Kyoto

Beetroot is a tuber that could give sensory problems to the sense of smell, very subjective problems that depend greatly on experience. Once removed from the soil and washed, the tuber still has an organic-type odour similar to the soil, but more concentrated or enhanced. The root vegetable, besides its particular appearance, has a sweet and earthy taste, due to a compound called geosmin, produced by the plant itself. This substance gives off the earthy smell we all know. You know, after a storm when we smell this earthy smell coming from the ground? It is caused by a substance in the soil in this case. So it gives this not-too-sweet vegetable a touch of sourness. Everyone doesn't like or appreciate beetroot, which can be a polarizing tuber. Given that I like it, it has never happened to me before to come across a fragrance with this note among its ingredients. This bizarre element led me to make a blind purchase, which turned out to be a wise decision. First, Kyoto is a fragrance with balanced scents of incense, rose and vetiver. It belongs to the rosy, earthy, rooty, musky, smoky, and unconventional categories. However, as soon as I smelled Kyoto, I couldn’t help but imagine something earthly, the smell of damp autumn foliage. Frondescence, leafage, or foliage — call it what you prefer — but that’s what I feel. Kyoto gives off a very intense herbaceous scent, dizzying, reminiscent of freshly picked field vegetables. There is a decadent rosy scent that overlaps the earthy, a bit sweet, a tad tart, a hint of floral smell. The Turkish rose emerges undaunted, slow but astonishing, bittersweet and slightly peppery. I don’t remember any other perfume with this amazing opening, an earthy rose raised to the umpteenth degree. Not outdated, not the ordinary rose, but spicy and green, a truly revolutionary rose. As well as being earthy, the opening also has a slightly metallic undertone. This could be due to the rose petals and beetroot tubers that immediately come to mind. A dry incense, austere, very faint, with lemony hints fills the heart of Kyoto. While I find the slightly clerical incense appealing, it appears airy and sober as a feather here. It mixes with the rose and takes on musky tones. Bursts of incense flutter throughout Kyoto’s development. But the real magic is the sweet earthiness of the beetroot, it changes everything. If you are fond of incense, then this might not be what you’re looking for. In this movie, it is not one of the principal actors, but an extra who serves to fill the scene without dominating it. It blends seamlessly with the rose and gives the vetiver a smokier undertone. The dry-down reveals a smooth, vegetal, grassy, and slightly astringent vetiver, only a touch. The same vetiver that we also find in the homonymous Guerlain, very fickle, is sometimes sweeter and earthy and other times more herbaceous and peppery. Towards the end, the incense floats above everything. On my skin, it begins earthier and then floral but then becomes musky and animalic, with fresh vetiver balancing the rose from becoming too overpowering. It would not be unreasonable to include a tinge of white musk in the concoction. Floral, earthy, loamy, and smoky, Kyoto is a fragrance that is very sensitive to temperature and humidity. There are a lot of changes in the scent throughout the day, which is something I appreciate in a perfume. This scent has a moderate projection, and it lasts for a long time on the skin and even more on clothing. It screams cold weather, fall, and a great day and evening scent. If it were embroidery, the beetroot would be the thread covering the warp made from all the other notes. I base the review on a bottle I have owned since October 2022.

I adore this scent. I'm wearing a test spray today and I'm deeply in love with the lasting rose scent plus something interesting going on - it's not simply a Stella type of single note rose, though the rose is very similar (and I am a fan of Stella) but there's something else there. My husband says it smells like the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland, and he means that as a deeply appreciative positive. I am so sorry I am late to the game on trying to find a full bottle. It is an absolute pet peeve of mine that stores have a tester out for something that they have no stock of and none to order from other stores (Looking at you, Nordstrom Broadway Plaza - we are not friends today) I ordered this from England and hope their website is not mistaken in terms of stock. It's expensive shipping but worth it. Update: the bottle from Harrod’s arrived! It’s beautifully packaged with the small scarf wrapping the bottle, inside a larger Kyoto archival quality box. So lovely. Diptique says “ Presented in the furoshiki tradition, the bottle is wrapped in a fabric printed with the Sarayi pattern created by diptyque's founders.”

