Description
Series 3 Incense was launched in 2002 and was devoted to the five main spiritual teachings of the humanity:
Avignon – Catholicism
Ouarzazate – Islam
Zagorsk – Orthodox Christianity
Jaisalmer – Hinduism
Kyoto – Buddhism and Shintoism
Each of the fragrances is named after the cities significant for those teachings.
Kyoto is Buddhism and Shintoism, a fragrance for meditation, named after the city of Kyoto, considered to be the heart of Japan. Kyoto is calm and wise, it takes us through the temples of the city, making us think and reconcile. The eternal green aromatic cypress mixes with calm and powerful elegance of cedar; vetiver invites us to listen to the breathing of black and warm earth. Powerful, yet not rough, Kyoto can also be found in a form of fragrant candle for the house.
The main notes are: incense, cypress oil, coffee, teak wood, patchouli, amber, cedar and immortal flower.
The nose behind this fragrance is Bertrand Duchaufour.
bogun1963 – :
I was saying to my sales associate that the CdG fragrances cater to their clothing line, and its wearers- that is to say pretentious… hipsters. Not always a bad thing.
Then I sniffed this. Wow. Truly beautiful, authentic. Fascinating. I’ve never been to Kyoto, but I assume the brand know a thing or two about their land.
This is, at least, a very fun and enjoyable take on incense. A series addition that seems to be focusing more on green notes and pine notes than the presumed incense. Very lovely. A bit of cedar… lots of fir. Wonderful!
SalkopyanPP – :
What can I say, for years I’ve been missing and hunting for Mary McFadden perfume. I read an article suggesting that this perfume was very similar…
OH NO!!!! Not anything like it at all, first and foremost it misses all the lovely floral notes.
With that off my chest, this perfume is not for me. Too woodsy, and dry. It does not make me think of temples in Asia, rather a very poor copy of something a man might purchase, but this one came from the drugstore or the supermarket.
I wanted to like this perfume, but, I just don’t. It just seems too masculine a scent. But, I wouldn’t even want to smell it on my man.
ffgrdhrfsfg – :
This may be the nicest in the incense series. It’s a fresh and bright incense, the Cypress note is different from most Cypress, I guess it’s the Hinoki wood that’s very aromatic.
This is similar to B Duchaufour’s Timbuktu frag, a brighter softer incense.
misha2484 – :
Wow, this is so good. Very light, airy. Incense is present but doesn’t overpower the other notes, and it is not church incense by the way (obviously, this has nothing to do with christianity). To be honest I can’t discern the other notes very clearly, but they are green, woody and fresh, though not bitter at all.
Performance is not great, it is a light skin scent that lasts only few hours, but I’d still recommend it if you love incense and/or woods.
despirado33 – :
This is a beautiful light cedar, cypress and Vetiver combo with a smokiness that is light and gives it an airy incense vibe. I think many commenting below have no real experience with insence and therefore have unrealistic expectations. Incense comes in many scents itself, just have a look at the insence the monks from Mt Athos produce. All incense is not going to smell like a Catholic Church, nor is it exclusive to a church.
This is a nice quiet fragrance for relaxing at home, or even as a light office scent. It’s very tranquil. Beautiful creation.
rnp772JeomiWogkig – :
The Assassin by Hsiao-Hsien Hou 2015
madfany – :
zesty_calco below has it right on. Woody, but I get hints of stick incense. Interestingly enough, this reminds me a lot of the Nobu in Ceasars Palace in Vegas. I bet they pump in a very similar scent.
a1ena1981 – :
Soapy incense. A pale, minimalist notion of incense. Very transparent, even for Duchaufour – despite pouring this all over myself this is basically a short-lived skinscent – but the fragrance itself is coolly earthy and a bit soapy. What’s funny to me is that this doesn’t smell like Japan to me. It doesn’t remind of things I smelled in Japan (except maybe a Japanese bath due to the soap note); for that, I’d recommend ELdO’s Fat Electrician, which opens with grassy tatami and ends with the distinctive smell of a Japanese bookstore; or CdG’s own wood based Sugi or Hinoki. Kyoto does, however, capture the *feel* of Japan; the quiet, meditative, Zen Japan of imagination. Tranquil and restrained.
