Description
Miyako is a Japanese female name, and the fragrance Myako is very Japanese. This fragrance was inspired by traditional Japanese ritual Kodo, or ‘way of the fragrance’. Kodo is one of the three classical Japanese arts, which besides kodo include the art of creation of Ikebana, and the tea ceremony, Sado. Kodo is a tradition of paying respect to incense. Incense is placed on a plate placed over the smoldering coals. The incense does not burn but slowly releases its fragrance.
The meaning of kodo is not in smelling, but in ‘listening’ to the fragrance. For the kodo ceremony Japanese use the verb kiku, ‘listen’, meaning to try to get to know the fragrance with the heart and soul and travel with it through the time and space.
The tradition of kodo dates back in the time of the Shogun Ashikaga Yoshimasa (1443-1490), who ordered a monk, Sanjonishi Sanetaka to list and classify all kinds of incense that were used in that time. Thus Sanjonishi is considered to be the father of kodo.
The scents of incense used in the kodo ceremony are divided in six types with five tastes – sweet, spicy hot, bitter, salty and sour. These qualities are the base for the traditional Japanese game, kumiko or genjiko, the meaning of which is in proper classification of incenses according to these categories, what requires excellent olfactive abilities.
In the heart of Miyako is frankincense, and floral, balsamic and woodsy notes make it a good company. The outer box opens like the door of a Japanese temple. This limited fragrance was launched in 2005.
Top notes: cardamom, cinnamon, frankincense
Middle notes: Hinoki wood, rose, jasmine, ylang-ylang, patchouli, cedar, sandalwood
Base notes: musk, wild rose, benzoin, myrrh, amber
Yasamal33 – :
All I can pick up is sandalwood, other woods, amber and a little incense. I do not pick up any flowers.
spoopsskali – :
Wow! So my scent. Woody oriental incense spicy with a twist of something unique. I think it’s the Hinoki wood it’s not like anything I’ve smelled before. This is paramount in me loving a scent: something novel!
JohnNK – :
Quiet summer day
Fragrant cypresses dance
Incense rising
My first attempt at writing Haiku Poem..
Its dry woody incense strikes a perfect balance with a hint of green from hinoki wood – a type of cypress from Japan.
noj852speagoessenda – :
profumo di ambra superfemminile morbida e conturbante. distante dalle ambre più erbacee (Ambre sultan tra tutti) o resinose (Ambre dorè) qui il balsamico è addolcito da spezie e fiori (cardamomo, ylang ylang e rosa tra tutti) che conferiscono all’insieme una certa tenerezza, sicchè il pur presente incenso non è maschile e secco. il fondo rimane tenue e orientale, su ambra e benzoino. molto buono.
Aleksandr_125 – :
I hated the green and herbal-ness of Ambre Sultan. I love resinous, warm, semi-sweet amberand Miyako is a winner!!! It is quite similar to AG Ambre Fetiche but this is a tad sweeter. I was afraid of the cardamom but it is barely noticeable. I don’t get any rose maybe a touch of jasmin and ylang-ylang but this is all about the amber, myrrh with a touch of smoke. I love to inhale deeply upon first spritz it’s just divine. The drydown is really soft and sheer and does not project much but it lasts several hours. Thank You Mona-Jo for this FABULOUS swap!!
ivan_stako – :
For me, this does not rouse imagery of Japanese ceremonies, perhaps because I’ve not experienced such. Rather, this is a haunting beauty that probes my imagination to conjure images of things dark and mystical, like a fortuneteller’s lair, a voodoo shop on Bourbon Street, an antiques shop with old pharmacy treasures and leather bound books with musty pages, or a still and towering Victorian mansion full of relics past.
vndegtyarenko – :
Really nice, semi-sweet Amber & Myrrh fragrance with a touch of spice.
It’s aromatic and very well balanced. I really, really like it. They nailed it on a scent department. I have a problem with a texture though – it feels a bit “thin” and “see-through”. Not as concentrated as most famous amber fragrances out there. On the other hand, it’s perfect for a daywear, if you don’t want to bother people with your fume.
It is not nearly as spicy as Ambre Sultan. It’s closer to Ambre Fétiche Annick Goutal but more sweeter, wearable, feminine and transparent.
sanyok7t1 – :
Arrived today, seems like it’s still in production! Came in a beautiful wooden box in black and gold! The bottle itself look a bit on the cheap side though! Lovely scent but a total knock-off of SL Ambre Sultan, take my words for it!!! It does not smell cheap or bad, it’s a warm and deep scent but if you already own Ambre Sultan, no need for this or if you think Serge Lutens are to expensive, this is the perfect substitute! No one will ever be able to tell the difference!
svetka20167 – :
Is this worth picking up if available?
Fragrance is almost 10 years old and I am worried about quality.
jakobs – :
Deep, golden, gooey, salty amber. Big sillage and decent longevity. I imagine this perfume as thick sap pouring forth from an autumnal tree that stands golden in the sunlight.
The thickness of this perfume reminds me of melting caramel, but it does not have any sweetness. It smells very similar to Ambre Sultan, but slightly more transparent.
In terms of dupes, it is nearly identical to Kuumba Made Amber Paste–it’s pretty much the liquid form of Amber Paste.
judopuglia – :
Let the winds of heaven
Blow through the paths among the clouds
And close their gates.
Then for a while I could detain
These messengers in maiden form.
