Description
Ume is named after Asian plum called Ume. This species of plum has spread from China to the Far East. It blooms in late winter and announces arrival of spring and therefore in Japan, together with sakura (cherry blossom), ume symbolizes early spring.
Ume is inspired by glamorous 1920’s and modern orientalism, Art Deco, and brings a flowery intoxicating, bright vintage and rich oriental fruity accords. It is inspired by glamorous 1920’s and Art Deco. Also, se Mihime.
The soft fruity opening brings bergamot, yellow mandarin and peach leaf. The floral notes of heart, composed of delicate Japanese wisteria, jasmine and Chinese osmanthus, slide into sharp and airy combination of woods (Hinoki, mahogany, patchouli) and moss. The fragrance was created in 2006.
Ume was launched in 2003.
Unlocuckincop – :
Delicate floral (peachblossom? / non sharp peony) and plum syrup. Florals get more powdery like wisteria or lilac. No spices. Pretty but not really something I’d wear. Does smell somewhat generic / designer fruity floral, wish I got smoke or spices to make it more complex.
dezmond2 – :
i am interested in buying a decant if anyone has any!
Bisnessad – :
Sadly this smells nothing like Japanese ume, which is usually eaten pickled and thus fresh and almost citric in taste, or pickled in alcohol – either way, it’s always a fresh and punchy scent/taste. On me, this turned out to be a very heavy, floral to oriental scent that reminds me of my great-grandmother, definitely and “old lady” scent (I’m in my early 30s, for reference), sickly heavy. Luckily it doesn’t last too long, maybe 3-4 hrs.
dmitya – :
a beautiful ripe sweet juicy plum, slightly acidic, powder with just a hint of spice. Such a wonderful scent on my skin!
калян – :
Hyper-femme, sensual floriental for an international woman of mystery. Grown and sexy plum (not juicy or tangy) with a great big bouquet of florals, grounded by woods and slightly smoky incense, with base notes overtaking the fruit and flowers at about three hours. I don’t detect patchouli. Sounds like a lot going on, but it’s blended beautifully.
Feels like a department store perfume in the best way, which I think is true of many of Mecheri’s. Perhaps I’ve gotten so used to “unisexy” niche perfumes that the sweetness of her creations can be almost alarming at first sniff. Unlike many department store scents, though, it’s not a caramel or cotton candy sweet – all sugars feel like a natural byproduct of the notes rather than added corn syrup.
For me, the sweet/smoky combo makes this strictly a nighttime scent. Suitable for all seasons. Sillage is moderate, longevity around 6 hours.
Karandal – :
Plummy, but terribly sweet.
It’s like angel with prunes. Dry, sweet, sharp…
Not that bad, but not that good either. And not worth the price, you can easily find better plum perfumes among the manstream perfumes, even among the very cheap ones.
biv6210 – :
Beautiful!!!. Elegant and sophisticated. It opens with a unique freshness and gentle. It is a complex perfume,delicate and dreamy. The plum here is the foundation,and dominates in all its brilliance. Sweet parfum, not too intrusive but that leaves its mark.. has a trail very deep and very distinguished. I would love for the days of autumn, with a gust of wind and a light rain…. This is a little melancholy and sweet/floral/chypre. Masterpiece from Keiko Mecheri, I love it. ❤
Sillage: 7.5/10
Longevity: 8.5/10
Scent: 9/10
Overall: 9.5/10
Vasylechko23 – :
Smells predominantly of plum. The plum is not obscured by heavy vanilla, woods, other fruits, or florals. It is front and center so if you’re looking for a plum fragrance I’d direct you to Ume. That’s not to say there are no other notes, it’s just not a Victoria’s Secret or Escada fruit punch overload kind of scent. While this scent has a bit of sweetness this is a definitively womanly perfume. I also smell woods, a high pitched jasmine, osmanthus, and refined warm spice. During the dry down it gets kind of balmy.
Ume, although reserved in projection, is a very seductive and sensual perfume. Dark and vampy even. It to me seems more suitable for night time wear and special occasions but because it’s not a strong scent it wouldn’t be disagreeable as a cold weather daytime scent either.