This may be one of my favorite scents of all time. It is certainly rosy and has the scent of beets, as well as fresh green leaves. But my favorite element is the base note — it’s like walking into a concrete garage, or the scent that radiates off the sidewalk when it’s just started to rain in the city. It’s the scent of dusty, dirt-covered rocks when you’re hiking on the side of a mountain. I say that with love. I have pica and it’s the EXACT scent that makes my mouth water. And now I get to wear it whenever I want!!!! I don’t think this smells anything like the city of Kyoto, but I see the connection, this collision of industry with tradition and beautiful forested mountains. The dusty stone steps leading through Senbon Torii, tucked away in the woods. Edit: I wore this to work as a middle school teacher for the first time — this is definitely a beast mode perfume. 3 sprays was an offensive amount. Multiple kids asked me if I’d been eating bell peppers or cucumbers. One said “it doesn’t smell bad, but it definitely doesn’t smell good.” It lasted my entire 7 hour shift. One spray max if you’re in an indoor area!!

This is so incredibly beautiful! It starts off with a sweet yet bitter peppery rose with a rooty vetiver base, then the pepper tempers down some to make way for beet root to come forward to complement the rose, sweetened with a bit of amber resin (does not smell of ambroxan, don’t worry). And what a complement these notes are to each other, wow! The frankincense incense note is there, but is a very light waft and just an accompaniment to the other notes. This is such a wonderful rooty, earthy, yet lightly sweet perfume that I just had to have it in my collection, immediately. It is what I had hoped Comme De Garçons Rouge would be. This and Venise are a limited release as part of the Le Grand Tour collection for the 60th anniversary celebration of the house. The presentation of the bottle is gorgeous with the Furoshiki wrap. I almost didn’t want to open mine, but I had to get at the beautiful perfume that was inside. Definitely FBW, don’t hesitate. Very nice layered with Venice, to bring out more of the green.

As per some of the reviews, this is truly a perfume that does not remind me of any perfumes I've smelled, ever. It opens quite floral and peppery for me, and over time the dry down becomes this soft, green rose. It is not a loud, intense, smoky rose that smells overripe/overtly sweet. Instead it is cool and balanced, and has an earthy quality that reminds me of a lush late summer garden. I'm normally not into green scents as I find them overwhelmingly squeaky and therefore uncomfortable, but the balance achieved in this perfume is sheer poetry. There is a certain "controlled" quality to this perfume that I love and within this setup you experience a deep beauty. A kind of delicate balance that has been achieved. Don't be thrown off by the "incense" - it is not woody/amber like a true patchouli kind of woody, but rather a soft gentle warmth that the rose layers on top of. To me this does not in any shape or form resemble Philosykos where the dominant note seems to be coconut.

This is one of Diptyque's best creations, and one of the best fragrances I've ever smelled. I love rose fragrances, especially earthy, green roses and this is the most perfect earthy rose. The beetroot is such an interesting note, it adds a sweet dirt vibe to the green rose. The incense allows for this fragrance to be worn through multiple seasons. I blind bought this fragrance after seeing a review describing it as "spicy tomatoes". For most this would be a turn off, but that sounded so weird I just had to try it. I'm soooo glad I did, this is one of the most cherished fragrances in my collection. I wish this wasn't a limited edition, I pray Diptyque comes to their senses and brings this back for another release at least!!! For an EDT, longevity and sillage are fantastic, 8-ish hours on skin, eternal on clothing. Price doesn't matter, I'd pay whatever they charged for another bottle.

Lovely natural earthy rose, and the quality is there as always. The opening is fresh vegetable green and beetroot, which feels so different from the usual green. As the opening fades out a little, although beetroot remains, rose emerges with some vetiver. Dont really get incense on my skin. The beetroot is such a nice touch, and make it so different from all rose perfumes i have tried, and bear in mind that im a rose lover and own/tried so many! Also, i dont find this to be a daring as people here finds it, so feel free to blind buy if you manage to find one. The performance is quite good, surpassing 6 hours longevity (although faintly towards the 7-8 hours mark), with moderate sillage (a little lower than the usual diptyque edt but its still not too bad). Considering that the smell is heavenly, and the packaging is superb, its definitely one of diptyque's finest.

