Above Us, Steorra

I'm going to go against the grain and say this is one of my favorite fragrances of the year, if not the last several years. I do not get unbalanced cumin, or sweat, or BO -- I get a warm, inviting mix of spices and resin and vanilla. It's a great soft, enveloping scent for daily wear -- doesn't project too aggressively, but you still get whiffs of it on yourself and on your clothes throughout the day. I think it's an absolutely perfect daily driver for late fall and early winter. I'm honestly distressed by how quickly I'm going through my bottle, because I know I'll restock and drop another $200 :P Just test it out and don't let the naysayers here dissuade you, lest you miss out on this beautiful, cozy, sexy fragrance.

I received a parcel from Aesop scented with Above Us, Steorra and both me and my boyfriend were instantly captivated by the scent. Can’t speak about the opening but the dry down is fenomenal and seems to last, at least on fabric, for ages. For me this is the Aesop equivalent of Diptyque 34 Boulevard St Germain. The entire Aesop universe in one scent, in the very best way. Cozy, sexy, luxurious. Needless to say we have a bottle coming soon. If I for some reason don’t like it on my skin I’ll drench my entire wardrobe in it instead.

Absolutely gorgeous. Feels like a cousin of Liis Bo but with more warmth. I'm surprised by so many of the low reviews - maybe it's because this one doesn't lean as avant-garde as many of Aesop's scents, but either way this one is a hit in my books. A fall/winter wear for sure but I think this one will be dear companion as things cool down. The scent is rather linear, but by no means simple. I imagine this will smell so good on a heavy wool sweater.

Absolutely love this scent. Very unisex. Just a beautiful warm, vanilla, spicey glow. Absolutely can not stop smelling my wrist from the couple of times that I’ve tried it. Initially put off by the asking price, however from a fair bit of research, similar scents, of which there don’t seem to be many, are even more expensive. After reading reviews I suppose I can kind of understand the stinky comments. Only kind of. But I kind of like it anyway.

this is it for me. i feel like i found my fragrance for this colder season.... it is beautifully warm, cozy but spicy, like a spiced chai latte. it does remind me of zielinski & rozen’s pink pepper perfume, which is similar but more sharp, spicy, attention seeking. this is more suitable for everyday. the scent is really light and subtle.

One of my favourite Aesop scents, warm and spicy, not overly sweet. I’m not usually a vanilla fan but in this one I find it comforting. The cardamom is both fresh and spicy giving it dimension. To me it bears resemblance to Byredo’s Gypsy Water, mostly in the dry down tho.

This is so so so good! Yes, it’s not unique, but I just loooove all the notes listed... literally a combination of my favorite notes, so I’m very biased here. Beautiful balanced scent with nice projection.Follow me on ig: scent.guide

really good. encompassingly fresh and kind of stinky. like being in a perfume shop and someone in there is a tad sweaty, but you can't tell who, and it doesn't really matter.

cumin-forward vanilla for stinky little freaks (complimentary)

Lying under the stars, 1001 nights, arabian nights, whatever you want to call it. The intent behind this feels like a night in the middle east, gazing up at the sky, possibly with the one you love, and they delivered. I have gotten a free sample of this, and it is one of the best spiced fragrances I have ever smelled. Normally I don’t really wear spiced scents. I like some, but not enough to ever purchase and use. But this is so incredibly addicting?? I’ve been wearing it for two days and even went to sleep with it on, and I NEVER do that. I’m like 90% sure I will be getting this unless for some reason I change my mind by Sept. 1st. At first it’s pretty fresh spiced, with a sweet but strong cardamom note, as well as some frankincense. Over time it gets warmer and warmer, and after a while the vanilla base turns it into a really pleasantly, but not overbearingly sweet frag. My skin tends to bring out sweet (vanilla) notes, so I can imagine this doing the opposite and working on a man very well. A well crafted unisex, as most Aesop frags.