Zzz1980 – :
This, sadly, did not work with my chemistry at all. I got a juicy, vibrant plum from the bottle, but on my skin it turned into a very generic, powdery, vaguely floral scent, and stayed there – it did not evolve into anything different. Oh, well.
Update: I came back to this a few times, and I found that the plum comes out better when the weather (or my skin) is warmer. The floral notes I smelt on my first try also differentiate; I get camelia, wisteria and osmanthus (rather than a generic floral) mixed with spices and patchouli, and there’s a solid backbone of mahogany there as well. I have an abnormally low body temperature due to medical issues, so rather than my body chemistry, it might be my body temperature that is to blame. I didn’t immediately think of it because it has rarely been an influence in the way perfumes unfold on my skin, but it seems so obvious now that it has occurred to me. It’s not quite what I had hoped it would be yet, but I finally understand why so many people are raving about this perfume. I will try this again in late spring and I will update my review accordingly.
Soldat_80 – :
Sweet, soft and powdery toned, fruity floral with a warm, full, spiciness to it. I hope it wears as good as it smells!
kiss my staff – :
Ume was suggested to me by Ms. Mecheri herself in a shop, after Attar de Roses, because I asked her for something with a distinct Japanese vibe like cherry blossom.
No cherry here but a beautiful, juicy, ripe plum with the typical Japanese plum liquor smell. It smells slightly boozy in the beginning then it becomes a wonderful gourmand, so different from all mainstream gourmand that kill my nerves.
The plum here is not exactly the same plum as in the West. Ume (Umeboshi) is a special kind of Japanese fruit tree.
It is pleasantly acidic, fresh and warm at the same time.
Beautiful garden of fruit trees, the result of this complicated scent is somehow simple in a positive way.
Average sillage, longlasting on skin.
Shcokk – :
I yet again encounter the same old problem I have with perfumes by Keiko Mecheri – they DO NOT last, of course one might think that it counts as “long lasting” if you have to rub your nose against your wrist after the first 3 hours to get some scent, but it does not count for me.
I am rather angry as I find “UME” to be a marvelous perfume – it’s juicy plum + sweet, sweet osmanthus toned down by woody/fresh vibes of moss and hinoki wood. A real masterpiece, when it dries down it goes to a beautiful, feminine powdery/sweet fruity perfume, very natural smelling and smile inducing.
But I will NOT pay 145 EUR for something that lasts barely 4 hours.
Ryjkoff – :
The beginning of Ume is brilliant and evocative. It captures that deliciously sour tang that accompanies the feeling of your teeth bursting and snapping through the deep purple skin of a juicy plum.
The sweetness begins to emerge, sending the tartness into the background. After about a half hour, Ume just smells like classic pink bubblegum mixed with osmanthus.
With my chemistry, osmanthus has a tendency to bully all the other notes out of existence. Too bad, as I was head-over-heels for the first half hour of Ume.
kosta_kgb – :
This is a beautiful and heavenly perfume which has been lovingly created by the very respected house of Mecheri.
Plum is one of my favourite notes and this fragrance opens with that lovely sweet smell of plum which makes you want to deeply inhale it at every occasion!
This is not a rotten and fermenting plum that one gets in some fumes, but a beautiful and divine aroma that pleases the olfactory senses in a way that makes you want to skip and dance.
I simply adore this scent and would pay anything for it as it’s worth every penny. The notes are so well blended together and there is nothing synthetic or artificial.
I find that this is fairly linear and what you smell initially is what you get 6/7 hours later.
Gorgeous, beautiful, fruity and addictive frag.
Fabulosity: a fruit and flower market at the start of the day, simply exquisite!
Michman – :
Ume smells like sweet peach juice with a whisper of osmanthus. There is a dash of nondescript spice, but the spice is so vague that it’s virtually undetectable. I don’t get much earthiness–no patchouli, oakmoss, or woods. While peach juice is nice, it’s also unremarkable. It doesn’t develop on my skin, just fades away little by little, as tends to be the case with most fruity perfumes.