Linginhaddy – :
Harmless clean soapy very short-lived incense.
llatoevace – :
اون بوی وتیورانک نواغ رودرابتداکمی بوی چوبی عجیب که به ترشی میزنه وفکرکنم ازهمین تیک ووده همراهی میکنه وبعدازچنددقیقه رایحه دود وخیلی کم صمغی چرب ونیمه شیرین بهش اضافه میشه ولی وتیورهمچنان هست.بادیدن نام عطار این ونوتهایی که اینجابعنوان رایحه غالب رأی آورده خیلی مشتاق تستش بودم ولی نبوداون چیزی که تصورکرده بودم.بوی باکیفیت ،ماندگاری خوب،پخش مناسب،بوی تکراری ومأیوس کننده6/10
این امتیاز رو هم فقط به عشق دوشافودادم
vladesz – :
Incense, dry woods and maybe some coffee to smooth it out. To my nose this is more of a woody fragrance than an incense. The incense smell in Kyoto has a wood smoke vibe rather than a Nag Champa or Catholic church incense. I can smell the cedar, cypress and vetiver. It does have a peaceful meditative effect. Reminds me of Kenzo Tokyo in many ways but higher quality.
Sillage and projection feel a little weak. Lasted for four hours on my skin before becoming soft. Unisex, more mature and for cooler weather. Kyoto feels a little more versatile because it’s a woody fragrance. Appropriate for everything except date night as I don’t find it sexy. Maybe it’s because I was raised Catholic but I prefer Avignon to Kyoto. For the price I expect this to perform a little better. Still, a nice scent.
Кооостя – :
I need more of this! I want to bathe in it! It does feel calming, but I’m not sure it lasts very long. I wish it was a little stronger.
Smells like a temple packed with pencils, sexy pencils.
hayotorg – :
The whole series is a must have for incense lovers. This one is peaceful and meditative with notes of amber, cedar and florals mixed in. It is a sweet lingering incense with excellent projection and moderate sillage.
denkon – :
I think some batches are more straight up cypress because sometimes I love it and reminds me of Japanese incense, but sometimes it smells almost boring… That’s why I haven’t bought one :/
yip_007 – :
I tried this on today whilst out shopping with my fume buddy and though I grew up going to catholic masses at least weekly, this is not the incense from the churches I frequented! My friend said it reminded him of south east asian temple incense and that made much more sense to me. This is floral, smooth, resinous and woody to my nose, the drydown is warm and enveloping. More meditative than incisive or awakening, a nice wear on a cool winter’s day.
StRiKeR – :
When I purchased Avignon from the incense series, I thought it’s the best one and wouldn’t get any more.
A review perked my interest and got Kyoto.
I like it more than Avignon, growing up Catholic, it feels weird wearing Catholic incense, allthough it’s nice allso.
I like Kyoto best because it’s more woody. The cedar note is the best making a great woody accord with the cypress.
There is a very unique smelling woody note that I never smelled befor, I think it’s the teak wood note, very aromatic and pleasant.
There is a nice soft grassy note maybe the immortelle. It softens some of the coniferous woody sharpness.
So I surely get the incense, but this has more unique aromatic woods than other purely incense frags like Montal’s Full Incense.
This is something in-between Wonderwood and Avignon, with more softness, a toasted bread immortelle note.
If you love woody fragrances and cypress, this a great one.
Rating: 8/10
God bless. John 3:16
kizRetrerejek – :
If there is incense out there that smells like this, I’d love to know what it is called because it’s lovely. Personally, I’ve never smelled incense that resembled Kyoto.
I get cypress, cedar, vetiver and something airy/camphoric on top. I’m not sure what that is. Maybe that’s a smidge of turpentine mixed in there.
I don’t get any coffee at all…zero hints of coffee.
