Sylhet Sultani 80

Sylhet Sultani 80 is a rare Artisanal Grade oud oil, distilled from the very same batch of agarwood that supplied the recently released Oud Zarian by Creed. Long before that fragrance reached the shelves, Al Hashimi had already secured this precious batch through our longstanding and unrivalled networks in Bangladesh, relationships built since 2019 when we first began offering the highest grades of Sylheti oud to our collectors.

Our access to this material was no coincidence. Few outside the region truly appreciate the history, complexity and importance of Sylhet’s agarwood. In 2023, we published a detailed blog entry outlining Sylhet’s role within the wider agarwood trade, complete with a British Raj era map showing how Sylhet was once considered part of Assam. This shared heritage has created both confusion and opportunity, with many Sylheti oud oils smuggled into India and sold as Assamese oud, often at higher prices due to the prestige associated with that name.

Today, finding untouched agarwood trees in Sylhet is almost unheard of. With Assam’s natural agarwood stock now effectively exhausted, genuine Sylheti oud of this calibre has become exceptionally rare and virtually impossible to reproduce.

As a specialist artisanal oud house, Al Hashimi also wishes to clarify a common misconception about the oil used in Oud Zarian. It has been described as an “80 year aged oud,” which is technically inaccurate. In truth, the oil is distilled from trees approximately 80 years old, but the infection that creates the resin typically matures over a decade or less before distillation. The oil itself is therefore new, although drawn from venerable trees of exceptional age and quality.

The oil, Sylhet Sultani 80, is dark, resinous and deeply refined. It opens with the coffee note that is the unmistakable signature of Sylhet sourced artisanal oud oils, before unfolding into a soft barn accord that is earthy yet elegant, and finally settling into a mahogany like woody drydown that exudes quiet strength and grace.

This is the first Sylheti artisanal oud oil ever released under our top tier Private Collectors Grade, and quantities are extremely limited. We were in two minds about releasing it at this time, but have chosen to do so as part of our Encore Offer, as a gesture of gratitude to our long standing and loyal patrons who have supported Al Hashimi since its inception.

Lastly, while Kinana is not a new release but rather our newest brand, it will soon unveil a world first creation in perfumery that is closely tied to the cultural and olfactory legacy of Sylhet, a fitting continuation of the story begun here with Sylhet Sultani 80.