I have two bottles of John Varvatos parfum, and Ume smells very similar, but I find John Varvatos to be the better fragrance. It’s richer and more complex. I don’t like John Varvatos EDP as much as the parfum, but considering the inexpensive cost of a bottle of EDP on eBay, I don’t think Ume is worth three times the money.
Kyrixemon – :
UME by Keiko Mecheri
On my skin, Ume is magnificent. It has the distinct air of sensually glamorous far eastern elegance and brings to mind Gion Kobu Maiko and Geiko magnificently attired in full performance kimono, dancing at the Kaburenjo theater at Miyako Odori spring festival.
A resplendently golden fruity opening unfolds with streams of zesty bergamot and sparkling mandarin followed by an entrance of succulently-rich and deep plum. A glorious showering of luxuriantly spicy osmanthus petals then come showering joyously down across everything, covering it all in a nutty-apricot-tea-like velvet haze. A few delicate wisteria blossom strands flutter back and forth through the intoxicating mist, wafting tantalizing nuances of lilacs and cloves. A subtle splash of jasmine petals and freshly gathered patchouli provide an added element of refined sensuality.
The magnificently blended moistly-crisp oakmoss is layed seamlessly atop an impeccably-clean and fresh-woody-cypress astringency which is distinctly of the Japanese hinoki variety, while the deep warmth of mahogany provides a flawlessly rich base. Rather like the sturdily elegant wooden stage boards of the Kaburenjo theater provide the perfect support for the exquisite splendor of the geisha performance above them.
I sense the glittering silk screen byobu backdrop of the Kaburenjo stage, the swishing silks of the ancient style hikizuri kimono, the fluttering long sleeves of the young maiko, the faultless finish of the powdered geisha makeup like early morning sunlight on a white cloud, the jeweled black eyes gazing serenely out above tiny cupid-bowed crimson blood red lips, lacquered raven black hair coiffed elaborately with priceless hand-carved jade and silken floral ornaments nestled firmly within, effortlessly assuming positions of intense yet restrained expressiveness. The crowds immersed …watching in rapture…applauding their favorite performers. The scent of joyful fruity flowers, and silk, and woods, and delicate spices entwined throughout.
All this adoration, and usually I do not like chypre. I just love this one. Like the Gion Kobu geisha, famous for their unwavering and impeccable courtesy and grace, their sensual elegance, and their tremendously refined artistic demeanor…. this one has completely entranced me.
Domo arigato gozaimasu and okini to Keiko Mecheri-san.
gangst85 – :
Ume for me is quite an unusual scent; floral-spicy with a touch of sharp wood. I have not really come across anything like it, so it is hard to compare it to anything else… Except for Keiko Mecheri’s other creation- Osmanthus. Osmanthus is very prominent here, with jasmine and acidic notes create the core of the scent. And then I get- yes, tea. I got a whiff of tea when I was going down the street today, and then again, and then I realised it was Ume indeed that has this tea-like quality. Afternoon blend with jasmine and bergamot (for tea lovers- I recommend, delicious).
It is quite linear, what you get at the start is what you get at the end. It lasts about 2/3 hours on my skin, which is quite good knowing that most fragrances do not last long on me.
I like it very much, but I cannot see myself wearing it.
злойгений – :
This fragrance has the clean lines and beautiful curves of art deco jewelry, glass and architecture. I am a huge Art Deco period fan and this perfume really captures the feel of that era. A bit vintage but modern as well and that was the essence of Art Deco in its time- it was very “modern” and different from the styles of the time while incorporating some of the curves and elegance of L’Art Nouveau, its predecessor.
There was an exhibition in Paris called “Les Arts Decoratifs Moderne” that featured Lalique and other greats of the period-that is where the term ‘Art Deco’ comes from. I can picture a woman in a Poiret coat wearing this perfume at the exhibition taking it all in.
This scent also reminds me of what little I know of Japan, its beautiful art, paintings of plum blossoms and tree branches, simplicity and complexity in the same work of art.
