Inle

Tasting blind, the opening gave me a nice bright acidic citrus with a musky body that feels friendly. Sometimes getting whiffs of grapefruit or pineapple but neither is obvious or overtly characteristic. Feels summery, happy, and optimistic which I prefer maybe over a salty ocean. As it dries floral elements come to the surface, and at times (briefly) I consider it to feminine for me (more about that) but it does warm up and for most of the day I get a rather comfortable happy musky feeling that feels like a breezy summer away from the ocean. So looking at the notes now, this feels like perfumery. It's a mix in which something other than its parts emerge. Some notes might feel a bit more prominent, but nothing really dominates. I'm not sure I agree with this being very feminine. Yes, there are some feminine leaning floral tones that come and go within the first hour, but the friendly musky vibe for most of the day feels more unisex. This is the problem with perception vs. blind testing and I feel a little alone liking this for what I experience over what others may feel it ought to be. In the gradient of femininity this is suggestively feminine, meaning its only feminine if you suggest that it is. Guy in a white suit, you'll be fine. You too flip flop, Hawaiian shirt guy. Guy with the shirt unbuttoned with a gold medallion hanging down to his navel? No! Please don't. I always find the price point of this house a bit high, but in this case the time and longevity are a bit more palatable.

Classic - this is a white floral with bergamot, green tea, osmanthus, artemesia, jasmine, Star anise, iris, green leaves, mint, and a soft watery white musk. While it can be worn year round, I find it works best in spring and summer as it's a "happy and fresh" scent. Warm, but not unbearably hot temperatures suit it best. Warm nights will work, too. Where it's unique is the light hint of spice and mint. All the notes work to accent the osmanthus, including the jasmine. Imagine a cup of osmanthus tea, warm or iced, on a sunny spring afternoon, or duing a light rain shower in late May. For me, the sillage is soft to moderate. It won't knock down those in the same room, yet it lasts around 5 to 6 hours to those standing close. I don't need more than one or two sprays. The price is moderate if found outside of the Memo store. While some similar scents exist, they all miss one or two of the main notes, usually the anise or the artemesia, and the classier dry down. Many modern citrus tea scents have an artificial Febreze-like citrus, but not this. Inlé floats but never dominates. Since it has been around since 2007, you may find it at some fine fragrance discounters. The musk is softer in Inlé. I find this sophisticated enough for weddings and afternoon tea, but not stuffy at all as it will work for a brunch or a birthday!

Shimmering, beautiful, very upmarket, and good enough to win over even a floral sceptic like myself. It is fundamentally all about osmanthus (stunningly natural and organic-seeming osmanthus), so steer clear if you know that's iffy for you. But the inflection around the edges, with crystal-clear, refreshing, sparkling bergamot is a tremendous partnership, deepening the sense of calm and reflection, with the odd ripple of real nature running through the reverie. Best of all is the initial green tea note, which is honestly breathtakingly good and true to life ... even if it's more evanescent than I would like in an ideal world, and is the first chord in the opening to die away to nothing. My quest for the perfect tea scent continues, but this gets a long way closer to it than almost anything else I've ever tried - "a cloud of tea" is just the right image for what happens during the first 10minutes or so - a real billowing, unfurling burst of genuine green-tea aromatics. The jasmine kicks in later, and is a greenish, waxy, un-sickly, sophisticated sort which also shades in beautifully.

This opens with very strong white floral scent with some green notes in the background. This is driven primarily by the osmanthus and the jasmine. I didn't detect any mint or bergamot directly but that could have been some of the "Green" that I smelled along with the artemisia. No strong or distinct "tea" like smell. Just the faint green with white floral. This probably turns most guys off from wearing it especially if smelled on strip. About an hour in though the cedar and musk become far more dominant and the floral fades to the background. The dry down is distinctly more masculine but you have to hang in through the white floral and green to get there.

mmmm. this immediately reminded me of good girl gone bad from killian (i have the eau fraiche version but i've smelled the original too). they are not the same, i think i am just starting to really recognize the osmanthus note which is prominent in both. in both perfumes the osmanthus provides this refreshing, iced tea kind of note that feels like it's "quenching" my thirst. and of course that peachy apricot undertone. not a very ripe peach that you're biting into but the smell of cutting open a more firm peach and smelling it in the air. i prefer that over the syrupy sweetness you can get from synthetic peach notes in perfume.