Free Formula: Oud Chypre

This is the formula for a fragrance I make for my own use. It is full of ingredients that are outright banned from commercial use and quantities of luxury materials that are simply beyond the pocket book of most people. I found this at some point in my travels through various perfumery books or websites and, for the life of me, I cannot remember the source! If someone recognizes this please let me know in the comments so I can post an attribution. I am publishing this formula for Roberto who asked for something Oud related.

I have modified this considerably from the original formula in order to add a rich labdanum note and I have increased the incense in the top with the use of Sacred Frankincense essential oil. I’ve also added leather, tobacco, and many other enhancements. To make this a chypre I use a special combination of animalics in the alcohol I dilute the fragrance with so I am also including the dilution formula at the bottom. It is incredibly skanky because the amount of civet is huge, but this fragrance is powerful enough to tolerate it so I do recommend going with the full dose. Out of interest, this gives you roughly the same quantity of civet as was used by Coty in his original Chypre formula, so the dose is not unheard of.

The end result of this scent actually bears a slight resemblance to Roja Dove’s Amber Aoud which is one of the finer oud based fragrances on the market at the moment.

Putting It All Together

This will give you a chypre at 38% concentration. If you have tinctures that are different concentrations, just do a switch out with those and modify the amount of alcohol you use. You can prepare the alcohol in advance of making the formula above by adding the animalics and letting it rest for a while. The civet is extremely strong, but if you have a really good tincture of tonkin deer musk (banned) you will find the balance is quite pleasant – especially with the ambergris to make everything meld. I’d be tempted to wear it as a fragrance on its own though it would probably frighten some people!

Because of the luxury-level of this perfume, I use pure food-grade alcohol (like the French in days gone by) which costs considerably more due to the lack of denaturants unless you are licensed to buy drinking alcohol without tax. This entire fragrance needs a LOT of time to develop.