I disagree with those who say this lacks Aesop’s DNA, if anything, it feels like a skilful blend of several existing Aesop fragrances: Marrakech Intense, Ouranon, Eidesis, Rozu, and even top notes of Eremia. The only unexpected note is vanilla, though it’s not dramatically prominent. While there’s nothing radically original here, it’s executed very well in my opinion – much prefer it to the recent Aurner and Virere. Its concept is ambitious – aiming for the stars! – and you can tell the perfumer set out to keep it in a liminal space between several moods, which suits Aesop’s subtle sophistication. I’ve been wearing it for a week thanks to samples, so it’s early days, but do try it on skin: on paper it seems to lose much of its powdery, more 'feminine' quality. Definitely worth sampling, and I’m curious to see how my experience evolves with continued wear. I can imagine someone who finds Eidesis or Marrakech Intense too forward but loves the general direction of those fragrances could fall in love with Steorra.

Went into Aesop to buy Eidesis, left with this one instead. It’s a warm, cumin spicy, vanilla sweet, and somehow lightly fresh and herbal, all at the same time. This scent profile is done in a very Aesop way - sits close to the skin but lasts long enough. This is my new fall fragrance for daily wear, albeit a very expensive one. For cooler seasons, I plan to wear this during the day and Halfeti or African Leather at night depending on the occasion. All have that similar spicy/ambery profile but done very differently. Not worth the price but I’m enjoying wearing it.

Popped in to my local Aesop boutique to sample this yesterday. I have to say this is a lovely autumn/winter scent, a real "cosy" fragrance - it's not over-powering with a moderate to mild sillage, the cardomom note is really noticeable (on my skin anyway) and the fragrance lasts for a fair while. Not to be crass but this remind me very much-so of Spicebomb (in its final hours when the awful opening peppery-notes have worn off), albeit more mature, with added depth.

It's fine. Pretty unremarkable and criminally overpriced. It's not original, and I immediately just find myself thinking of ten or so other scents that do this better and more interestingly. Doesn't smell anything like Ambre Sultan to me. Less sweet, more incense, more cumin, and it could be better, but as it stands it's not too far from Eau des Baux, which is infinitely cheaper (and better in fact).

The smell is initially a hit of that incense vanilla blend but settles into a nice spicey skin scent. The vanilla is true vanilla bean and not sugared vanilla which I very much like. Adult but playful and enjoyable to smell when you get close. I would recommend a test spray before ever blind buying because aesop scents tend to transform after sitting which can go both ways!

Steorra will leave you smelling like an expensive ass artisan cardamom bun. Perfect for fall when it comes out 1st sep. Strong amber and cinnamon base, adds to the sweetness. I am slightly disappointed that the tonka bean/vanilla doesnt come through as much, I think its too muted compared to the warmer spice blend.

Open with strong peppery notes, then transform to my absolu fav part-frankincense, and some may get Arabic vibe from the frankincense, but anyway that’s the essence of sterorra. What’s more, I enjoyed the sweetness that cinnamon and vanilla brought to the notes, they are stunning. Just so warm and fresh

I had the chance to try it on my skin in an Aesop shop. It reminds me of Tom Ford Bois Pacifique and Paco Rabanne One million. Smells like coke but with the vanilla and spices. Not bad! It’s released on the 1st of September and can be ordered online 2 weeks in advance.

Splendid, but... Dominant Notes: Cumin, Vanilla, Cardamom Secondary Notes: Elemi, Pepper, Cinnamon Subtle Notes: Cistus, Incense My husband sums it up crudely in one sentence (for once, we agree): "This one smells like post-Carnival sweat" Because yes, Carnival in the West Indies is a hectic and festive time, where people dance and sing in the heat and sweat of others. The problem with Aesop is their obsession with Cumin, which they're convinced is an absolute avant-garde move... except it's not. In every way, it's a parody. First "Karst" then "Eidesis" then "Gloam" then this one, "Steorra". Aesop, is it so difficult to use a different spice other than Cumin ? In short, a fragrance that opens beautifully before being overshadowed by a poorly measured Cumin, very "sweaty" with that subtle whiff of public transport and commute. It's annoying, it lacks clarity. Food-like and almost vinegary, I'm torn between hating it and finding one or two good qualities in it. Because it does have one or two... After 20 minutes of pure torture, it's a warm, animal and penetrating Vanilla. A kind of short-haired fur, a tawny coat. Its drydown spiced with aromatic resins, almost tribal, is hauntingly sweet. I imagine a night of comets and shooting stars, a lunar and stellar landscape. A desert of sand, dust, and monoliths. A meteor shower. You'll love it if you liked: - Le Labo "Rose 31" - Dior "Dolce Vita 1994" - Kenzo "Jungle the Elephant" - Penhaligon's "Halfeti Leather" - Penhaligon's "Blazing Mr. Sam" - Amouage "Epic 56 Woman" - Amouage "Boundless" - Diptyque "Opone" - Diptyque "L'Autre" - Diptyque "34 Boulevard St Germain" MY TOP 5 AESOP: 1: Marrakech Intense 2: Eidesis 3: Above Us, Steorra 4: Ouranon 5: Eremia

