Xerjoff Alexandria II

Xerjoff Alexandria II is a spiced woody oud, a Parfum launched in 2012 in Xerjoff's Oud Stars collection. Palisander rosewood, lavender and cinnamon open it with a touch of apple, aromatic and warmly spiced rather than fresh, and rose, cedar and lily-of-the-valley round the spice into something softer and slightly powdery in the heart. Oud, sandalwood, amber, vanilla and musk make up a woody, resinous, sweet dry-down. Its strongest accord on Fragrantica is woody, followed by amber and powdery.

Alexandria II is a Parfum, more concentrated than an Eau de Parfum, and its base of oud, sandalwood, amber and vanilla does the lasting: these woods and resinous materials hold on skin and clothes long after the lavender, cinnamon and apple have faded. It opens aromatic and spicy, then settles into a sweet, woody oud trail for the rest of the wear. One or two sprays are enough. Skin, application and weather all change wear time and projection, and a decant lets you test Alexandria II over several wears.

Fragrantica voters rank winter first with autumn close behind, then spring, with summer far behind, and choose night more than twice as often as day. It suits cold days, evenings, dinners and occasions; in summer heat the spice and oud can feel heavy.

Fragnatium lists Alexandria II under Unisex, and Fragrantica lists it for women and men; Xerjoff does not market it to one gender. Lavender, cinnamon, cedar and oud give it a classic masculine backbone, while rose, lily-of-the-valley, vanilla and its powdery softness pull it the other way, so it sits comfortably between the two. It is worn by men and women who like a rich, sweet oud for cold evenings.

Yes. Fragnatium fills Xerjoff Alexandria II decants from an original fragrance bottle purchased from a fragrance retailer. The liquid is transferred into a smaller, labelled atomiser; it is not an imitation or a manufacturer-packaged miniature.

A decant is a measured portion of the original fragrance transferred into a smaller atomiser. Fragnatium offers Xerjoff Alexandria II in 2 ml, 5 ml and 10 ml decants. Choose 2 ml for an initial skin trial, 5 ml for repeat wears, or 10 ml when you already enjoy the scent or want a travel size. You receive the selected decant, not the full-size bottle pictured.