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ZHDAH_909 – :
If anyone’s wondering, the name means “Russian leather” (or “Russian skin”, but that is less likely in the context) in Russian.
monarh_RF – :
a true leather gem
sensual
and piercing leather
balmy and spicy
full wearing
in scorching damp heat
and this concoction
exudes classines
great performer
an under the radar treasure!
relgo – :
It is interesting what Russian skin can have in common with Guatemalan Cardamon? *-))
goleva1983.yelena – :
Body talc, no question about it.
A slightly rosy yet chunky elemi body talc with bits of cardamom. No juniper or leather detected (on a plotter at least).
Very interesting for those who loves talc and body powder.
Vkosoy – :
Man is this fragrance gorgeous. But, to start things off, this does not smell like it contains Oud at all. I am not sure what people are smelling when they say they can detect Oud. All I smell from this fragrance is a gorgeous Benzoin, Cardamon, and Juniper berry combo, with a slight leather in the opening that dies after a few minutes. I think this is the best offering from Berdoues. Smells very high quality. Like a less smoky version of Amber SKy from Ex Nihilio. This fragrance also lasts a long time. At about 8-10 hours with a really good projection for 5-6 hours. What shocks me most about this fragrance is that for Niche. It only cost 85 USD, But I was lucky enough to get it off of Fragrancenet for 50 bucks. What a deal for this quality. I think if you are a Benzoin lover like I am. You will die for this sexy fragrance. Let me know what you think of this masterpiece.
Gunso – :
After wearing and loving and writing about this perfume (below), I decided I needed the full bottle and would treat myself for my birthday. I was dismayed to find that Sephora does not carry it. Why do they carry the sample set but not the bottle? Anyway, this is gorgeous and I want it, so if anyone in North America has it and is interested in a swap, please let me know.
Edit: PROCURED from Perfume1 thanks to a kind Frangrantica user’s message!
vkareprost – :
Wow! I purchased the sample set of this Grand Cru collection from Sephora and am I ever glad I did! NOT A SINGLE scent has disappointed me! They are all gorgeous! And they all share a common thread, being complex in their simplicity and simple in their complexity. I think that this Kozha is my second favorite (behind Oud Al Sahraa).
Russkaya Kozha starts with a strong blast of gorgeous aromatic juniper that is a little sharp and a lot fresh. Our journey starts in a forest. Perhaps a walk through an evergreen forest on a crisp winter day with a mug of cardamom-heavy chai tea would be the most apt image for this first phase. The initial phase definitely leans masculine (and the prominent juniper is certainly what most contributes to this impression), but as the scent dries down and the benzoin and leather come to the fore, it warms up and takes on a decidedly unisex vibe. The benzoin definitely gives this a pleasant sweet powderiness that I just adore.
Being someone who is generally averse to leather scents and masculine scents, I am very surprised at how much I enjoy Kozha, but I think that might have something to do with the fact that the leather is not so much the star as it is the entire supporting cast in this composition. It acts more as a smooth base for the benzoin, spice, and aromatic elements, bringing them all together beautifully. The leather is smooth and warm and wears more like a suede.
Kozha doesn’t have quite the staying power of Oud Al Sahraa, which lingers on my skin for a good 24 hours, but it is long lasting with moderate to heavy sillage.
I love it when a fragrance surprises me and this one has been the biggest surprise I’ve had in a long time.
kasya1705 – :
Do you remember that viral internet food competition from a few years ago known as the cinnamon challenge? The opening to Russkaya Kozha is like the fragrance version to those cinnamon videos. Not as weak as colognes tend to be, the overall power is more than sufficient given its alcoholic nature. There are a few enjoyable moments worth talking about though. R. Kozha is about as warm as i’ve ever smelled a cologne. That’s a compliment to the quality of this fragrance. I was also very surprised in how pronounced the benzoin became in the drydown; even the leather had a little hangtime. I think it’s easier to interpret fresh spices as opposed to warm spices within eau de colognes but in this particular juncture, both spices are about neck and neck with strength. The more i smell my wrist, the more i’m thinking that maybe there is a market for the Eau de Cologneheads.
rapid – :
Hiya
I can guarantee that at this price point and being an European concoction there is no natural oud present…just some aroma chemical facsimile. It can still smell great though!
Cheers
Matz
Stockholm
pyshnoi – :
I agree with ona_K, I’m really surprised that this doesn’t contain Oud/Agarwood! Especially at first spray, I got A LOT of Oud-like nuances. I can usually tell, because Oud/Agarwood tends to smell slightly like bug repellent on my skin and the first few minutes of this fragrance smelled exactly like that. I believe that this could be caused by the Juniper mixing with the Cardamon making for some sharp top notes at first.
Even after about 30 min drying down there is still a hint of Oud lingering and will linger for hours. But definitely the warm leather starts to take over in the dry down.
Thank goodness for the Benzoin as it also works with the leather to smooth out the sharp juniper/cardamon combo.
But apart from the unusual Oud-like nuances, I thought that the leather facet in this cologne to be really nice. It’s not soft and powdery like a suede, nor is at sharp or synthetic as a new car smell, it reminds me of a new pair of nubuck shoes.
This would be an excellent cologne for those who are interested in rich Oud fragrances but are put off by conventional Oud scents, as this is just a hint of that agarwood nuance.
vladus7rasha – :
I was certain that this was on oud when I brought it home among a dozen samples; it had been offered for me to smell by Tigerlily perfumery when I was searching for oud- and oud-like scents, which hits it on the nose.
It’s leathery byt not warm.
It is an interesting fragrance.
I wish there were more reviews of this, because I don’t want my personal experience to turn others off of a scent that could well become beloved.
On me, it started to resemble acutal sweat—like, the bad, acrid, stress sweat–within minutes of applying it. I wore it to work and had to remove it with alcohol swabs. As such, it didn’t linger obnoxiously long, although I could still smell notes off and on from where I hadn’t removed it between my cleavage some 10hours after application, which for the heavy scents I like and the very heavy application I do (I literally let perfums RUN down both arms, both sides of my neck, and in cleavage area) is standard. And the sweat element actually did improve with the dry-down. While I didn’t like it, it did have a fascinating evolution, becoming more powdery and vanilla-y, almost, over time, and less acrid.
I like all the ingredients, and I feel like it must be personal body chemistry that it didn’t work for me.
Hope you have better luck!
If you like oud, try this for sure. It reminds me much more of oud scents–like I say, I was SURE that it contained it–than leather ones. And there are many horrible things that it DOESN’t contain/do, for which I am grateful. There’s no tobacco that’s obnoxiously overwhelming; the leather, while not warm, doesn’t feel synthetic or too in your face; it’s not at all one-note, etc.
I’m not familiar enough with ‘russian’ leather to differentiate it from leather in general: maybe this is an interestig topic for personal exploration. I will be interested once this fragrance has more reviews, to see how others found it.