Fragrance Notes
L'Eau d'Issey Homme
Three materials is all L'Eau d'Issey Homme Eau de Toilette, from Issey Miyake, is working with, and the composition is sharper for it. Yuzu is the opening and the signature. It is a Japanese citrus, bitter and aromatic, with a floral edge that no ordinary table fruit manages, and it gives the first ten minutes a cold brightness that is genuinely distinctive. Most men's fragrances open on something far more obvious.
Nutmeg is the turn. It is a dry spice rather than a hot one, slightly sweet and a little dusty, and it warms the citrus without smothering it. The two together are the whole character of the scent, and the balance between them is what people either take to immediately or find too austere. Sandalwood closes it, smooth and quietly rich, giving the last hours a soft quality that keeps the dry down from feeling thin. A short composition, so nothing surprising happens along the way. What it does, it does cleanly.
As an eau de toilette it is moderate on both counts, lasting a handful of hours and staying fairly close after the first. That makes it well suited to work, to warm weather and to anybody who dislikes being announced by their fragrance. It is sold to men and wears easily on anyone. If you have only met the fuller versions of this house, the original idea is here in its plainest form, which is worth seeking out rather than settling for whichever flanker happens to be newest.
A Japanese design company built on experimental garment construction stands behind it, with its head office in Shibuya, Tokyo. The design studio dates from 1970 and the company from 1971, and fragrance has been part of the business since 1992.
Please note: images are a guide only. Packaging and bottle design may occasionally differ from those shown due to manufacturer updates or promotions.
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