held huge symbolic importance and changed hands until in 1849, it was handed to Queen Victoria after being taken from the 11-year-old Maharaja Duleep Singh, who ruled the Sikh Empire under a Regent. Today, the Koh-i-Nur is the central diamond in the Crown of Queen Elizabeth II and part of the Crown Jewels of the British Royal Family displayed in the Tower of London. 

Given the prestigious history and its symbol of the opulence and wealth of India. you'll realize why we named this oud as soon as you take a swipe from the bottle or a sniff from the bottle top. Why?  Because what you'll smell is beyond legendary and I've smelled many the legends over the years. And I normally use the epithet legends to describe vintage ouds of the highest quality and historical reputation, that serve to benchmark claimants to the same grade. 

Well, the Koh-i-Nur serves as a benchmark by itself and wipes the floor with any Hindi I've ever smelled. Now there are two types of Hindis - there's the traditional barnyard Hindis, and then you've got your new style zero-soak distillations.  But this transcends style. Not in terms of scent profile. It is a zero-soak Hindi. But in terms of sheer quality. It doesn't matter whether this is a soaked barnyard distillation or not.

This is liquid elixir in oud form and exudes sheer quality in a way that I don't ever remember experiencing from any other Hindi I have ever smelled. I've never come across a sinking grade Hindi oil before. I've heard a couple of very dubious claims previously that don’t stack up when you smell them. You get used to hearing all sorts of claims in this industry, when you've been around for a while, so when the real deal appears, it is natural to question.  Take it from me, this is the real deal. 

This was made from sinking grade shavings that were collected by our trusted distiller over the years and because of our relationship, he decided to, part with this oil which is a testament to the kind of relationship we cultivate with our partners, being there for them, not just for business, but as friends and human beings when they may encounter personal difficulties.  We care about the about them, about their families and about their welfare as these are people are like family to us.  Our partner was very kind enough to part with this oil for us. We didn't even ask for it or solicit it in any way. He just mentioned it to us and said, this is your oil and left us gobsmacked, but incredibly grateful.

Contrary to the empty and baseless idea peddled by some that vendors are only worth buying from if they make their own oils, this approach cuts out the communities where agarwood comes from.  We do both.  We make our own oils and we work with partners who we have known since 2016 because we have a loyalty to the communities where this comes from.

For me, the hallmark of sinking grade ooze is that they tend to be very tenacious, long lasting, with great projection.  And the Koh-i-Nur is no exception to the rule. They also tend to have something about them in terms of another olfactory dimension. Whereas their incense grade or partly sinking grade, counterparts might not quite be there in terms of impact, for example Laal Jinko - one of our greatest, incense grade, partial-sinking, Hindi oilsThe Koh-i-Nur opens with wave after wave of different smells crashing down evoking different images of what's unfolding in front of your nose. It has a very warm and fuzzy new age opening, giving off all sorts of smells of spices akin to a Michelin dish prepared by a 3-Star Indian chef with a hint of cinnamon.

The only time I have seen sinking grade Hindi wood on sale was back in 2018 when a vendor on Ouddict listed some for just under $500 per gram. That's half the price of Kyara. And for that reason, while we have more than 4 grams or 5 grams of this oil, we'll only be limiting sales for now to 4 x 1g vials for the Eid2Eid sale. This really should not be discounted given what it is. 

1g High-Recovery Vial available to purchase.