Description
MIYAKO – Travel to the Far East Land of the rising sun
Settings: Walking down the serene street of the ancient capital city of the Far East Land. Golden osmanthus (Kin-Mokusei) flowers are in full bloom, exuding its sweet and exotic scent with notes of ripe apricot, peach and freesia. There are also Yuzu trees in the midst of the osmanthus, adding a hint of citrus to the bouquet. Jackets worn by pedestrians fill the air with a touch of leather. Notes of Jasmine green tea come from the tea house nearby. Geishas with white faces and red lips are walking up and down, and the slight powdery note of those scented sachets tied to their waists slowly penetrates the air. Finally, scents of precious woods from the nearby Jinja (shrine) shine through, accompanied by the sweet, caramellic Katsura leaves which have already turned red in this season of autumn.
The opening shouts juicy peach, tangy and zesty yuzu, and sweet ripe apricot. Gradually, the unique sweet note of golden osmanthus shines through, accompanied by a touch of jasmine green tea note. All these sweet notes are cut by shades of metallic and bitter leather note, resulting in a “shibui” and balanced scent. Various woody notes consisting of hinoki, cedar and sandalwood, underpainted with dashes of earthy-powdery note of patchouli and caramellic-sweet note of katsura leaf, then exudes from the heart note. The dry down, embellished with silken musk, turns into a velvety smooth lusciousness. A complex and dramatic fragrance to treat that idiosyncratic soul within yourself.
Miyako is available as 30ml extrait de parfum and 30ml eau de parfum. Miyako was launched in 2015. The nose behind this fragrance is Eugene Au.
MagicLover – :
I’m on my way to a perfume swap in another city, and my friend is swapping this one out. So I decided to apply a tiny amount not knowing anything about it.
What a beast, full nasal assault with incredible performance all around. I spritzed this in the car I’m riding in (with two other women) and I’m choking them both out. I would never have guessed their was fruit in it, I can only smell the leather and herbal notes. It’s high quality, but this is a hard pass for me.
Марикена – :
I got a sample of Miyako based on Luca Turin’s five-star review. I approach his recommendations cautiously, as I have learned to my sorrow that 80% of what he loves smells (to me, of course) like smoked brisket, burnt rubber, or incontinent elderly Frenchwomen. It’s the other 20% that keeps me trying–he’s introduced me to fragrances that have changed my life (Chinatown, Apres L’Ondee). I was hoping that Miyako would be the latter; instead it fell into an entirely different category. Sampling it was literally the strangest perfume journey I have ever taken.
At first, I thought it was among the loveliest things I have ever smelled. I am not a big fruit-forward fan, but the apricot was delicate and floral and gorgeous. There was an incense note that called to mind L’Heure Bleu, which is my desert island fragrance.
Then, the wild advenure began. Miyako started changing so fast that for a while my left arm, to which I had applied it first by a second or two, smelled markedly different from my right as it struggled to catch up. It became profoundly citrus-y, almost like lemon Pledge, which was much nicer than it sounds. Then there was an awful hour where it turned hyper-masculine (my preferences lean heavily to the femme side)–maybe the leather? It was a nice masculine–I would absolutely make out with a man wearing it–but it’s not how I like to smell myself.
Once again it transformed, this time to a dead ringer of the first hour of Mitsouko. This is not my favorite phase of Mitsouko–I’ve always thought it smelled like a Lush bath bomb. An hour or so later, it veered again: this time into, I swear to God, pre-drydown Bois des Iles. I felt like I was going a bit mad, that this was some practical joke being played by the Au brothers simply to torment me. Finally, just before it died out (presumably from exhaustion), it gave out one final riff and for five minutes did an impressive Bvlgari Black imitation.
And then it was gone, leaving me wrung out and a little traumatized. The whole experience was a bit like listening to a 1970s K-Tel greatest hits compilation album while riding a roller coaster. I am not sure what to think. I will definitely try again once I have had some time to recover.