Aēsop frags are my fav, but this one is a miss. It’s simple almost skeletal. Vanillic resins with cardamom. Despite its seemingly strong fragrance profile, it seems quite intimate and the scent goes away fast. Not a bad thing, but if it goes away at least intrigue me first. Seems like a sibling of Marrakech Intense without the white florals and a dose of vanilla. Seems with their newer fragrances since the othertopias ended they seem to be chasing fragrance trends but always arriving late. Virere it was a tea scent, Aurner was a woody white floral, and now we have a vanilla fragrance. I miss Barnabe Fillon’s work.

Have tried this a few times, & the first 8 seconds of this is is a bit magic - like a cardamom bun floating in space, sparkling & sort of moody cardamom, so nice, totally fits the storytelling of the fragrance - but then it dries down extremely quickly to resinous, extremely cumin-forward blandness on my skin. I don't get vanilla at all from this also, oddly enough - it seems to be what a lot of people get very strongly.

I would agree that this is similar to Marrakech in that it's deeply resinous. The vanilla is a supporting note, not at all the star, which I love. Unfortunately the cumin note comes out in a very offensive way. I understand why it was added. It's interesting, makes you sniff a little longer to figure out what's "off". But it just ruins it for me, so I'm not the target audience!

Uh I really don’t like this one. I can see someone liking this, it’s not that bad. But I really hate cumin in perfumes. It starts kinda lovely and spicy vanilla but then the cumin hits my nose and I feel really repulsed. To clarify some people are into spices and would love this, but definitely it’s not a safe blind buy.

Paper sample: unlit incense scent, very very frankincense, great if you love that (I don't). Reminiscent of Glossier You Doux to my nose, but softer (doux-er? Lol) and a bit less dry/pickle-y.

Body odor and kitchen spices. It had potential but the didn’t balance the cumin note well. It’s a pass for me.

Starts off really lovely, like wow, then it all burns off into a vanilla sludge. So disappointing.

A nice spicy vanilla that makes me feel nothing

There has never been an Aesop fragrance I hated...until this one. I get no hint of vanilla or cinnamon whatsoever, it is instead a pretty cold undiluted frankincense smell with very little sillage. It really could benefit from the warmth of more vanilla. From the ingredient list I was expecting strong similarity to their scent Marrakech (which is such a calming warm smell), but Above Us is quite bitter smelling. I can’t recommend this scent.

An absolute blast of cumin and spice (cardamom, pepper). It may be my skin but the cumin note is too much and smells unpleasant, body odor. If you can make it through the opening the dry down is much softer and the vanilla peaks through. Not my favorite from Aesop

Personally for me it must be the combo of cardamom and cumin ... , both Above Us, Steorra and Marrakech Intense smells like strong armpit odor to me. Spraying them on me, it felt like as if I'm held strongly under a man's armpit lol

I generally like cumin notes in perfumery; a hint of it can give so much complexity and depth. But to my nose, the cumin here goes way past "hint." It dominates to the point that I can't smell anything else.

cardamom cookie dough straight from the fridge. it's waxy, buttery, cooling, a little bit sweet, overall dull. it doesn't smell bad, but i don't want to smell like this. could be a comforting candle?

Kidz bop version of boundless from amouage. Noncommittal and boring for the price. Great name though.

Unfortunately, this fragrance didn’t work for me. Right out of the bottle, it hits with a sharp cumin blast that feels overwhelming and clashes with what I’d hoped for. The opening has a strange, cheap witchy essential oil vibe that leans more apothecary than perfumery. As it dries down, it turns vaguely incense-like, but not in a refined or compelling way...more like a generic, budget interpretation of something mysterious. Overall, it smells cheap and uninspired to my nose. I was left unimpressed. Even the name feels off... like a boardroom attempt at trendiness, giving L’Oréal stakeholder energy.

