Hardkor

An interestingly lovely dance of accords that subverted my expectations and made me re-think my preferences. "Fruity" is not an appealing draw from fragrances for me, but somehow this easily soared to the top of my list out of the last 30 samples I've tried. The tropical fruit impression is immediate and strong, but the florals hold its hand firmly and keep its sweetness from flying into gourmand territory - and it just *stays* there, never missing a step, never falling out of rhythm. The leather, wood, and patchouli are all well balanced to tether it firmly to the ground without shouting over the softer elements, keeping the overall profile just warmly dark and masculine enough without employing the usual bombastic bravado. As everything begins to blend and quiet down, the vanilla reveals itself to be naturally at home with the same modest pithiness. The name "Hardkor" seems contradictory to what's actually in the bottle, to the fact that there are no corners, edges, or straight lines anywhere to be found: the texture of this is impeccably smooth and perfectly inoffensive. It's pronounced yet not cloying, fruity yet not sweet, leathery yet not old, delicious yet not gourmand, safe yet not generic. This is the olfactory equivalent of "he who knows how to speak, knows also when." From the moment I put it on my skin I could not stop smelling it and had to exercise a pointed effort at composure to not order a full bottle within ten minutes. I'm giving my sample the due diligence of wear before purchasing, but this will absolutely be my next buy.

A very playful scent, and a very hard one to describe as well. Opens with a combination of the semi-synthetic leather, some incense, and then mostly mango and passionfruit, the sweet leather is on-level with the fruit to begin with, very exotic, fruity leather instead of harsh smoky leather. It has a pretty distinct overtone of incense. When wearing this out and about or at the office, I've gotten a lot of people asking what that smell is, all reacting positively to it, but everyone seems to describe it the same way, "kind of like incense", and there is a very incense-y dry character to the leather, which is made pretty tropical with the mango. Slightly similar to oud maracuja, but a good bit more rounded, smoother, less oud which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but not a good thing either. It's just different despite being smell-wise adjacent. Oud Maracuja is very distinctly passionfruit and mild oud, where this is more incense, mild/smooth leather, and mango. Most prominent smells: mango, incense, leather, some sweetness Occasions: Very interesting scent, very out of the ordinary, fantastic for an afternoon or evening sitting at a bar or café. Shirt mostly or entirely unbuttoned (mandatory)

Cant leave an objective review due to this being the first fragrance that REALLY opened my eyes to how good fragrances can smell and make you feel, this is a late night alleyway in a medieval city, youre walking on damp cobblestone and in front of you, you notice that there is a tavern with dim lights on with a few people outside, chatting and about to go back home to rest for the night, you can smell the leather vests and boots that they're wearing, all damp because of the mild rain, and the scent of that leather slightly mingling with some flowers that are nearby, the leather easily overpowering them however. Anyway, yeah, i didnt expect to like this and to be fair, i didnt at first, but when i sprayed it the second time, i absolutely fell in love so hard, literally the best scent ive smelled ever

The word Hardcore is one of a kind: it indicates something extreme , pushed beyond the limits. In this fragrance, which I really liked, there are two extremes: the incensed / leathery one and the fruity one. I must say that the evolution on my skin follows the inverted pyramid: initially the very dry incense dominates, mixed with strong leathery notes, they remain and see an explosion of sweet and juicy fruit. An exceptional contrast, and those who know me know that I don't particularly like fruity perfumes but here, thanks to the leather that constantly disappears and reappears, I find everything very pleasant. And the name fully represents it. Wishlist ? Absolutely yes, I miss such a fragrance. “Everybody becomes a Dragon” by contemporary artist Miu Komatsu.

i just can't get enough of this. it's strong, sure, it gets to your head, but in the best way possible. it's the best leather fragrance i've ever smelled - an old jacket that has just returned from a spa day at the leatherworking shop, all cleaned up and nourished, but still holding all the memories of decades of wear time. it still remembers the smoky bitterness of all the packs of cigarettes you've carried in its pocket, the warmth of the campfires you've set up, the richness of all the perfumes you've worn each time you put it on, the sweetness of a spare fruit candy that has melted in your pocket all the way through the lining. this is a beautiful, warm blend that makes me feel nostalgic about things i never had.