Naiviollodo – :
It may be a good perfume, but not in a realistic sense.
This is not a portrait of osmanthus, but an autopsy. The perfumer dissected it into a few elements: there is dried fruit, there is leather, there is sweet florals; then she/he amplify these elements all together, to see how it plays out.
The first few seconds I sensed some jarring fermented woody elements, almost reminds me of Zanzibar by Xerjoff; then dried fruit notes take a lead, and gradually other elements settled to their own place, piece by piece, you saw the whole puzzle.
To ask if this is osmanthus is like asking if The Weeping Women by Piccaso a real women. It’s up to your interpretation.
Hbreiyraa4x0 – :
I love reading comments that are well put together. Some criticize this perfume, others love it. Yes, this is not anything Roja, Boadicea or Amouage or Creed or whatever the house that resonates with each of us as most complex. It is not a perfume with multiple stages telling you a story, nor it is a macho/femme fatale type. We sometimes take things too serious and forget why we even have perfume. Who cares what Luca says? He is just a guy with his own view and preference in materials, just like each of us. Use your own nose and judgement. Reviews are just a guide and not a decision made for you.
What i like about it – is that Miyako gives me a break from the industry. Its beautiful osmantus beast. Slightly sweet, leathery goodness that is smooth, without weird components/edges. Its a beautiful symphony. Some might like it for just that. Some might appreciate it for proper density that most current perfumes doesnt have. Or great longevity and silage thats around 12 hrs. Or natural, non chemical smell.
Personally i cant find a single flaw. I tried their binturong and dunhuang, and its same story – excellent potent non ofencive perfume with great longevity. Is it mindblowing – no. Would i recomend trying – Absolutely.
199009911 – :
Miyako.
The success of this really hinges on your preference for Osmanthus. If you adore Osmanthus, you wont be disappointed as its heart emminates a strong osmanthus heart, which is rarely seen in perfumery. The trademark honeyed apricot, the leathery nuances all come together here dressed up with a exotic tart yuzu opening and a jasmine that creeps in for a nuance of white floral. Katsura leaf gives this a caramel twist and the hinoki wood and musk grounds this scent. It leans rich and heavy. The sillage is large in the beginning then settles down closer to the body. Excellent longevity.
KolosOFF – :
Someone tells you about a perfume that they think is good. You’re curious and interested so you ordered a sample to try. There is nothing wrong or strange or unreasonable about it. After sampling it, you made up your own opinion about it. You can agree or disagree with the person who told you about it. There is nothing wrong about it either.
bni175elipseskism – :
Why anyone puts so much emphasis on Luca Turin’s opinion is probably more the question. He’s just a guy with an opinion. The same as anyone on Fragrantica. If you start buying because Luca says so you’re totally devaluing the pleasure of perfumery.
meu836Bessinepome – :
I don’t get it! – Or am I just not getting it?
This is osmanthus with leather. With no disrespect, but I can’t see what all the fuss is about. Yes, it’s a nice scent (if you’re into osmanthus & leather), but to me it’s nothing more than just that: Nice.
So how did it get all these raving reviews and an award even?
Well, Miyako is from niche house in an (for westerners) exotic location that markets their products cleverly using all the buzzwords: (from website) “…highly original luxury handcrafted perfumes and scent solutions, made in small batches using an eclectic selection of the finest natural extracts and innovative raw ingredients, with meticulous craftsmanship and an obsessive attention to details”. Phew, they got my head spinning – so we’re beyond perfume and in scent solution territory now, I’m impressed. But it doesn’t stop here, of course they also remembered to throw in a dose of emotions (from website) “…at the heart of the brand’s business is charitable giving…”, et voilà, customers & judges all wrapped around their little finger.
But putting all jokes and cynicism aside. Yes, donating a percentage of your profit is honorable and yes, they do make nice perfumes. The buzzword here: Nice.
elb222Unlogrere – :
It’s true the higher the expectation, the bigger the disappointment. Given how Luca Turin raves about it in his 5 star review, I got a sample.