Beautiful samurai-girl, who knows where she is going and why, everything is decided long time ago and her path to the Temple of God will be hers and only.
Hymn of incense and hinoki wood, myrrh and benzoin.
Amber Sultan by Lutens passed me by unnoticed. but Miyako…Ohh Miyako..She is unforgettable. Its a sacred olfactory territory.
Like Michinoku prints
Of the tangled leaves of ferns,
It is because of you
That I have become confused;
But my love for you remains.
ZaraZa – :
This smells exactly like a Japanese temple to me. More specifically, smelling a Japanese temple nearby in the summertime, when there are cicadas chirping in the middle of a bright hot dry afternoon, on a weekend picnic eating fresh rice wrapped in dried seaweed, sitting on a cool tatami mat in one of those outdoor wooden pavilions surrounded by fragrant summer flower trees, during my childhood.
CdG’s Koto is also a temple incense, but Miyako is softer, warmer, with more depth, and much more well-blended and subtle, on me. Despite its subtlety, it has a delicate dry radiance and nice projection, which I really appreciate, since most incenses with a good projection can seem stifling or too sharp.
Really really beautiful.
Aram015 – :
Miyako took me by surprise probably because I got used to incense perfumes being dead serious. And Miyako is nothing like that.
Imagine something on the other side of spectrum from CDG Incense series for example.It doesn’t bring to mind churches or temples and it’s too playful and lush to be called spiritual or ascetic.
There is a lot going on here. Incense, resins, ylang-ylang, cinnamon…everything slowly warming up, melting, falling into place, expanding….
It’s a different take on incense and I really like it. Too bad it was limited edition.
Delmei-74 – :
“Miyako is a Japanese female name, and the fragrance Myako is very Japanese.” – I completely agree with this first sentence in the perfume description above.
It has a lot of incense and wood, slightly bitter, but oh, so beautiful. Similar to Mitzah, yes, but quite delicate and soft by comparison.
Sevad – :
Annayake’s Miyako is a beautiful warm, spicy comfort scent, like a warm cup of spiced tea. It has some sillage but I find it best worn under clothing with just a bit on the exposed arms. It is a great winter fragrance and the incense is smoky and gorgeous, very ambery and warm. This is not a Catholic church incense, but more of an Asian incense meant to reflect the Japanese ritual Kodo, the way of scent, apparently. I think it’s a very lovely fragrance and I’m annoyed with myself for taking so long to try it!!
dixa – :
Those who like incense will love! incense really heavy, long lasting, presence!
anystreet2012 – :
I have a small sample of this and to my nose, it is very similar to Chantecaille Kalimantan. Side by side,I can hardly tell them apart.
stalker_9787 – :
Amber, incense and myhrre; holy smoke, this is sweet.
I regard Miyako Annayake as my second hippie perfume, next to Goutal Ambre Fétiche. Miyako Annayake is much much softer though, and very feminin indeed as Veruska already pointed out.
In my Lutens’ drenched brain Ambre Sultan also immediately knocks at the door, being a more vigorous and spicy amber scent.
I absolutely like Miyako Annayake, but I feel that (m a y b e) I miss something here.
A little edge, or scar, a counterbalance note (gin?) could make it more of an enigma, or even better: a Sin.. Less like a one way loop in an Arabian desert.
A beautiful desert though.
EDIT Oct 28:
Today I combined Miyako with Serge Noir: Gorgeous !!
GraffSharlDeSerg – :
In contrast to the currently fashionable dry, woodsy and masculine incense, Miyako is balmy, feminine and a bit sweet spicy incense. It is a very cozy scent, good for winter; sits close to the skin, but the longevity is good. Very nice.
rassol88 – :
Rich warm amber with a base note that smells a touch like cola. Dries down to a very basic but lovely warm amber. There is a gorgeous midway feeling of powdered incense opoponax that is just dreamy, but it passes on to leave the warm amber. Quite nice, interestingly complex, but ultimately a little expensive to end as basic warm amber.
krassavizza – :
This smells just like Armani Code which I CANNOT STAND. The minute after I sprayed it on I knew it was familiar and unpleasant but didn’t know why..then it hit me. I can’t get it off soon enough.
vladusmd – :
This is so very different from anything else I’ve tried of the women’s perfumes! It’s like walking in some magic healing woods – all about the woods (almost evergreen/cypressy) & incense, and a touch of background creaminess, for a total effect of the mediciny kind, as opposed to the Christmas/churchy kind. (When my mom smelled this on me as I walked into her room, she asked “What happened?! Why have you been to the hospital?”)
Unlike on Veruska, this never goes through a flowery stage on me, but ends in woody amber-benzoin as well. Perhaps because I’m missing the flowers, this is far from a feminine fragrance on me. In fact, as I was struggling to pin down the unusualness of this scent, as soon as I started to think of it as a masculine fragrance, I realized what it reminds me of: Fou d’Absinthe! I haven’t smelled them side by side, but from what I remember of it, if Fou d’Absinthe tried to have a daughter, this would be her – the edges are smoothed out, but it’s the same basic DNA.
Partizan62 – :
This is a very beautiful feminine perfume with a capital F. It starts dry almost with a orthodox churchy smoky incence ( strange for a Japanese scent)and goes to a heady honeyed floral (possibly Ylang-Ylang.This is a lovely stage and the same goes for the amber-benzoin drydown. Almost perfect!