This is a bit sweeter than my normal fragrances but it is balanced nicely and has nice staying power. Would love to have a bottle of this lovely juice.
ttw986InsuffBooni – :
I think I’m not familiar enough with plums! I don’t get them from this. But persimmon! Oh that comes through exquisitely for me. I even liken the spice to that in a perfectly ripe Fuyu. Eating a persimmon always makes me think of kissing, and so smelling it in Ume gives me frissons of sensual pleasure. That heavy-lidded languour of good loving with a new sweetheart. Very melty!
I really appreciate the hinoki that sits quietly behind the flowers and fruit. Many of my husband’s fragrances have hinoki in them in some capacity, so I’m reminded of him when I smell it and that just adds all the more to the sexy feeling I have wearing Ume.
As a tea lover, I purr to the notes of oolong tea (jin xuan, specifically) I detect as the fragrance develops. It has that shimmering, ever-changing and barely graspable quality a good oolong has that can (honestly) get me drunk.
I am crazy for jasmine (who isn’t) and love the way it’s grounded in the heavier or more thick notes, I guess from the fruits.
I could wear this any time, I think, but it really gives me that late fall feeling: frost, dead leaves, early nights and walking through it all to meet your sweetheart; pink-cheeked and wool-scarved.
Marvy.
ilove50C – :
Sharp and crisp at first spray: spices, patchouli and woods at first. It quickly softens and plum, wisteria, osmanthus and camelia shine all the way thru.
The scent is soft musky floral with somewhat alcoholic undertone. Moderate silage. Stays fresh and retains its composition til the end.
lsc694speagoessenda – :
Delicate plum juice, not syrupy, but clear and fresh like the drippings from biting into a sun-ripened, juicy, sweet fruit, complemented with a very subtle, natural sour and bright tang from bergamot.
Osmanthus then weaves it’s magical apricot-like floral warmth–fleshy and appealing.
Spices and patchouli then really give this fragrance some marvellous grounding–subtle and natural with the smoothness of oakmoss. At this point, I can’t help but agree with rednose–it does reminds me of Chanel Coco Mademoiselle, but John Varvatos for Women even more so.
Sparkling, warm, fruity and fleshy, but with a more natural niche feel. Perhaps a little less tenacity, with its wooded powdered plum finish, yet beautiful all the same.
stiv_gerrard – :
Ume is my first ever fragrance test from the house of Keiko Mecheri and I can well relate this fragrance to her mellow and elegant personality.
At first sniff I imagine a woman wearing a floral kimono with a very delicate hairdo,on a fine cool evening is standing on her balcony of the Japanese architecture and the year is the beginning of 1900s when life had a lot of time to relax, to read your favourite book and spend a quiet evening alone. This is the picture which created on my mind with its plummy beginning which is deep, fresh with a little sweetness topped with tartness.
Soon after it settles towards the heart, it becomes powdery, spicy and woody with a generous hand of patchouli..Swoon! The plum hasn’t vanished and it doesn’t till the end which adds edge to the fragrance and, I would say that my imagination of the early 1900s meets the present time when life is so very busy but still one is able to manage a quality time to relax and to spend a quiet evening. So it becomes a smart combination of vintage and modern. The base has been laid so beautifully which has combined wood, patchouli, plum and spices even more than the heart and here it is quite incense like and very balmy. On my skin it is like the smell of earth after the first raindrop in the mountains and the burning incense wafting through the nearby woods..so calm and peaceful .
On the whole, Ume is fruity chipre and a balmy fragrance. Longevity is Very good which is 6 + hours.
leb – :
Bought it on a whim because I fell in love with the sweet, delicious fruitiness of the opening. Sadly after the first ten minutes of pure plum bliss this perfume turns into some cloyng, offensive pachouli nightmare on me. Something that reminds me of overaccessorized old ladies, gilded mirrors, dust and rotten moss.
Too much pachouly, really. It takes away all the simple pleasure of the juicy, unusual plum notes.
For obsessive pachouli lovers only.
(an expecially annoying elderly neighbour from my childhood wore pachouli all the time spoiling this note forever for me). Sigh. So hard to find a good plum fragrance!
grach2009 – :
I must admit I was expecting this to vanish an hour after I applied it – I’ve read so many reviews of Keiko Mecheri’s perfumes which report terrible longevity.