Very similar to Hinoki in composition, but less concentrated, perhaps more versatile, with overall airy feel.
If you like incense fragrances, you might also like Hinoki too. It has a nice, lasting dose of olibanum.
qwant – :
To me, being a Japanese, this fragrance wouldn’t remind me of Kyoto at all – it is more like “Kyoto that Westerner would think of”.
Please don’t misunderstand – the smell itself is really gorgeous, but only a bit too floral. I think this is the reason why I don’t associate the name of Kyoto with this fragrance…..
If you would like to reminisce about your trip to Kyoto (or Japan), why not try CdG’s “Wonderwood” or Diptyque’s “Tam Dao”? These two are much closer to real “incense” smell when you visit old temples. Once again, the smell is really nice – just the name ‘Kyoto’ is misleading.
ale37852170 – :
I read somewher that Kyoto was smilar to Mary McFadden, an almost imposible to find masterpiece. Not even close. All I get from Kyoto is cedar, vetiver and cypress, no incense, on a modern chemical base. Mary McFadden on the other hand is a true perfume that transports me to an inmemmorial hidden temple.
boohymn – :
I lived a number of years in Japan and often return to visit my in-laws. I’m used to going to the family shrine (Shinto) for New Year and other celebrations, as well as occasionally to Buddhist temples. All I can say is that CdG nailed the aroma of the incense sticks, which are usually either purple or forest green in color, used at these sites. Of course, the sticks themselves are composed of many different floral and wood ingredients in addition to incense resins.
This fragrance smells wonderful and, even better, it transports me to our family’s shrine in Japan. I find it completely unisex. Sadly, however, the performance is mediocre.
Aerohoplenericol – :
At first this smells reminiscent of my dads old gillette shaving cream. It smells discordant–a fight between freshness and earthy notes. Something far off in the backdrop makes me feel sick to my stomach. I think it is the coffee note.. I kind of hate this. Funny how something can look so good in theory and then just be a huge mess in reality. I wish this worked on my skin, but oh well.
givi32 – :
Cool moist cedar and other woods, with just a wisp of sweet stick Asian-style incense. I adore cedar (and for that matter incense), so I’m loving it. And I bet if I think of this as “the scent of the spirit woods in Avatar: the Last Airbender” (the awesome animated series, not the movie everyone hates), I’ll love it even more.
iconimicvus – :
Growing up Catholic, I am not really with the whole church incense as a fragrance to wear. This is far from it as it should be, as Avignon takes care of that quite well.
This is a nice wearable great smelling fragrance.
I think the coffee, teak and patch really come together and make magic. This is my favorite incense from the line
9/10
Great and highly recommend!
dmmnk – :
As a Heeley, Avignon, Tauer incense lover this is a bit light in comparison. All the notes are evident, save for me, the immortelle and amber which are really in the base at a very low pitch. The fragrance is exceedingly light, airy and like the reviewer below me, I could not even smell it at first. I thought I was completely anosmic to the scent so it may be that the cedar and woods are super Iso E though it’s not heavy or irritating. I like the scent. It is not a scrubber. To me it’s more of a cedar/woods/cypress hint of incense scent and I’ve got Serge Lutens Cedre for that. So this is “faint praise.” If you want to smell of woods, a very light whiff of smoke with the steam of bitter coffee, a forest of cedars and cypress, a cool mist running though it all, you may like. I enjoy it, but don’t think it’s my first incense choice, but it is calming rather than opulent and seductive. As a reference, I’m glad I have a large sample. Longevity is moderate and silage is close to the skin even after heavy application (so very low and light).
stasia – :
Wasn’t initially certain about this one upon receiving it in a sampler pack of “Incense Fragrances.” To me, Kyoto wears more like a straight Oriental Floral versus an Incense fragrance. Despite not being what I expected and as time wore on, I grew to adore this scent.