A total stunner, nonetheless wholly reminiscent of both Eau Rose and L'ombre Dans L'eau from Diptyque. I would also say some of the herbal bite recalls Geranium Ordata, my truest love from the line. All are literal garden scents, not fantasy, impressionistic gardens, but the honest sensory experience of the location that puts you right there. Green, outdoorsy, very low to the ground where it's dark and shadowy, yet still fresh like clean air and lacking any dirtiness whatsoever. The dry and vegetal dominates but doesn't overwhelm because there's no denying that this is a rose scent of the highest order. I can't stop smelling it, I really want it. I just don't know if it would be too repetitive for $190, seeing as I have the other Diptyques.

Unique! It smells like kneeling down in the soil in a rose garden in the opening, but as it dries down it warms up with those spicy, incense-y notes. I don't have anything like this in my collection. However, I think I will be saving this one for cold weather or for when I'll be indoors the whole day - I wore this to go shopping on a hot day in Texas and all my friends could smell was spicy pepper! update: still love this one a year later but still very much a cold weather / WFH scent bc it is SO strong on me lol. also, don't spray it on your clothes because it sticks around. got some on a sweater i wore for a few hours but kept smelling it in my closet so i had to wash it.

Blind bought it after reading the reviews. The packaging is impressive - bottle is wrapped in a very nice piece of cloth. First note is extremely strong beetroot but in a couple of minutes it becomes more rosy and peppery. I would say it smells like veggies, black pepper, a bit woody with the slightest note of rose. Very unusual, reminded me of black pepper by cdg. Love it :) Update 1: now I can feel vetiver, wood, something sweet and wet earth, and somehow it's quite an exciting smell Update 2: it's really strong and sometimes goes back to beetroot only and actually made me sick to my stomach

Reminds me so much of Henry Rose Sheep's Clothing as the beetroot gives off a spicy peppercorn especially in the opening. The beetroot does dry down to be more vegetal/earthy then the pink pepper in Sheep's Clothing however paired with the rose they present similar profiles. Both have a musky character to them, and as others mentioned I don't get the incense but am able to pull a slight smokiness from the vetiver. It's a really great fragrance and I'm so happy to have been able to get a bottle from a reseller online. If you can't get your hands on Kyoto, definitely check out Sheep's Clothing.

came across this shortly after it left diptyque’s website and was contemplating purchasing but then sort of forgot abt it. over a year later, i was reading the fragrantica reviews and was reminded of how intrigued i was by the notes and ordered a bottle (new and unopened!) off a french ebay seller, a little under retail even w the international shipping. so glad i blind bought this! beautiful and earthy, i love the way this sits on my skin. it reminds me of a weekly after school program i went to at the botanical garden, and the mud when it had just rained.

I walked into the boutique when this was still for sale, not expecting to buy anything and walked away with Kyoto. Very glad I decided to be financially irresponsible that day - this is one of my favorite rose fragrances. Simple but powerful, very earthy and a little grassy. The incense brings a smoky element that shades this with a bit more mystery than your average garden scent. I really, really hope they bring this back in an archive sale someday because I know that once I use up my bottle it's gone.

Ah, I just LOVE this. It's so odd, but perfectly me. I'm not usually one for rose fragrances, but there's a mystical interaction between the beet and the flowers that makes it all very earthy and dirty yet juicy and semisweet. Not for the faint of heart, I'll admit. But it's the only Diptyque I've ever liked enough to buy (and I've sampled maybe 10 of them – Do Son, L'ombre dans l'eau, Philosykos, Eau Capitale, etc etc).

I desperately need Diptyque to release this perfume again... My roommate in university had this perfume and she was an angel to let me spray it every now and then. I literally think about Kyoto all the time. It literally transports you to a wet rose garden and you transform into a proud honeybee who works hard to pollinate this garden. Please Diptyque release this again!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Starts off with a bright and realistic red bell pepper (which is so specific and fun) then mellows into an earthy beet with rose. I like to wear it most in wintertime, where the pepper and rose stay architecturally delicate and don't get too sticky (as when I've tried it in summer). Strong lasting power, and I love the complex rosey next day remnant of this the most.

