Moonlight Samurai

This feels like a samurai who has found a place to rest after a long journey and has opened up a bottle of sake in quiet celebration. The sweat and dirt from the journey still clinging to his skin. On the initial spray I was hit with heavy sake, it felt like I had been drinking too much at a restaurant, pleasantly warm but on the cusp of pushing myself over the edge. The scent then dried down into something more woody and kinda sexy in an old silver fox way. This scent is seducing me the more I smell it! I wish there were travel size versions of this scent as it is too masculine for me to justify getting a full size bottle, but I still want to be able to smell this at my leisure.

This is a boozy, leather scent with metallic undertones. I can see why a lot of people don't connect with this as I don't think the audience that likes dannam would enjoy this type of scent. That being said i find it exceptional. The sake in the opening is quite strong and unmistakable but works well with leather. The booziness starts to smell more metallic like overtime which almost gives it light smokiness. Floral notes give it an added softness which makes it extremely wearable. I picture a Japanese bar filled with young fashionable men dressed in Japanese reproduction leathers and raw denim while rocking back some sake.

First spray has a strong, alcoholic sake and leather scent assaulting your nose + slight hints of metallic notes. Mellows down over time (2+ hours in warm, humid weather) into a unisex leathery, cedar and very subtly floral scent. Becomes an intimate, almost feminine cedar and floral scent around 4+ hours of wear before it fades off. Absolutely love this perfume, by far my favourite of the Japan collection.. so worth it!!

suchhhhhhhhhhhhh an INTERESTINGGG smell!! omg!! So cedary, so leathery, so incensey, and possibly sakey?? Just a really sharp, and intense smell. It's truly such an unforgettable experience smelling this, quite animalic. Definitely won't buy for myself to wear but it gives a very intense vibe which I love. The dry down is actually just as intense as the opener, just such a scent that makes me think back on it a lot!!!

Impressive very realistic and well done sake note. As it drys down some florals and a really oily black leather comes into play until it final goes into a more metallic direction. Very evocative and executes its concept very well. Amazing fragrance but realized it’s not something I’d like to wear after trying it a few times. A too persistent and projecting leather in the dry down for my taste

This smells so much like Falcon leather from Matiere premiere. Which I love. Really nice. What I pictured when I smelled this was Wi Ha-Joon from Squid Game season 2 ep2 going out to the Halloween party in his leather jacket. Sexy. 9/10

Love this one. Great modern woody fragrance, sings like minimalism while being somewhat complex. I love the sweet undertone, very pleasant woody Smokey sweet scent, while not being too heavy or deep. Could wear any time of day really.

On my skin, the flowers were very present. Very very sweet with the sake and very feminine. My boyfriend tried it out and the leather was more present on him. Love this fragrance and I think it’s really underhyped in the collection

Really like this. Smoky, leather tobacco, honey, metallic, gunpowder and some sweetness like pear. Sake not sure about that note. I had good longevity with the fragrance.

This is one of the only properly masculine scents I love. I’ve never smelt or tried sake in my life but it smells amazing

Woody, slightly Smokey, sweet, long lasting, unique, very pleasant and masculine

Very smoky leather, the opening has and interesting boozy note (sake, I presume), but as soon it settles it gets dry as a whip. I knew this was very masculine, but I like to try atmospheric, evocative fragrances to see if they can paint the promised picture. To me, Moonlight Samurai smells more like a rogue or a bandit, his leather saddle worn and dry with desert dust, moonshine in his flask. The steel note reminds me more of and old gun than a katana; maybe the smokey vibe makes me think of gunpowder, I don't know. Cedar is there, but just as a facet of the bark-tanned leather. I like it best layered with Tokyo Nights: the boozy, sweet plum wine gives more body and substance to the sake note, while the amber and the osmanthus give a noble, refined aura to our bandit, properly turning him into the samurai we were promised.

i really love the smell of a bar when someone orders steamed sake so ive been on the hunt for a sake scent. picked this up the d'annam memories of japan discovery scent to try this the opening note has a very nice cloudy sake scent, but then as it dries down the smell of wood and leather overpowers it. it's still a beautiful woody scent with strong sillage. leans extremely masculine so i wouldn't wear it personally but would make a nice gift. not sake enough if thats what youre looking for. does kind of smell like what id imagine a lead in a historical drama would smell like lol. or like a vintage shop.