It’s funny ’cause upon application, I essentially smell nothing, really…blank space…it’s odd. Within a few minutes, a blanket of pine forest grassy green takes over, which isn’t at all my thing. Soon afterward, a combination of resins, amber, vanilla, some smoke, woody teak, etc rises…but not a lot of incense. Frankly, the wafts of smokiness managing to rise are almost offensive…ashtray like.
But the hours and hours of dry-down are my favorite development. On me, Kyoto morphs into the sweetest, subtlest resinous woody floral one might imagine. The fragrance is almost ethereal and meditative. Wafts of amber, teak, sandalwood combined with everlasting flower play for hours…some patchouli. Truly the beautifully balanced sum or combination of the parts is what works for me.
Not yet certain but this may be full-bottle worthy at a cost of approximately $95 for 50 mls (1.6 ozs).
Surprisingly, I like this fragrance a lot. In many ways, CdG Kyoto reminiscently reminds me of Serge Lutens Vetiver Oriental, a fragrance I loved ’til it was discontinued (may be in reproduction).
rexyagogcrake – :
This fragrance surprised me. At first, it was about what I expected- cedar, a hint of something sharper like pine, dry amber. But the drydown several hours later is surprisingly sweet and vanillic. Press your nose to your wrist kind of vanillic 🙂 I like it a lot, but it does seem to fade faster than Avignon. A good staple woody-incense scent.
Yushkov-23 – :
ربما كان علىّ أن أرحل إلى جزيرة نائية، حيث لا توجد أية معلومات، فلربما تمكنت مخيلتى من العمل هناك بحرية أكبر،واستطعت أن أحافظ على عقلى من التلوث، إذ ما من قصة واحدة أسمعها اليوم تشعرنى بالسعادة”
أكيرا كوروساوا
كيوتو / كوم دي قارسون / مجموعة البخور 3 / اصدار 2002
كثيرا ما تعجبنا قيم الثقافة اليابانية التي تتضمن الكثير من معاني الصبر والتأمل والحكمة ، كل هذه الموروثات الثقافية ساعدت المصممة اليابانية رى كيكوبو بتأسيس دار كوم دي قارسون ، في الحقيقة لديهم أزياء تتسم بالغرابة ولاتقل عن عطورهم التي يعتبرها الكثيرون خارجة عن المألوف.
كوم دي قارسون يصنفها البعض كديزاينر والبعض الاخر يرى انها ترقى لمستوى وفكر النيش ، حسنا يا اخوان ” دعونا نشجع اللعبة الحلوة” فهذه الدار اضافة كبيرة للمجتمع العطرى المعاصر دون الخوض في هذا التصنيف الطبقي الغريب.
من قلب مدينة كيوتو جاءت فكرة هذا العطر ،وان كنت لا افضل انتهاج دار كوم دي قارسون لفكرة دغدغة المشاعر الدينية العقائدية لاصدار مجموعة البخور ، فالحقيقة وجدت هذه الفكرة مبتذلة بعض الشيء.
استعانت السيدة اكيكوبو بالعطرجي المخضرم بيرنار دوفوشار (امواج جوبيليشن-الغابة المسحورة) فله اسلوب راقي لتصميم وتخطيط العطور ، تتفق والنهج الفلسفي لكوم دي قارسون ، والحق يقال فالرجل سخر جميع طاقاته لايصال افكار كيكوبو المستحيلة.
كرجل يعاني من أزمة منتصف العمر فقد وافق هذا العطر مزاجي الشخصي فهو باعث على الهدوء والسكينة والتأمل ومريح للأعصاب ، فهو ذو افتتاحية مبهرة بخورية لوجود راتنجات من الصنوبر والسرو وخشب الارز والبخور المحترق مع اضافة التنوب وخشب الساج ولابد من اضافة نجيل الهند والباتشول لاضافة الاحساس المعهود بالغابة المظلمة مع مرور النسمات العليلة المنعشة.مع الاستخدام المستمر للعطر قد نلحظ وجود لنوتة القهوة تظهر وتغيب.