However I fail to understand this critical acclaim. I mean it’s not a bad perfume at all. It’s actually quite nice. But there’s nothing stunning, special, breathtaking about it. Maybe it’s because westerners know little about osmanthus, so they are intrigued by this “exotic” flower? To me, a Chinese who’s familiar with the scent of osmanthus, this is just an ordinary fragrance that captures the (according to me) sickly cloying sweetness of osmanthus. There’s the sweet juicy fruity note of apricot, peach, and there’s the leathery aspect of osmanthus. As it goes on, the fruity aspect disappears and the woody base becomes more visible. There’s also a smell I can’t quite pinpoint, slightly skanky, musky, milky and woody (which somehow reminds me of the so-called “deconstructed sandalwood” in CdG Concrete which is actually just synthetic molecules – but don’t quote me on that, I’ve only smelled that in passing so it’s just an unreliable memory). The osmanthus-sweetness never disappears, and I can often catch a whiff of it here and there. But for osmanthus, I’d prefer it in food (desserts), rather than as something sprayed on myself.
It’s not a bad perfume at all. It’s actually quite a nice osmanthus-themed fragrance. But it’s in no way as great as Mitsouko, as Turin leads me to believe.
gln835Diobtetty – :
I was very curious about this line … seemingly not making perfume in the traditional European tradition, and wondering how that would play out. I didn’t think that Miyako would be for me but I added it to my sample order because of the award, just curious! But I was right ….. anything with this type of fruitiness, whether it is from the Osmanthus or not is terrible on me, somehow fermented instead of the lovely frootiness other people must get. As a Vintage perfume lover and wearer for years, I still couldn’t get near Mitsouko, Femme or Diorella.
Interestingly, trying to speak objectively here, this scent does not seem to have the top middle base note structure, rather the notes weave in and out of eachother and are all present together the whole time …. innnnnteresting, as I had hoped. Just not for the Fruit Phobic!
smignee – :
An osmanthus heaven. A Chinoiserie painting. A complex tapestry with thread of osmanthus, apricot, tea, hinoki and animalic musk woven into an exotic Far East garden. …
Definitely worths the award!
IzSerg – :
I’m usually quite skeptical of award-winning perfumes. I wouldn’t blindly follow official accolades but I’m glad I was swayed to get an official sample of this. Miyako features some very unusual woods and greens, Katsura and Hinoki. This has the effect of smelling familiar yet foreign at the same time. It isn’t your usual cedar, guaiac or (gasp) santalol. But the aromatic woody base is unmistakeable and strongly evocative.
A well-blended and radiantly presented trio of osmanthus-apricot-peach fronts the woods and even lends a piquant animalic touch (not unlike cat pee but very very subtle and understated). The Japanese yuzu at the top completes the structural and cultural integrity of this balanced-to-perfection fragrance of the Far East. The whole thing is extremely well thought out and coherent. Not one element is out of place or dissonant. Overall composition I’d describe as HARMONIOUS, just like the culture it seeks to evoke. And Miyako smells gorgeous. Prize well-deserved.
mahu.vp – :
The best fragrance in my collection…
Scent: 10/10
Sillage: 8/10
Longevity: 8.5/10
illia16 – :
It’s a wonderful,meditative and dreamy parfum! This surrounds me, is powerful and sweet with accents of wood and leather, it is complex….! It brings me to a fantastic world where everything is joy and serenity. This is the first scent I feel of Auphorie, and i’m really happy because I just met a masterpiece, this is an unforgettable and unique fragrance! ❤
Sillage: 9./10
Longevity: 10./10
Scent: 10./10
Overall: 10./10
t.tomas – :
There is something thick, heavy, and quite hifty! Something I have smelled before! Like a churchy smell with some tires, and a bit of balm cream. It has that dried apricots mixed up with patchouli and woody notes. I can smell something earthy (not animalic) that is quite thick and very heavy. I can’t detect the peaches, the yuzu, and the osmanthus.