This is a leather very much in line with other Japanese fragrances I own and have tried (despite being made by a Vietnamese brand). By that, I mean it is transparent, leaning on tidy and clean compositions rather than opulent and bold statements that a lot of people may associate with niche fragrance. These sensibilities are what draw me to d'annam's Memories of Japan series. Moonlight Samurai is a straightforward supple leather with subtle nuances that emphasize the poetry of the samurai, not just the warrior aspects. While it may not for everyone, it is beautiful and interesting, but in modest way.

First of all this is very beautiful. Much simpler than I expected but I do enjoy it a lot. Something interesting about Moonlight Samurai is the alcoholic note, like a fruity liquor, plum maybe, is more prominent after the fragrance dries. Usually those boozier qualities melt right off the top but this one sticks around quite a bit. Beyond that is heavy smoke in a tiny dimly lit room. Its vaguely synthetic. Maybe a strange blend of aromatic oil diffused in steam combined with a dry wood burn. Not very unique but a gorgeous addition to my smoke collection.

An extremely boozy and leathery forward scent with hints of a metallic undertone thanks to the metal sword accord. Opens with a strong sake note, like you’re smelling it straight out of the bottle, accompanied with that sharp metallic undertone, and a subtly floral touch. The leather comes loud and proud as the scent develops and never leaves, only becoming stronger in the dry down with a prominent dry woodiness from some cedar. This is like a samurai drinking sake in a wooden bar with his swords nearby.

I find this wearable. It seems challenging to others. But, seems very wearable for me. I do agree that the sake is near spot on. I bought a bottle for my FIL on Father's Day. We spent the night enjoying it. Really very close. This would have fit perfect for the day. Beyond that, it is a nice woody leather frag. A hint of a mineral feel which you can equate to the samurai sword. So a samurai taking a nightly stroll after enjoying a bottle of sake.

I've never smelt sake, but there is a strong alcohol to this that makes it feel clean. The leather stands out to me the most, which I mainly associate with thrift shops, but that clean feel from the alcohol and the mineral quality make it completely different... I imagine this on a cool guy who collects vintage pieces and religiously updates his letterboxd. Also, how cool of a name is Moonlight Samurai? Feels Sasuke-esque lol.

This one is the oriental take on a leather fragrance. And it is quite the opposite of what we call "Oriental" in the West. In reality, the sticky amber (opium-like) is not what people in SEA and the Far East prefer. They prefer clean, transparent, lightweight, and crispy fragrances. No oud, no amber, no chypres. This leather is clean, dry, powdery, and airy. Very masculine.

First of all, the name of this fragrance is amazing. This smells like leather with cedar and somethng that i have never smelt before. I dont drink and that might be why, but it smells kinda airy. The leather is strong and in your face but at the same time, there's soemthing airy in the background that makes it more wearable.

Opening is beautiful sweet sake, 30 minutes to 1 hour in its very poo oud, but then the dry down after 3 hours is very smooth leather. Strong projection for 1hr then medium for 1 until skin

Interesting scent interpretation of a sake barrel, with a smoky cedar wood and leather base. Great longevity and projection. If you enjoy a boozy, woody and leather combo, this is for you.

Straight up just smells like leather and alcohol. At first I didn’t like it but for some reason it’s an addicting smell to me and I can’t figure out why.

This smells like a used leather jacket (in a good way) and the sake notes add a cooler, boozy touch. A great scent to wear at a bar or a vinyl shop

I loved the notes on this its such an experience but just not wearable for me, the dry down left me smelling again, like a thrift store grandpa.

At first, you really smell the sake and metal note. The sake is sweet and alcoholic very similar to how nigori sake smells, which is like sweet rice with a powder note. The metal is synthetic and kind of grating to my nose. Once the scent settles in, the cedar, flowers, and leather compete for attention. They do not dance nicely together and end up smelling a bit like a stale cigarette soaked in sake. I am reminded of one of the random old bars in Tokyo I've been to. The walls stained yellow, spilt sake on the meager wooden table I am sitting at, the tired businessman next to me staring off into space with a lit cigarette between his fingers that he has not taken a hit from in the past 20 mins, old yen coins in my pocket, and the light waft of floral scent from the waitress's well conditioned hair. Not a bad scent per say, but pretty average and not something I would wear. The sake note is amazingly accurate, but the metal is a bit annoying, and the cedar, leather, and flowers do not mix well. Reminds me too much of tired salarymen that are a dime-a-dozen in Tokyo. Maybe that is the modern version of a moonlit samurai: a tired business man alone in a rundown bar. Oh well! No harm, no foul. Tomorrow will be a new day and a new scent for me. Side note: d'Annam should do something with that sake note because it is such a unique and pleasant note!