عطر خطى الهوى ، وقد نلحظ فيه بوضوح الاستخدام الغير معلن لنوتة الايزو سوبر لاضفاء هذا الاحساس الخشبي العنبري السويتي الاوزوني ، فقد اراد مؤلف العطر اختصار الوقت لايصال فكرة كيكوبو الصعبة ، ولقد نجح في ذلك باقتدار دون الاضرار بمكونات وجودة العطر.
electrosound12 – :
Once again, I am very impressed with another CdG Series 3! This is the brightest and freshest of the series, for me. I agree with the comments that this is a meditative fragrance. Sadly, it does not last long on me…same went for Avignon. This is pure pleasure to wear, and seems to brighten and uplift my energy. If there is such thing as “fresh” incense, this is it. Thumb up.
sasha1984gg – :
I didn’t spend much time with “Kyoto”, but enough to decide that it’s not bottle worthy.
A fresh, pleasant smell, sure, but it doesn’t fulfill the brief. The incense -a fizzy, transparent, ‘laundry soap’ variety found in Heeley’s “Cardinal” and Fueguia’s “Misiones”- is too clean and metallic, with not enough sandalwood or smoke to sell the ‘Japanese temple’ idea. The wood notes also have a synthetic feel, with none of the outdoorsy ruggedness I was looking for. I don’t smell any immortelle or coffee either. It’s just too safe and lacking character. After an hour, all I can detect is a sweet, watery dill note and some pencil shavings.
Definitely the weakest in the line. At least “Jalisamer” has some bite to it.
xtv771bedyWelty – :
Sweet, airy, soft incense. Serene and pretty; no smoke, no harshness, just cool calmness. This is enormously nostalgic for me: it smells just like the 90s in that clean, fresh, androgynous style that CDG itself embodies.
It is the most feminine of the Incense Series, and softly floral. It feels powdery blue, like the pale sky in the background of Japanese landscape prints. I tend to like my incenses more, uh, incense-y than this and I would wear it more as a soothing, clean, skin scent than an incense. But, it is lovely, and eminently wearable.
Oblighblothax – :
I’m not sure why it just posted this under a guest account, but let’s try this once more with feeling 😀
The opening of this scent is gorgeous…. all sharp green cypress and vetiver, like having a steam sauna in an extremely fragrant forest.
However, the opening gives way to a combination of cedar and patchouli with the volume turned up too high, and the smoky dryness I tend to associate with good incense gets a bit lost in the pile of hamster bedding and head shop sweetness.
It feels unbalanced to me, and the middle section would be better if both of these notes were a bit more subtle, and worked in better harmony with that delicious opening.
I don’t smell any coffee in this, and as a chronic insomniac, I can usually detect even a molecular level whiff of coffee(in raw or roasted/brewed form) at 50 paces.
Thankfully, this doesn’t have a lot of longevity, and by hour three it had dried down to a pleasant, if a touch simple spicy wood.
This isn’t a bad scent, and it is made of quality materials, but I did not get nearly as much incense or Japanese influence from this as I would have liked.
More of a posh hunting lodge sort of vibe, to my nose.
Игрик – :
I received a sample of this yesterday and immediately fell in love. If I’m going to find a signature scent, this must be it (I thought..) I get a prominent sandalwood note, like a lighter, airier version of Tam Dao. I haven’t yet checked if they have similar notes, but it does remind me somewhat of Ormonde Jane woman, except much more sheer and subtle. Perhaps it’s the green notes, I’m not sure. As many have said before, it’s incredibly grounding and calming and just beautiful. BUT…five minutes after application it’s gone. Nothing. Not a whisper of a scent remains, even with my nose pressed hard against my wrist. This has seriously put me off buying a full bottle as it’s fairly expensive. I notice others have said the sillage and longevity are pretty good – perhaps my sample is a bit old? Has anyone else has this problem?
avlastimidis – :
So wonderfully green. Not that sharp grassy green that usually scares me away, but fresh, rich, and well rounded with the coffee, amber, and immortelle notes. Not sour, very lightly sweet cypress that seems *almost* minty. Not too smoky/ashy either. Refreshing. Very beautifully balanced and quickly becoming one of my favorites. Can be worn any time of year. Very unisex and universally delicious.