The cumin note is so dominant! I have perfumes that have a cumin note but this one is quite offensive. Unless I am eating a delicious dish, i do not want this on my skin.

Aesop without Barnabe Fillion is just a total soulless mess! Back to the cheap juvenile Tacit era! Yucks!!!

If you want to smell like BO go for it.

my recent-release Aesop report card to guage your alignment with the proceeding review Eidesis: currently own it, still like it. sparkly champange-like woods Gloam/Ouranon: really respect the vision and construction but not for personal wear. Ouranon is posssibly one of their most interesting. Virere: a little too classically styled after men's sweet anise fougere type things and dries down a little flat. Opening is nice but drydown is lacking. Aurner: did not dislike as much as most long-time fans did and enjoyed the depth to the earthy-fresh aquatic direction they went in. Now for this release we have a dry, spicy amber leaning into incense and vanilla. But how many woody incense things can the market support? Honestly I was a little bored with the brief the attendant gave me explaining it as a cardamom wood and incense thing. So yea that's what it is. The quickly-forming drydown has that matte, almost waxy quality of smelling like a snuffed out candlestick- reminding me of a part of CDG's 2man. In terms of more complete substitutes It reminds me most of something like Le Labo's Poivre 23 or the somewhat similar Noir Encens from the Infiniment line from Coty. Which is to say this is a delicate vanilla supported on a pile of gentle resins and spices, but without a ton of sweetness. It feels like something I've smelled in many places and maybe for that reason it actually feels a bit unfinished. Like there was a chance for a new perspective here but they've stopped short of exploring it. It's not necessarily bad- I'm sure people will enjoy it in the fall, but even though I mentioned two ridiculously priced perfumes I know there are more that do a peppery vanilla scent just as well. Where I found a degree of botanical lushness in Aurner that felt in-line with the Aesop aesthetic, this feels like it could have come from almost any other niche brand.

For me this feels like it’s attempting to be every amber on the market at once and fails to have its own character because it is trying to be 10 different things at the same time. It has warm spices and cumin that gives it a Ambre sultan vibe, but then the spices go cold and “fresh”. There’s an aspect of it that smells like men’s body wash. There’s a bit of benjoin boheme in there. It’s worse than everything it almost smells like and has no personality of its own. They tooted their own horn really hard about “re inventing amber” and succeeded only in treading paved ground and probably making the most boring amber out of any niche house. It’s not like making a good amber is rocket science anyway. If you’re gonna do something that’s been done a thousand times you need to tell your own story with it to stand out. Celine is a very talented perfumer but I don’t think she understands Aesop. Bring back barnabe. Every scent Celine has made for Aesop has this fresh commercial sheen to it that feels like it would be more at home at Sephora than on a weathered wooden shelf. Especially at aesops price point I need to smell some high quality naturals, not perfumey mass-market designer profiles

Cardamom pepper clove frankincense vanilla amber Aesop seems to attract a mixed community, the overall quality perfume enthusiasts but also a niche crowd that enjoys their more avant garde odd stuff. This one is definitely a crowd pleaser, in the best way possible and hides a small Aesop typical twist, but this automatically makes it prone to critique from those looking for more Miraceti adjacent weirdness. Steorra opens stunningly spicy with a similar cardamom pepper clove intensity of Marrakech Intense, cool and fresh from the cardamom and pepper yet intensely warm-piquant before the more comfy fuzzy and quite familiar frankincense amber appears, like the smiley friend that arrives last but never fails to set the mood. I appreciate the balance between spice and amber, neither overindulgent nor too thin. The aforementioned spin is a sprinkling of cumin which at times reminds of Declaration Parfum, but never becomes gritty. I personally will stick to Marrakech Intense, I prefer the lack of ‚padding‘ I get from the more transparent rose and woods. Plus I already own and adore Amouage Boundless which feels like a more luxurious and regal older brother.