Up top it’s a tart rose, like a cranberry rose, a cute effect from the vetiver. The incense is there if you go looking for it, even then it’s subtle. The cool surprise is the use of beetroot which gives the composition a loamy characteristic. Lasts a good while on skin, even more on fabric. A charming earthy floral, quiet but noticeable.

One of the best outstanding and easy-to-wear fragrances. What makes it so unique is the combination of beetroot, rose and vetiver. I never thought of beetroot until I was told that is what I'm smelling. I can see why this could become a signature scent, something that can become nostalgic for someone. great creation! 9/10!

when i first smelled it back when it first came out, i didn't get it, but now i can't stop thinking about it. too bad it was a limited run. really beautiful.

I bought this in 2021 and use it sparingly. It is so special. I love the beetroot earthy note. I feel like I'm planting roses in fresh soil.

to my nose this smells a little bit of toy boy moschino but in a lighter form.

I have an almost full 100ml bottle. PM if you want it.

I do agree that fragrances that are inspired by places are not really meant to portray the perfume preferences of that region, but rather reflect what the nose finds to be evocative of that region, therefore using materials/scent accords they would have encountered during their stay there or which they imagine to be typical for the region - the latter I fear being the more common case. Realistically though oftentimes we end up with a creation that is not really evocative of a place but rather the imaginary image or impression the nose has of that place. This can of course be daunting for locals to the region, because not only do outsiders mostly only get a very shallow insight to a place over a brief stay, but their attention also often gets attracted by scents many locals wouldn't think of wearing as a fragrances. If the nose ever visited the place at all that is. Have an India themed fragrance, you can be sure 9 out of 10 times you have a bunch of agarbatti (incense sticks) and the entire spice market thrown at you, making many such fragrances end up smelling like some Indian aunty's kitchen after the morning puja and the day's first round of spice grinding. A shame, thinking how many various luscious native florals and woody accords would be available to work it. Well, what can you do? If you consider perfumery art, you also have to accept that a perfume at the end of the day often is just someone's creative expression of their idea about something, rather than a photorealistic reproduction of something. Some artists paint a person in a way, you wonder if it's an actual photo, and then you have artists like Picasso. In the case of Kyoto, however, considering that beetroots seem to be neither native nor common in Japan - a dead give away being the english loan word names, Tēburubīto (table beet) or Bītoruto (beet root) - I do think that I<3Perfume really does have a good point here. Other than the Incense - which in Japanese culture as I understand it is tied to very specific places and moments within the culture - there doesn't really seem to be anything especially evocative about Kyoto or Japan to be found here. I'd really love to hear/read what exactly about the city of Kyoto inspired the nose to go for this specific ensemble of notes. Personally though, loving the house and its creations, I will be checking this fragrance out regardless once given the chance. I also did have the good fortune to be able to visit the beautiful city of Kyoto 2 years back. Let's see if I get the nose's drift in her creation once I get to smell it in person. Diptyque also does have some gorgeous Boutiques in Japan, it's not like they're complete strangers to the market. On top I found that in Kyoto there are a lot of French expats enamored with the city of Kyoto. So maybe even if the ingredients don't seem to suggest it at first glance, maybe in the end there is something about the essence or mood of Kyoto that the nose could capture here. Let's try and see.