moloko – :
wow…this is *almost* five star this scent. almost. the vetiver is just a little too strong for my likes. vetiver mixing with the cypress makes it a little too green for my tastes, but all that considered, it’s an awesome scent. lovely…reminds me of ‘my time’ in japan. the traditional houses are made of hinoki (ones built around temples/shrines) and they smell kinda similar to this scent. it’s marvellous, i ALMOST love it. i just wish it was less green…8.5 / 10…
wovан – :
Kyoto is a very spiritual soft perfume. You feel a suspension of time . . . all of the notes seem to have their edges smoothed out. The incense is there, but an underlying sweetness saturates the woody accord – almost floral but muted. It reminds me of an exotic sachet I used in the past. As I opened my drawers a lovely soft scent would drift up. Kyoto has that delicate otherworldly presence. Lasted about 3 hours on my skin.
mlv934bedyWelty – :
Opens sexy and mysterious but the dry down is just warm/fresh spicy and rather boring
grieseTus – :
Im not sure if its just the fact that everyone that reviewed this was looking for a incense smell, or maybe I just had bad skin chemistry with this scent. But the amount of love for this one is pretty surprising to me.
Again this is coming from someone who has no real bias towards incense or anything just a random guy smelling and trying something else out on a pokemon sorta journey of gotta smell them all, but I wasnt to impressed.
I guess it kinda reminds me of incense but I think more so than that, I was kinda was reminded of like… Pet bedding. Like the stuff I used for my guinea pig or hamster when I was a kid. Almost even kinda like walking into a pet store almost. Thats kinda what I thought of lol
Anyway performance wise it was light, and I was kinda bummed it wasnt more smokey from reading the other reviews. Longevity was good though.
Personally for me I think at least looking at the notes wise or thinking of the vibe of the fragrance a woody sorta bit of green freshness with the cypress some warm spiceyness to go along with sweet aspects.. Well… I think the more recent pure wood does this better.
So ya I guess it was ok, but mostly lost on me myself. Ill have to try it another time.
Snorch – :
A remarkable frankincense scent.
You feel a fresh blast of minty cypress at the beginning. After a while the scent warms up from woods and incense. Then it becomes slightly sourly in the base as vetiver begins to interact more with cypress.
With some imagination you can picture Japan (comes from the chosen name by the creators).
For me, it’s definitely a meditatively-thoughtful scent, not for everyday use.
As it’s a classic of incense and a piece of art, it’s a recommendation for lovers of (somewhat stronger) incense scents!
Maxim_325 – :
This is probably my favourite scent in the world – it’s austere and meditative and calls to mind a dark prayer in a cool, shadowy forest temple.
HaisireimibrE – :
Kyoto is the holy grail of the incense series. While the others work masterfully at capturing exactly what it is they claim to capture, Kyoto does the same while still managing to be quite wearable.
This is a sweet, serene, soapy incense that brings to mind Japanese hot springs. It’s slightly coniferous and very calming. The incense is far less aggressive here, appearing more like a damp, peppery, wood. A brilliant composition that also works well on clothing. Interestingly, there’s a coffee note listed, but my nose is still searching for it.
Great for a contemplative mood, post rain, or simply relaxing indoors. Not only the best of the incense line but also holds its own as one of the greatest Comme des Garcons scents. A masterpiece.
abakan – :
Kyoto starts with a clean, well-rounded vetiver and cypress, green and almost electric feeling. i’m not detecting cedar in this at all, though that is probably my own fault as i wear Diptyque’s Tam Dao on an almost daily basis. the cypress in this is gorgeous and the vetiver is in no way acrid or unpleasantly sharp. Kyoto allows me to enjoy vetiver without feeling exhausted by it. about 3 hours in the incense started coming through for me. it is a cool, vaguely earthy, floral-ish incense with something soap-like in the background. ever so slightly smoky though mostly dusty with occasional hints of powder (but not powder by western standards.) interesting.
i can absolutely see why this is popular, it is grounding and somewhat meditative. this particular blend of cypress stands miles above many other fragrances featuring it.