I like this one much more than I thought I would! It's the whole spice rack, plus two generous teaspoons of vanilla. Cardamom, pepper, cinnamon, maybe even something a bit coffee like. It's also got a lightly incense-y feeling. And it's ambery, woody, and warm, with a friendly, cozy, bookish vibe. It does have a bit of the Aesop DNA, including a strong hit of cumin. But it's much more "human" than the other Aesop fragrances, which could just as easily be room sprays as perfumes. It's extremely similar to Vanilj by Maya Njie (an indie-ish perfumer that's very worth checking out.) That fragrance was inspired by Swedish Kardemummabullar (cardamom buns!), but Vanilj is woodier whereas Above Us, Steorra is spicier. It's also similar to Intoxicated by Kilian, but Intoxicated is deeper, richer, more gourmand, and has a lot more going on in the drydown.

i want to scream every time i try a new aesop fragrance and the cumin note acts like a bad jumpscare.... the initial spray works so horribly on my skin it's actually embarrassing. thankfully the bulk of the cumin subsides after roughly 10 minute and i'm left with a rather pleasant, slightly gingery cardamom bun-adjacent smell. it's not quite sweet enough to enter the world of baked goods, but it does have a certain warm quality that differentiates it from a simple spicy fragrance. i wish the cinnamon note was more prominent (in fact, i barely detect it at all), but this is certainly a fragrance that would do nicely for an autumnal cafe-hopping afternoon

Sadly Terrible. Cumin x amber. Absolute No No. Hate it . Gross. Considering to use it in the toilet but even then wouldn’t work. Why would I want my toilet to smell of cumin ? I had 3s of top notes that were engaging and right away the end of it for me. Where are cardamom and vanilla. One of the worst gift and pure wasted money . Why , but why ?!! Edgy does not mean impossible to wear. The brand able to make edgy and pleasant scent is not doing anything dishonorable! I really don’t understand the idea behind this scent. Absolute no balance . A pity because concept, name, communicated pyramid were cool...

sizzling, celestial, an aēsop take on amber. the initial top note lends to an incandescent cardamom (nearly fresh) with vanilla bean dancing into the middle notes. this isn’t a gourmand (thankfully) - this is eidesis’s estranged cousin. perhaps ouranon’s little sister. i find the fragrance has the most impact in the first one hour of wear but ive yet to receive a compliment while wearing it. perhaps it smells too familiar (a la cashmere mist donna karan) or maybe it’s just not that unique of a profile. this will be a bottle i reach for when i don’t know what mood im in.

90% dupe of Ambre sultan, which is cheaper and has already existed for nigh 30 years. There’s a coolness and almost men-cologne quality to it as well from the cardamom, as well as a tinge of “hairiness” from the incense reminiscent of Avignon or Ma Nishtana . That being said, these are granular nuances built on top of what smells nearly identical to what serge did already. Also the sillage/longevity is more akin to older Aesop fragrances unfortunately. It’s a great by the book amber, but there’s also a thousand great by the book ambers. I ain’t mad it it tho.

Above Us, Steorra, by Aesop, smells like frankincense, alcoholic tonka beans, cardamon, vanilla powdered sugar and cinnamon. It is a very Aesop style fragrance. Aromatics and spices shine. At first, I loved the fragrance, it smelled like Arabic sweets to me. The problem came with the dry down, there is an accord that smells like body odor, armpit odor, to me. My nose just can't accept it.

It starts off great, so fizzy and spicy like a sparkling coming out of fireworks but the dry down is not so good and this is not the fault of the perfume itself but rather my own association lol cause it reminds me of hot water by davidoff in the dry down (just a little bit but it's enough that it makes me think of that perfume) and I don't have a good association with that perfume 😭

The cumin and spices here are very mild. Definitely not as powerful as Amouage Fate Man. This seems like a mix of Fate Man and Epic Man but made tamer and a little boring. Any vanilla note / accord is fleeting on me, it was candy like for a while and gone. Some floral notes like magnolia, champacca and a heavy dose of myrrh would do this fragrance good

sampled this today on paper and my initial reaction was shock. i did not expect aesop to jump onto the vanilla train. this is nice and pleasant but generic. it lacks aesops essence and originality which makes me a little uneasy.... on paper this has faded quite quickly while the others have lasted well to review again on skin

This is extremely beautiful. I stopped by an Aesop store today and tested this out on my skin. I get a ton of spices and amber - the more it dries down the less stinky it gets. Totally like a spice market in the Middle East. As with every perfume, wait for the dry down on this one before fully judging.