It is quite on the Arabian style side with that heavy smell and cozy feel. No wonder it won an award in Europe cause this style is quite new to Europe.
Edit (23rd June 2018) retesting it again after 1+ year.. still thick but on the leathery way with roses of apricots and osmanthus. I liked the greenish apricot and fresh osmanthus mix within a raw leather bag that balances the blend quite weirdly perfect! As the fruit factor isn’t cloying and neither overly floral nor leathery! It’s just amusing to be honest and quite nice. I believe it’s fair to win an award.
andrie – :
*If you are not a fan of pine or woodsy scents, this may not be for you. Additionally, the juice itself is oily.*
This is the scent of my childhood in Japan. It opens very green and woody: Hinoke and Katsura dominate (with a smidgen of yuzu) and immediately bring me back to that time of year when fall is beginning to blow the last bits of summer to dust. It’s hunting for Rhino and Stag beetles in the forest, overripe fruit wasting away on the ground, and the dankness of the warm breeze at dusk. Projection is fantastic, which is exactly how I want to experience this fragrance. To be enveloped in this time traveling mist that is full of every facet of that time and place that I loved so much. The sillage will draw people to you.
The initial green and woody entrance eventually fades (though not completely), which allows the osmanthus to take its rightful place. It’s front and center, all the way to the dry down that comes 10hrs later. It tussles with a peachy tea scent throughout the heart, but the peach tea just doesn’t have the strength to compete. The pine-like aroma of the wood adds a rather haunting quality to the joyfulness of the osmanthus, which perfectly conveys the bittersweetness of that magical time of year. The carefree days of summer are coming to an end, but not without one last blast of adventure… one last sappy tree to climb… one last ounce of joy.
I have a collection of fragrances that mark specific times in my life. Miyako will lovingly be added to that shelf.
Scent: 9/10
Sillage: 9/10
Longevity: 10/10
EFEKTIK – :
Imagine you’re resting on huge pillows in a temple sanctum. Salmon colored oriental rugs on stone floors, glowing candles flickering in a slight breeze, windchimes sounding in the distance from all directions. You’re engulfed in a serene, graceful feeling – like that evoked by Miyako. Mystical delicate blend of eastern herbs, spices, and flowers that has a zen-like vibe. It has a subtle musky accord, bolstered by the leather and apricot. Like clean scented skin sweetened by perfumed oils. Sillage and longevity both tempered, but good. It lasted hours, and had a calming, peaceful aroma that softly floated around me. I can see why this won a 2016 Art and Olfaction Award. Its a perfume experience in tranquility.
6200812 – :
I was looking to find a signature oud when Antonia at Tigerlily urged me to try this, based on my preferences, despite its not being an oud. It astonished me, and when I took it home and wore it kept on surprising me. Its best elements stayed consistent, the leather has lasted days on my clothes. Never before has a scent that actually smells good lasted as long. The musk in it smells like warm leather and is not at all sleazy.
My only critique would be that it is a LITTLE too fruity off the bat; I like darker scents, typically. But I am willing to put up with the volume 9 of the apricot in exchange for Auphorie not tinkering more with it and ruining what really seems like a magical combination.
This is the kind of smell
I called the boutique I got the sample at (Tigerlily, in San Francisco–what a lovely place with bubbly, knowledgeable, enthusiastic people: I would love to spend my days working or living at a place like that) the very next day to ask them to set one aside and thank Antonia for having me smell it. They were sold out. Apparently the fragrance has won awards and is a fast mover; I am stocking up on it as soon as I get it. Four days later I called again to check on its progress: my early enthusiasm had not been false: the fragrance had not changed on me (I kept sampling it over those days–I don’t mean it didn’t change over 4 days on my clothes, although certain notes of it have seemed to last at least that long on my sweatshirt cuff, shockingly).