Kyoto is more of a skin scent; it feels very personal. projection and longevity do not seem to be strong points of this fragrance but i actually think that *works* somehow with Kyoto. it is meant to be an unusual, delicate, reflective, carefully timed experience.
MortarGrind – :
Kyoto is very artistic creation, one of those rare fragrances that awakes an emotion and takes you places.
To me it brought very Zen, calm, safe, earthy feel. Kyoto is woody fragrance – wet forest, smoky burning sandalwood. An Asian temple filled with some smoky, incense aroma and a musty, exotic, woody interior smell, caused by high humidity of the tropics. Somehow all those associations give an illusion of serenity.
Beautiful!
alexericdalet – :
This is a beautiful scent. The combination of incense, cypress and cedar is very nice and well made. The incense is not that overwhelming as it is in avignon and that is what makes it more wearable and safer. At the start it almost smelled like carots which was kind of funny. Can’t decide yet if it’s bottle worthy or not.
pro100ykyrok – :
I haven’t yet worn Kyoto around town or to work (sure, I’d wear this to work), but my impression of it after a few generous sprays from my new bottle is very favorable. There’s a soapy note in the drydown that I like in this; I haven’t encountered it much with incense scents. Not to say I’m obsessed with soapiness and demand it of all perfume genres, god forbid. I like some fresh scents but I’m certainly not obessed with them–my obsessions run more to the chypre/oriental genres. But I find the soapy effect in Kyoto interesting because it’s surrounded by wafting incense; I like the contrast.
Affibralf – :
Kyoto for a moment reminds me of Encre Noire – because of the cypress note. But it’s different in general.
It’s a mild and smooth incense. Very calming and relaxing(like Quarzazate, but in a different way), cypress and coffee pop out for a moment and I could feel them.
Longevity is a little to little for me – around 6 hours on my skin.
Possibly will update soon.
JohnBu13 – :
Yesterday during a semi-formal hotel dinner, I fell in love: There was this heavenly woody fragrance wafting across the table, reminiscent of viking-age Norwegian churches and mountain forests. The source turned out to be a generous perfumista who sprayed my wrist with Kyoto while giving me an on the spot review of all the Incense fragrances from Comme des Garcons.
Kyoto is simply glorious. There is such harmony between the wood and the incense, giving an instantaneous feeling of calm and serenity. Consider it a mental first-aid kit in stressful situations!
AlisaS – :
A lot of smoke and cypress. At times I caught a soapy smell coming from this. Other times I smelled too much Avignon-type incense. Pretty nice overall.
valerabv – :
This is the one that I had been least looking forward to among the series. I’m not sure what it’s missing that the others aren’t, but it just doesn’t speak to me. The first minute or so is a very bracing fresh wood aroma, but it fairly quickly starts to get older and mustier. For a while, I picture the ancient heavy wooden doors of a buddhist temple high in the mountains, but even that starts to decay into disrepair. After that, it becomes medicinal, like the wood is rotting into dirt rather than being smoky, and I think it’s weaker than the others. (Strange, because I remembered it being fairly strong and acridly smoky!) It’s not all that bad, but it’s just so uninteresting after smelling CdG do the smoke/wood genre a hundred different ways, because I know how good they are at differentiating one from another. It is more organic than the others because of the living dirt/compost aspect, and it does this much less synthetically than other wet, decaying forest floor scents I know (He Wood and its flankers!). But finally by the end, a burning plastic vibe starts to appear, and that really puts the nail in the coffin as far as I’m concerned. Thumbs down because the others set the bar so high.
леонардо – :
This is a special fragrance! Opens with a mystical chime of fresh cedar and cypress…then Bam!!! It’s spiced beautifully with incense and has a slightly earthy quality from the woods and vetiver.
This is great but you have to be brave to wear any incense scent and this is no exception.