Super happy I got to visit a Diptyque boutique in Berlin recently. I was enchanted from first sniff and so were the two friends I was with. Both gentlemen on smelling it instantly went 'Ohhhh, this is so nice!' Suffice to say I had to take it with me. The presentation is lovely. The bottle is wrapped in a beautiful small Furoshiki and the bottle itself too has a great design as we're used to from Diptyque. The fragrance itself is a wonderful cool, wet and earthy rose. I'm not that much into rose fragrances, because I tend to find them a bit too 'perfumy', but this one is natural and refreshing. Think of a European garden in early spring in cool air just after a bit of rain. There's fresh rose, yes, but there's almost mossy-woody undertones which certainly come from the synergy of vetiver and the beetroot. Talking of the beetroot. This is the one note I really couldn't imagine to work from just reading the notes. But it absolutely does work! It ads a pleasant earthiness, but also a little hint of fruity sweetness. I do not get much of the incense other than the very slightest bit in the dry down. Either way, I like this a lot! Diptyque has done it again. It's another of their very natural and grounding smelling, but also masterfully blended fragrances. Beautiful and uplifting for every day casual wear from spring to fall. I do think it leans feminine rather than masculine, but if you're a guy who happens to fall in love with this, by all means you'll smell amazing! Projection on me is moderate, but longevity is great at least in European weather. Now, in an earlier comment which I wrote before actually trying the fragrance I was musing about just how this fragrance might tie into the theme of 'Kyoto'. I'm still not quite sure tbh, but I do feel this embodies very well an ideal of masterfully working with simplistic yet refined materials. Having read by now that the fragrance was supposedly inspired by the art of Ikebana, I have to say, I can kind of see/smell it. Another great release by Diptyque. Do give it a sniff if you get the chance!

Who would have thought that beetroot could be a good addition to a rose perfume? It certainly wouldn't have crossed my mind. But now that I think about it, it makes sense, as beetroot has a very earthy scent and other earthy notes often work well with rose, for example patchouli. Beetroot is different, of course, it has a cooler, vegetal type of earthiness. Well, we all know what a beetroot smells like, and it's done pretty realistic here. The rose in Kyoto is very pretty, it's sweet, dewy and leans a little fruity, like there was some kind of citrus note blended in. I think this fresh rose is the perfect partner for the beetroot note, if it was a heavy, powdery rose it wouldn't have worked at all. Together with the grassy vetiver it creates an outdoorsy, garden-like feeling. I don't detect a lot of incense. The opening is the earthiest and also the most original part of the fragrance, the drydown is more of a classic rose fragrance with a little twist. I really like how the scent develops, maybe it would turn overwhelming if it smelled like fresh beetroots all day. I have been to Kyoto for a couple of days on holidays and I don't find this scent all that evocative of the city, but also not unfitting. All in all this is a unique and beautiful scent that I like a lot.

how did you do this, diptyque? i was blaming myself for 3 years since this limited edition bottle was released in north america in 2021, and i disregarded buying a bottle (and does the diptyque boutique in kyoto sell this still? does anyone know?) until i actually came across a bottle locally. the opening of kyoto is, to me, a green mandarin bomb mixed with super earthy touches from the beetroot. never have i ever smelled something with the beet accord so realistic; it actually waters my mouth (and yes, i do drink and crave beetroot juice on a weekly basis). about the rose? i find the rose in this particularly so complex that i wouldn't put it past me if there's a cocktail of different rose and pink pepper species used in it. initially, it's a watery, almost distillate-like rose which transforms into a greener form mid-wear to an acidic type in the dry down. overall, it's earthy, spicy, green, and acidic at the same time, perhaps even slightly woody. i love the artistic endeavour and i do surprisingly find this quite wearable, BUT I do have to be in the mood to wear it; I wouldn't categorize it as a dumb-reach.

Geranium/fruity rose with an earthy spicy incense base. Rather than ‘smells like beets', it smells like beets taste--earthy and spicy and sweet. The incense is more of a texture than a distinct note. The sillage and longevity of this are monster. On my lunchbreak, I sprayed a strip in the store and out it in my pocket. 3 days later my uniform still smells of the basenotes of Kyoto simply from having the strip in my pocket. Tenacity-wise (not skinscent or cuddly-wise) the basenotes seem to perform in a similar way to some more frequently used aromachemicals like ambroxan or iso-e, in that they are extremely long lasting. But without any of the headachey astringency I associate with aforementioned aromachemicals. Which is a nice change. The fragrance Kyoto most brings to mind for me is Frederic Malle Rose et Cuir (Ellena). Not because they smell similarly but because of how they successfully combine two contrasting textures. A luscious geranium rose is paired with a darker, rougher base. Ultimately, I've never smelled anything quite like this. It is unique, avant, AND wearable with fantastic performance.