It is so hard to write about fragrance; it is like dancing about color, or hearing taste. And I am new to the world of niche fragrances and being really discerning and a fragrance hobbyist, although I have always been more into smells than peers and have worn a perfume since age 12 (Chanel no5–I don’t know many other high school freshmen who hang around pefume counters and like old lady fragrances but am grateful to my mom for entertaining, educating, and paying for this interest) and by age 15, amber oil for day and Opium for evening. So while I’m not an expert, I hope my review bears some relation to what might be true for others, especially when I say: TRY THIS OR BUY THIS FRAGRANCE NOW, especially if you like skin or leather. It’s not a scent I would have bought blind based on the pyramid nor even tried based on description. I can imagine a hundred other scents with the exact same ingredients that would do nothing for me. This one is unique. I think it may become my signature, though I hesitate to wear it so often that I stop being able to smell it myself.
It has a polite sillage and can definitely be worn to work. It works in the evening, too, because it seems like the sillage of the brither, fruitier notes is greater than of the leather, muskier ones (I suppose this is a general truth). It makes a good signature in that way. It is the kind of smell that I have to keep opening the bottle and sniffing every time I pass by the bathroom, or have to discreetly keep smelling my arm at work. Something about it is truly addictive and comforting.
saboter103 – :
This is osmanthus with no apologies in between. If anyone has tried osmanthus absolute, you would know it’s scent is a mixture of peach, apricot and a leathery, smoky floral accord. And here it is balanced with citrus and then later lactonic notes very well. Initially you almost get a huge mentholated/ petrol fume breath which is gone soon.
But what’s striking is the ‘balance’.
At no point does the perfume dwindle into dissonance or asynchrony.
And drydown is subtle, a waft of apricot goodness coming your way off and on.
I don’t wear perfumes in daily life but I’ll spray them on once in a while, before going to bed.
This is the only perfume on which someone commented 12 hours later, next day in a shop, that I simply smelled ‘scrumptious’!
cpz977Diobtetty – :
Miyako, a winner of The Art and Olfaction Awards 2016, wows me with it’s fruity yet earthy opening of dried apricots, swiftly followed by its fresh osmanthus flowers and its compelling and distinct note of rough, animalic leather. When the base creeps up, there is something distinctly green about it. A couple of hours into the drydown, I get an almost chocolatey effect that I find very comforting. I also notice something that smells like incense, as though it is clinging to the skin and hair after having walked out of a sacred temple.
This perfume is like a lesson in abstract art. There are so many notes tumbling around, weaving in and out of one another. You have the darkness of earthy notes and brightness of botanical notes contrasting one another with every fascinating inhalation.
Miyako showcases what perfumers can achieve with modern botanical interpretations of “animalic” notes. The leather note is huge and so believable! I did not see the notes ahead of time, but I when I smelled it, I knew it was leather, and I was surprised because I know Auphorie does not use real animal essences. Please try this if you love love love leather but you do NOT love animal cruelty.
Miyako takes me back to a memory of a thrift shop I poked around when I was last at Tahoe. Sniffing from a distance, the perfume has this old, worn-in scent about it, like the scent of clothes with just a bit of mildew, old books, and old leather jackets that might or might not have been worn by a smoker, but they have definitely been worn. If I put my schnozz close to my skin, I really pick up that beautiful, clean, fruity and sweet osmanthus.
Leather is definitely not my favorite note, but oddly I enjoy the (few) excellent botanical interpretations of it much more than the real animalic stuff. Miyako is one of those perfumes that feels like it becomes part of you, just like your favorite leather jacket. This perfume is beautifully done and cruelty-free. Projection is great. Love it!
Disclosure: I wrote my review some time ago. I now carry Auphorie in my shop at aveparfum.com, but my personal opinions always remain my own.
alahakbar1978 – :
“Zesty, vibrant yet calming… like a glass of apricot-peach juice within a Japanese hot spring garden in the hot summer.”