Well I applied this six hours ago since when I’ve worked out on the cross-trainer for an hour and had a shower. The perfume is still there! Granted, there isn’t much projection going on but I’m still pleasantly surprised.
Ume reminds me of something I just can’t put my finger on. It has a lovely warm, woody, spicy base which I can’t get enough of. Those warm woody notes are there right from the start, the perfume doesn’t change very much on my skin, only the plummish fruit notes fade away slightly. I don’t find this too sweet at all, in fact it’s not an adjective that ever crossed my mind. It smells rich, opulent and mysterious. I’d wear this during the day without fear that it would overwhelm anyone, it certainly doesn’t seem to be a sillage monster! Great for evening.
I’d love to be able to write more about this scent but I’m still a novice and finding my way around. Ume has definitely sparked my interest for plum scents and I’m on the lookout for more. Definite thumbs up from me!
apv095speagoessenda – :
Yupz, all I can smell is the plums…very sweet candy fruity. It reminds me of those plum chew candies. I prefer light, understated florals, so this was too sweet for me.
AHAB – :
Keiko Mecheri UME has one of those dangerous fall-in-love-at-the-counter-must-have-this-perfume openings. A gorgeous fruity chypre featuring plum, woods and patchouli. Yum, yum, yum. With a classic chypre texture but a modern chypre scent (no oakmoss or sharp grayness whatsoever), UME is a distant cousin to YVRESSE and DECI DELA. A bit less complex, but still very nice.
I’ve smelled a number of woody plum perfumes of late, and this is one of the best. The fruit is dark and deep and not very sweet, so I think that some guys might like this as well. UME leans toward the gourmand side but stays closer to a rich woody chypre all the way from opening to drydown. A wonderful wintertime scent!
newsome898 – :
I’ve tried quite a few Keiko Mecheri creations and so far have liked all of them. Ume is another good one. The first impression is of plum, spices, woods and patchouli, producing a whole that is almost incense-like. It feels like drinking plum wine or eating salted, preserved plums in a room where good incense is burning. The woody, incense-y notes really appeal to me. As it dries down there’s a point at which the plum becomes more prominent, but later the spicy woody notes take over. It’s not exactly linear, but it’s minor variations on a single theme. There’s lots of sillage and the scent lasts all day.
swornFewCrori – :
agree with everyone here. the first reaction MMMMM I WANT IT!!
its fruity, fresh( slightly minty i would say). makes me think of plum marmalade and mint tea. perfect for everyday use. a little too generic though..just like red nose i sniffed and sniffed trying to think of the scent it reminds me of,my conclusion- many!
mhkdowxxqv – :
First reaction: Mmmmmm love. Second reaction: Hmm this smells familiar. After a while of sniffing and trying to remember, I don’t know why but it reminded me of coco mademoiselle. I still think it is great-although similar-there is something about this that likened me to it more.
This is a straightforward lady who doesn’t let her sweetness reck her seriousness…I hope that gives an image of the perfume :p. I wouldn’t find a problem with wearing this everday.
Padshi – :
I second the Christmas theme here, I can’t pinpoint it, but every year my Mom puts out this vine-type runner around the living room and it smells just like this. Or at least something she’s putting up in the living room smells like this scent.
I got a sample of this becuase it is in the same category as Mitsouko, and I was interested to see how the plum note came across. This isn’t on the same level as Mitsouko (but what is, really) Nevertheless, this is a nice, well rounded fragrance that lasts in the medium range.
**UPDATE** I pulled my sample back out now that the weather is cooling off. And I must say I’m liking this so, so much more now.This one really snaps, there is a wonderful spicy note that comes across, and it is quite sophisticated. Love it!
msi64 – :
Umé is my festive perfume, I use it to celebrate (e.g. Xmas). The plum is very strongly noticable, and the whole fragrance has such a sofisticated and elegant vintage athmosphere. The word Art Deco very well represents it. When wearing it, if I close my eyes, I can see myself in an Agatha Christie story, in a ballroom, wearing a smaragd satin dress, Hercules Poirot is on the party as well, people are chating, drinking champagne, and the music is so smooth. And suddenly an agonized screeming comes from upstairs…….