Leather for sure, sake I can't quite pick out, but it's a familiar fruit/sweet x leather combo for sure if you've smelled a few already. It's smooth and not as abrasive or animalic as some people have noted from what I can tell at least. Not as strong though this is me smelling from a 1mL decant. Wish I got more samurai but it definitely comes off as an evening kind of mood. It's an alright sweet leather if that's what you're after! Wish I smelled something more unusual and metallic but it's okaaaay. Maybe I just had higher hopes for it as a weeb.

I smell the sake and that metal note on initial smell. I think it's a nice fragrance, but that metal note doesn't do it for me. Unlike Kimono when I smell the made up note of silk, I really smell silk. Here I don't smell metal. It reminds of when BPALs replicate metal. It's a nice smell but it doesn't smell like metal which honestly I think would be tricky to do in perfumery in a pleasant way anyway, because I imagine if something really smelt metallic it would smell like blood which is not the most pleasant experience.

Holy cow. This is so different. The sake is obviously making the perfume boozy. Slightly sweet. I think I get plum maybe? I get cedar in the background. It’s definitely not a bad fragrance, just very different and interesting. I am not sure I want it on me, but I can see its appeal. Leans more male.

Whew, my God! For me this smelled like sticking your nose into a freshly opened bottle of whiskey. Complete with the burn. Not entirely a bad thing if that’s your thing, but a mite too strong for me.

The perfume start with a beautiful sake/floral/leathery but the dry down is super similar to Cuoium (Orto Parisi) but without the strong animalic.

Sake & Leather. Slightly smooth, dark, sharp and boozy but mostly raw Leather, That's it. Unique but not that intresting.

Opens with a lovely sake note that sadly disappears after five minutes, then is just boring leather and boring smoke.

This smells like a steel sword. Not too wearable for me but I appreciate the art behind this fragrance.

something like an old katana made of wood. VERYYY masculine. will defiently gift this to my man

a smoky leather that fades into a cedarwood, don't pick up on the sake at all sadly

I figured this be right up my alley however, this just smelt like a sweaty man in the back alley. This was the only perfume out of the set that I disliked. The opening note struck my nose with the sharp sting of sake, much like the alcohol-forward hit you get from certain perfumes. Spraying it on both my skin and a test strip, I realized it perfectly embodied its concept, a samurai: rugged, unwashed, and overworked, cloaked under the glow of a sake-soaked moon. It was so pungent I physically recoiled from the scent. However after about a month of letting the tester marinate I was surprised to really like the scent, the sweaty rich leather taste had moved onto a sake flower with sides of cedarwood. This perfume is not for the faint-hearted it’s a complex experience that requires time to fully appreciate it.

Moonlight Samurai is an interesting creation with a unique take on sake, cedar, and leather. To me, the sake note is what really shines in the first spray and initial sniff, giving it a distinctive and intriguing opening. The blend feels atmospheric and artistic, with the cedar and leather adding depth and character. While I appreciate the creativity behind it, I’m not sure it’s something I would personally wear often. I still prefer the Japanese Whisky fragrance from d'Annam, which feels smoother and more wearable to my taste.

Like someone else mentioned, it'd be great to experience the sake note differently. Sadly the wood is taking over too much for me and it leans too masculine for me to enjoy it. It's not a particularly unique scent overall but I love the attempt at trying something different.

Very sharp smell and I will give credit that this may be one of the longest wearing scents that I have ever worn. Easily lasted 8+ hours for me. That being said, it smells exactly like cocaine. The combination of the sake and the metallic, if you know, you know.

This one smells purely like sake, and nothing else. If you want to smell like an alcoholic deadbeat dad, this ones for you.