I bought 10ml of this on ebay, since I havent been able to let it go from the first time i smelled it. You know when you eat something, and you cant figure out if you like it or not, so you keep going back for more? Thats how I feel about this. The more I return, the more i enjoy the familiarity of this interesting scent. I find that it has three phases: the opening, whih to me is extremely green, and smells a tiny bit like taking out the garbage on a spring day. strong! then the floral rose alongside a tiny bit of soapiness and incense - honestly very interesting. unlike most of my other diptyque perfume, my favorite part is the dry down. it just becomes eternally green. so earthy, with a hint of rose. a really interesting experience. I agree somewhat with the person calling it a franker for l'ombre, but I also feel like that is not the whole story. This scent honeslt lasts AGES compared to other green fragrances. I can still smell it on my shirt days later

I am a huge fan of dirt/earthy/geosmine/beetroot scents. I love this perfume. got to say this was one of the most exciting perfume launches in 2021 for me personally. Before I say something about the juice, I got to say a few good things about packaging, becuase it is such an amazing experience to open this Japan inspired perfume wrapped in a furoshiki wrap (using cloth to wrap the gifts). This scent is about accents and simplicity. An ode to ikebana after all (the way of flowers). Rose - to represent a man, vetiver and beetroot - earth, incense - heaven. This reminds me of Rouge CDG, which is a colder feel juice with a minty/ginger twist to it, more interesting in a way. Not saying Kyoto is simplistic, like ikebana or a sketch done with 1-2 lines on a white canvas - still art imho.

This comment is just meant as an addition to my previous review. When I wore this in Europe at around 15-20 degrees Celsius (or 59 to 68 Fahrenheit) I hardly perceived the incense or if just very very subtly in the background. Now for the first time I've worn in it India at 25 to 30 degrees Celsius (77-86 Fahrenheit) at high-ish humidity and the incense suddenly really came forward STRONG on me. Also the all over projection picked up considerably. To quote my husband, 'It's everywhere.' So, in Europe Kyoto seems to be a calming slightly vegetal damp yet fresh rose garden with quiet woody undertones, while in the humid heat it becomes a lot more smoky and all enveloping, invigorating and almost spiritual. From me it's a love in both climates.

I’ve had this for a month of so now, and I fall deeper in love with it by the day. The rose is so green, spicy and stemy as opposed to jammy or powdery. It’s clean, but in the way that dirt smells clean after a heavy rain. It’s vegetal in the opening, but on me settles into a lovely earthy kind of green. The beat is subtle, not like Musc Amarante by L'Artisan Parfumeur which smells like something pulled straight from the earth. It’s funny, it sometimes almost feels sour and lactonic in the very opening for me, like Greek yogurt. But that fades as quickly as it warms on the sink. I don’t think this would be for everyone. But for days where I want to smell like a garden in the sunshine after a night of thunderstorms. This is my go to.

Diptyque’s Kyoto appeared as a time limited release in 2021. Created by Alexandra Carlin for the house, I’m very pleased to have purchased a bottle while the opportunity was there. It’s an unusual invention, largely due to the wonderfully earthy beetroot note which runs all the way through from top to bottom. A fragile rose and slightly mentholated incense support the structure but my nose can’t catch a trace of vetiver in the mix at all. Kyoto is a fragrance which attracts comments of the “ooh what’s that?” variety and its vegetal charms certainly won’t be everyone’s cup of chai but I have grown rather fond of it.

I can pick out the individual notes and rose is fairly clear, but if you put this up to my nose and told me to name the scent, I would say a spicy pepper; probably a jalepeno. It’s like the rose notes play with the vegetal notes and combine to smell like something that should be making my eyes water. Not sure where I would wear this, but it isn’t unpleasant. On a semi-related note, I am testing this fragrance on one arm and Le Labo Santal 33 on the other. Both have complementary acidic/vinegar smells, so it is an interesting experience... spicy peppers and pickles- I feel like a scent charcuterie.

Smells like they took L'Ombe dans L'Eau, watered it down, and added some peppery greens to it. It's a very green smell to me, with a wisp of rose. Very fresh and a little earthy. I'm not sold on the beet root thing. Raw beets smell like dirt, and I don't really get a dirt/soil smell here. Seems a little gimmicky cuz who else is doing "beet root" notes this year? Anyway, I quite like it, but don't $190 like it. Reminds of a slightly sweeter, less citrusy TDC De Bachmikoff. Lasted a good 6+ hours on the back of my hand, even through a washing!