Miyako is a 2015 fragrance by Auphorie, a Malaysian perfume house by brothers Eugene and Emrys Au. This fragrance has garnered a lot of attention early this year because of its nomination at the prestigious Arts and Olfaction Awards 2016. Furthermore, it is liked by many prominent figures in the perfumery world, including Luca Turin who raved about it in his own blog. Seeing as how I live in Singapore, I am lucky to be able to purchase a sample from them directly.
Miyako opens on my skin with a sharp, juicy blast of peach, apricot and yuzu. It’s one of the most vividly citrus openings I’ve experienced in a long time; it’s as though I can taste them just by smelling! Looking at the note pyramid on Fragrantica before actually trying it, I was worried if the opening would fare. Surprisingly, it’s very well-balanced: there’s harmony between the bergamot-like tartness of yuzu, and dessert-like ripe sweetness of apricot and peach. The apricot note reminds me a little of Tauer’s Phi Une Rose de Kandahar, albeit in Miyako it’s much more potent. Also, although not officially included in the pyramid, I get a tiny mentholated hint that I feel is reminiscent of eucalyptus.
After approximately 1.5 hour, the vibrant citrus opening shifts to a more soothing, subtle blend of green tea and osmanthus. In this secondary stage, the scent becomes softer and more mellow, where the peach-apricot-yuzu trio subsides and the dry, green tea leaf-soothing osmanthus accord takes over. Osmanthus is perhaps the main highlight of Miyako, for its distinctive identity is what transports wearers to the Far East. Indeed, it does invoke images of East Asia, specifically China and Japan where it is natively from. One thing that surprises me is how I can’t sense any leather anywhere here. My skin is particularly sensitive to leather and it’s eye-opening how I don’t get any of it on my skin while many other wearers have reported how they get a lot of it. As a leather lover, I am a little disappointed by this and I think it’s being overwhelmed by the other accords.
Transition takes places again after a few hours, and the scent becomes more woody on my skin. I get prominent notes of gentle, smooth sandalwood and cedar. But at the same time, I get a unique note of Hinoki wood, an essential element synonymous to Japanese hot spring baths (“onsen”). It’s a highly prized cypress wood in Japan and its slightly citrus-woody accord invokes effects of peace and tranquility, commonly associated with the experience of soaking in a hot spring in the warm summer season. I also notice that katsura leaf is included in the note list, but I am not sure how it smells like.
On the official Auphorie website, Miyako is described as “walking down the serene street of the ancient capital city of the Far East Land… notes of Jasmine green tea come from the tea house nearby… finally, scents of precious woods from the nearby Jinja (shrine) shine through.” Indeed, these are the images I get while wearing Miyako. Although this is recommended by many people to be best worn in cooler climates such as spring and autumn, because of its strong citrus notes, potency and very good sillage (my decant is an extrait and it’s VERY strong), I can see this working just fine in the summer. Luca Turin lauded this perfume and bought a full bottle for himself, and I can see why he loves it due to its sheer uniqueness and distinctive identity in masterfully juxtaposing the lively opening with the calming ending. Congrats to the Au brothers; it’s a well-deserved recognition for the masterpiece that it is.
Edit:
At the end of the day, roughly 12 hours since spraying on skin, I get faint lactonic whiffs of jasmine and coconut-like. It reminds me a bit of Ashoka by Neela Vermiere Creations, and this comes as a lovely surprise. Maybe this is the jasmine note that is at play, although I would expect it to appear much earlier in the day.
ntr252speagoessenda – :
I like this perfume a lot, which is quite surprising. It’s a floral musk and smells a lot like eastern prayer houses. It’s quite long lasting if sprayed on unexposed skin experiencing minimal friction. It disappeared quite soon from the nape of my neck, but left a splendid trail when sprayed on my hair. In fact it lasts almost a day on my hair and turned more floral than musky.