Dear lord. I have not been wearing perfume for long but this is the first one I've tried that has really earned the "long-lasting" vote for me. I sprayed two sprits on my neck, and at first it was somewhat pleasant. Sharp, a little dangerous, but mysterious. Nice, right? Until the cedar and leather began to bloom out of control. After three hours the cedar was still going, loud and proud, sharp and screeching. After six hours I had a headache. The scent was filling up my apartment and my car. As I led my girlfriend back to my apartment she reported that it was leaving a trail of sharp cedar and leather scented disinfectant behind me as well. I then went and scrubbed my neck in vain, discovering that it was actually my hair that held the scent, not my skin. I wet my hair down, thinking it might kill the screech factor, and I had a faint hope when my hair was wet because the perfume smelled like it should have, calm and mysterious, the cedar pleasant but cold. But then my hair dried once more and it became clear the only thing I could do to be rid of it was wash my hair with Head-and-Shoulders 2-in-1 for the second time that day. This perfume has been put in the banned category by both me and my partner. It would be nice if it were not so strong, but if you dare to try it for yourself, do not spray it by your hair because it will stay there until you wash it next. Also, if you know you are prone to headaches or migraines I would avoid this perfume altogether.

Just the opening of this fragrance alone makes me hate it - I don't even want to smell the rest of it. My face would scrunch up each time I went to sniff. Immediately went to go wash it off then sprayed something else (Diptyque Philosykos) over it. Easily the worst thing I've ever tried so far on my fragrance journey. The last scent I thought I despised greatly, Diptyque's Corail Oscuro, clearly I did not hate it enough.. because Moonlight Samurai takes that cake now. HUGE, LARGE, GARGANTUAN, MASSIVE, GIGANTIC, ASTRONOMICAL NO.

Somehow similar to Jazz Club by Replica, but without all the good parts. It's more reminiscent of an old bowling alley.

Too realistic of an alcoholic smell for me but I was expecting something worse fortunately

The sake note is definitely present and accurate in the very opening, but it's polite compared to the bite of some other boozy notes I've smelled. After that, it turns into a very nice floral leather for the remainder of the wear - I never really get the metallic/"steel sword" note that isn't listed here unless it's just playing into the same sharpness that's present from the sake. The florals do something similar to the raspberry in TF Tuscan Leather and it ends up being a pretty close leather scent to that one - this is mass appealing and very safe after the minor and brief weirdness of the opening. Truly confused by all the shocked reviews unless they're from people who aren't super into the hobby who were attracted to the line by Strawberry Mochi. Honestly I think that one is even a bit more unusual than this. All that said it's a strong like! Tuscan Leather-adjacent with a fun twist and interesting imagery attached. The packaging for these is also absolutely gorgeous.

Really hits the sharp sake note right off the bat with a metallic undertone, but quickly turns into a very leather heavy fragrance. Within a few minutes I’m mostly smelling the leather with a bit of cedarwood and not much else. This is a very masculine fragrance to me. Taking a sniff reminds me of walking into a tack shed and being hit in the face with the smell of leather saddles. As it dries down the cedarwood becomes a bit stronger with hints of wildflower peeking through, but it’s still primarily leather. While there’s nothing objectively wrong with it, this is not my kind of fragrance at all and I will probably not be using this again.

I'm not getting sake here, ...but I am getting miso soup! Moonlight Samurai opens as a strangely resinous leather scent with hints of savory and sweet. The drydown transitions to mostly smoky leather and sweetened cedar. Edit: there may also be a note of vetiver deep in the drydown, unlisted and unexpected.. This is a peculiar type of leather fragrance, ...so it is worth sampling. However 'peculiar' is only occasionally synonymous with 'appealing'. So this one is likely to stay 'niche', ...in the true meaning of the word. Always worth reading a brand's own note list. From d'Annam: sake, steel sword, leather armor, wild flowers, cedarwood

Moonlight Samurai smells like a delicious rum or cognac and dry leather. I didn't expect it to smell delicious? When you first spray it, is smells like a very delicious, alcoholic glass of rum or cognac, baked apples, dates and cinnamon. It reminded me a lot of Angel's Share. As the perfume dries down, you smell, more and more, a dry leather backbone. It has depth and personality. I also find it really masculine. Even though I could wear it, I think I would like to smell it more on my shirtless boyfriend. I can't smell any rice sake in it, or at least, it doesn't smell like the classic sake/nihonshu I tried on a few occasions.

It opens with a very realistic sake note that is unfortunately fleeting. The cedar is what I primarily recognize as it sits. It gets sweeter but only slightly- just enough to nicely soften the leather note. Cedar is a very nostalgic smell for me so it’s easy for me to enjoy here, the sake note was so interesting, I wish it lasted longer! I love how atmospheric it is. Though it’s a little too masculine for my taste, I’ll spray this on a late night out when I need to feel like a super cool, old guy. (Fantastic longevity!)