FRAGRANCE | Kalemat EDP by Arabian Oud: Sweet with a beautifully nuanced character

halfwhiteboy - Kalemat EDP by Arabian Oud 01

The bottle's amberish color perhaps says it all. Kalemat EDP by Arabian Oud is a rich, syrupy blend of amber and honey, just as depicted by the bottle. Or maybe it's just me. Either way, the bottle is nice and heavy, covered by embossed inscriptions all over. My only gripe is that the cap doesn't fit snugly.

The sweetness is intoxicating, verging on being too sweet but is perfectly reined in at the very right moment, just before it falls over into cloying territory. For a second I was reminded of how I felt about the sweetness of Porto Bello Parfum by Le Couvent des Minimes, which also cleverly stops itself short of being sickening. I get a wee bit of spice in the beginning, albeit fleeting, followed by a faint smokiness buried deep in the scent. It's easy to miss but I guess it was never the intention to make it as prominent. Instead I think it provides subtle counterbalancing facets to the pervading sweetness.

When I first sprayed it I thought, okay, it's not that strong after all, so I indulged myself with a few extra half-sprays. But several minutes in and the scent started getting stronger, as if it were some diesel-powered engine gaining momentum after warming up. I was worried there for a moment but thankfully I didn't over-indulge with those extra spritzes. So word of caution with this one.

It's easy to dismiss this fragrance as simply a saccharine cocktail but Kalemat takes on a really subtle route in its development. Apart from the faint spiciness and smokiness I mentioned earlier, it teeters on boozy at some point although it never really commits to it. I also get a little sourness, which adds an uncanny dimension to the sweetness. I even thought I'd smelled oud in there somewhere but I checked and it's not listed.

Overall, Kalemat is easy to love. At face it may seem like just another sweet fragrance but it harbors quite a few surprises in there. It projects really well and lasts long on my skin. Well worth a try.

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