Shopping in Dubai is quite a different experience to shopping in Manchester. There are possibly hundreds of reasons you might be able to think of, most of them obvious, some of them less so, but one reason that stands out for me is the smell of the malls.

In Manchester, the Arndale either smells like wet dog or fast food, depending on which bit you’re at, and the Trafford Centre doesn’t really smell of anything at all. But Dubai Mall has an exclusive fragrance being pumped through the vents constantly, and it’s that attention to detail that is so often present in Dubai that just makes you want to be there. Everywhere else, it seems, you’re out shopping because you have to be.

So just what is that famous aroma that’s permanently associated with Dubai Mall then? Well, the company are called Scent Air, and they’ve imaginatively named it… Dubai Mall. To be fair, the name is perfect. As is the fragrance. But no, I don’t have that. What I have instead is Yas Perfume’s Gold, and it smells just like it. It basically smells like Dubai Mall in a bottle.

But before I go full throttle into the review of Yas Perfumes Gold…

Perhaps unsurprisingly they do have a store in Dubai Mall, proudly adorned by the slogan ‘The Royal Name of Perfumes’. It’s fitting. I guess in the UAE if you want to have the word Royal attached to your brand, you actually have to be half decent, unlike say, Royal Mail.

Anyway, I own a few of their fragrances now, and every single one of their perfumes, even the ones not to my taste, scream luxury, opulence and regality. It’s the kind of fragrance you imagine Arab royalty might wear. They have an interesting backstory too, an Emirati brand, inspired by the rich legacy of the Bani Yas tribe, who were amongst the earliest inhabitants of the Gulf.

The intention behind the brand is to preserve that rich history, brings a touch of modernity to it and in doing so, give a pleasant tip of the hat to the past, without making it remind you of ancient things. Personally, I think they do this really well. The scents are incredibly luxurious, very Middle Eastern and are surprisingly wearable, even for the Western nose.

Gold was my first fragrance from Yas Perfumes, and I bloody love it. I’ll undoubtedly purchase it over and over, for as long as they keep making it. The bottle is classy, yet understated and the juice has a beautiful golden glow to it that makes it look tastefully expensive.

The official fragrance notes of Gold:

Top notes: Bergamot, Saffron, Pink Pepper, Olibanum (frankincense)

Middle notes: Raspberry, Bulgarian Rose, Jasmine

Base notes: Oudh, Balsam, Vanilla, Cedarwood, Vetiver, Sandalwood

The first time I visited Dubai Mall, the intoxicating aroma entered my nostrils, and my first thought was frankincense. It’s a sharp, fresh hit of frankincense, followed by the unmistakable and classic Arabian aroma of a souk, with all its spices, a touch of bukhoor smokiness in the air and wood from the antiques stalls. You know that smell. I was convinced that they were actually pumping frankincense into the vents, and that the burning of bukhoor at the various perfume kiosks, concessions stands and stores dotted around the mall was all mixing together to form this magical concoction. Only later did I find out about Scent Air, who created the Dubai Mall fragrance that’s actually pumped out of the vents.

But back to Yas Gold, and I’m also hit immediately with that frankincense, possibly elevated a touch by the sharpness of the vetiver. Our sense of smell is a powerful memory bank, and Yas Gold invokes good times: warmth, sunshine, relaxation. But forcing it’s way past the frankincense come the spices, I can never quite put my finger on which spices it is that give that typical souk smell, but it’s likely the pink pepper in this case.

The sweet smokiness of the sandalwood merges into that spiciness. It’s the kind of smoky that feels far away and distant, not overpowering, but just pleasantly there. The backbone of the fragrance is the combination of woody notes which give Yas Gold its warm, comforting aroma, fit for the cold of the British winter.

It’s a wonderfully complex fragrance, with so much going on, it almost feels like it smells just a little different every time you wear it. That complexity also makes it versatile. It’s the kind of perfume that teleports you to another place, but that place might change from spray to spray. One day, it might take you to Dubai Mall, the next day it might take you to a souk, another day still and it might take you to another time altogether: a grand central library in Europe, hidden away in a secret gathering room with hardwood furniture, velvet lined chairs, smoke-filled air, plenty of old books on the shelves. Let it take you wherever it wants you to go.

One last thing to add on Yas Perfume Gold - it’s not actually a heavy, intense fragrance. It’s strong, and powerful for sure, but it’s not overbearing or obnoxious. It has a lot of strong, complex notes, but they’re blended together delicately, making it pleasantly and easily wearable.

Yas Perfumes’ website gives you remarkable detail on the longevity and sillage of their fragrances. Yas Gold, they say, will last 16 hours with a sillage of 5.8 meters. Very precise, and fascinating to think it’s someone’s job to measure that with such precision.

I can believe the longevity, that does sound about right. It sticks well to clothes in particular and really does linger around for most of the day.

As for sillage, it’s pretty strong for about an hour or so, but beyond that it seems to fade a little. The true test is to see how it performs on someone else, as we can become a bit noseblind to fragrance as the day wears on. I was able to detect this on the husband as he’d walk past, but it didn’t exactly fill the room. The only downside really, but there are few fragrances that can genuinely fill a room anyway.

If you really want to fill a room, I’ve learned that you need to smoke out your clothes with bukhoor, and to spray your perfumes on whilst being smoked. It helps the fragrance stick to your clothes, and will make it travel further. I’ve found that using this technique, you get much better sillage with Yas Perfumes Gold.

Each of the fragrances by Yas Perfumes that I own, at least, very much have an identity of their own, all of which maintain that luxurious and regal feel:

The ones I own, and would recommend:

Al Gharam

Arab

Jazzab

Luban Malaki

Musk Yas

Oud Yas

Yas Al Malaki

I don’t own any of their oils, body mists or bukhoor though.

Gold comes in a 100ml bottle and costs around £119.

It can either be purchased in store at Dubai Mall or across the Gulf countries, and it can also be purchased on their website. I was informed by staff that they offer international shipping but the website appears to suggest otherwise.