I’m tempted to add this to my collection because it’s so unlike anything I’ve smelled before (in a perfume anyway) it would be interesting to try the Tom Ford which is listed as being similar on here.
Cuarta – :
I searched for the subtle notes everyone else seemed to enjoy but this turned out to be Eau de Irish Spring on me: strong, synthetic deodorant soap. All soap, no incense. Planning my second trip to Kyoto after Christmas. This time I will take more notice of what it smells like and see if I can square the city with the fragrance.
worms6315 – :
Just listen Air – Alone in Kyoto and you’ll know everything about this one.
vangogel – :
All the series 3 Incense is awesome. But each one makes you do a different trip.
For this one, this is a relaxing, aerial one. Calm, peaceful, and beautiful. Soft woody base with a delicate incense touch. Less stronger than other like Zagorsk or Avignon, but not in a bad way.
This one was made for people who loves calm, intriguing and atmospherical fragrances, whereas Zagorsk and Avignon (I haven’t try Ouarzazate and Jaisalmer) are more deeper, earthy and warm.
upsepaitids – :
Bought this recently. Agreed with previous reviewers. It is calm and a wonderful fragrance. There is a cleanliness, almost a somewhat medicinal quality a purity brought about by meditation. This is my first step into the world of incense fragrances. I love it. A beautiful fragrance and for me very calm and tranquil, like a tiny haven of peace, a cool forest, a temple, a waterfall or fountain – very therapeutic. Would certainly be interested to try Jaisalmer and some of the other fragrances in this range.
Frinuirublima – :
Kyoto is a fragrance that gives you a cooling sensation. It wears well for about 4-5 hours then disappears. The incense warms up a bit, but you never leave the cool sensation of the other notes behind. It is a wonderful scent to wear in hot weather. I love it!
gkh561Negeltzex – :
This is a amazing perfume. At first it’s straight cedar with a touch of incense but in less than a minute the smoke notes begin to be noticeable . They get progressively stronger without ever becoming overwhelming. After about five minutes there is a faint hint of flowers. Basically it is a scent story of starting a cedar wood campfire & as it burns the smoke gets stronger with the smells of nature surrounding you. Oddly the incense which you would think would be very strong in this only shows up on my skin as a faint background note.
Roman62 – :
I am a big fan of patchouli, amber, vetiver and incense. This is a beautiful fragrance, but it’s not for me. Kyoto does emanate a nice incense quality of a nice intensity for a few hours, but the longevity was ultimately limited. Your mileage may vary. On the other hand, there was a nice subdued subtlety to this scent, and it may be better to underdo this smoky quality than to over-do– one would hate to smell like a freshly smoked brisket. This one strikes me as more masculine than feminine, but would be mind-blowing on the right woman, I think.
sikinefr – :
Having travelled a lot in Asia, it’s a familiar scent for me.
The notes will make you think that it’s heavy to wear, well it actually isn’t.
I get a light flowery incense with woody notes in the background, really nice.
The wonderful smell of buddhist temples, made wearable thanks to this fragrance.
Good stuff !
vitalij941 – :
This is a beautiful unisex incense fragrance, with a light floral and slightly sweet edge so evocative of traditional Japanese incense. Possibly a little more feminine than some of the other Series 3: Incense range, but as a man who doesn’t mind something a little edgier I love wearing this. A subtle coffee note and cedar add a little backbone and warmth. Perfect for warm weather, or when something a little lighter and fresher is called for without going down the traditional citrus road.
hitmanmc – :
The perfume’s world is amazing,fascinating,glorious and sometimes disappoint us,the latter is not included this one.Kyoto is one of most well blended ever.I had opportunity to try out every Series 3 fragrances as well my desire is to have all of them.If I acting by heart probably I will but my effort consists only “love” fragrances.Avingnon and Kyoto are my choice while the former make me feel like all my Sins has been forgive,Kyoto makes me feel like I ever never committed one.
In the air notes like incense,cypress and cedar are crispy and full of lif