Floral green yet sweet rose is most prominent. Base is wet and earthy. A touch metallic. The wet metal made me think of city living. I know Kyoto is a city (but don't know anything about it), so that might have influenced my perception of an industrial type of gasoline note. It's sweet, but I wouldn't say gourmand. It gives a predominantly natural impression complimented wonderfully by slightly unnatural overtones. My projection is moderate. Feeling gender neutral. Thinking daytime, spring through fall. I like it a lot, but it's not for me.

Tried it at a Diptyque boutique today. I'm not picking up on much incense here but the beetroot gives the rose a beautiful sweet smell. I think the drydown is not that special, but it remains a nice green, earthy and sweet scent. Pleasent to wear, but for me it doesn't stand out compared to other Diptyque releases. I don't really get Kyoto as a reference point either. It's better though than the other new release Venise. That one just smells like a fresh salad.

Cayenne pepper & fresh cut bell peppers (green and/or red)...???? Edit: like others, I can't stop sniffing this. I wore this as a gardening scent, funny enough, and I kept getting wafts as I worked. It's definitely beautiful in a natural setting, especially one that is earthy and green. It's just a little earthier, a little greener, and a little sweeter than the garden. I found myself wanting to sniff this again throughout the week.

Haven't smelled this for the better part of a year. I get everything described below - freshly chopped and peppered beet salad on a table with a bouquet of roses, yeah - but also an undernote almost like the scent of freshly percolated coffee grounds wafting in from the kitchen. Weird, but good. I have to think it leans decidedly masculine but, as always, that's your call. (I get nothing whatsoever like pickles, guess I'm lucky)

Really interesting opening where the beetroot adds a nice slight spicy note and it adds a warmth to the rose and vetiver that builds up the body and top notes. This is a fairly light perfume and is unisex to me. On the dry-down the beetroot notes disappeared and the perfume becomes more of a skin scent with a fairly typical rose vetiver blend. Beautiful blend in the opening but the later stages it fades quickly.

Interesting rose with lovely depth that is not coming from patchouli or oud. It's still surprisingly airy and fresh. Was there some geranium or blackcurrant? Possibly. It has a nice metallic tang that deep roses often have. And indescribable fruitiness that must have came from beetroot. I remember beetroot juice having a fruity facet, close to raspberry. I was surprised and I liked it. A lot.

Very berry fruity rose on me. Too sweet, is my first impression. Smelled like penhalligon’s duchess rose. But like Kyoto better I think. After 1hr I’m still smelling berry. On a mouillette it smells strange. Never fruity on paper and smells like magazine page you rub smell perfume sample. I live in Kyoto and we do wear incense fragrance in Japan but this Kyoto reminds me nothing of Kyoto.

To me this is a franker of L’ombre dans L’eau with beetroot added. Love the OG and so I like this bottle too. But being a ‘franker’, it’s nothing to wow about. The beetroot added a different green to the scent. If you dislike vegetable greeness then this might not be for you. But to my nose, this is well blended enough to make all the notes clicked and pleasant.

very beautiful opening..the beetroot was most interesting and then it smelled like a watered down version of Philosykos did not last long in hot and humid weather..it just dissipated wished there was more rose..just a bit more cannot wait to try it in dryer wintry weather

Curious to try this perfume after I've been in Kyoto for a trip, last year. The brand Divain has a dupe for this discontinued Diptyque scent.

Earthy rose. Deep and dank. Graveyard vibes. -

I<3Perfume may or may not have a point, but it's lost on this as an actual review. They mentioned people in the far east don't wear perfumes with spices, woods and amber notes, preferring fruity florals which basically proves they haven't actually smelled this fragrance, as that is exactly what this is. It's a light, gently fruity rose with a tiny hint of green and a very faint incense and clean white musk if you really try hard to imagine it with a deep inhale. Beyond subtle and no spices or woods in sight. In fact, it reminds me a lot of Rose Kabuki by Dior, one of the newer Maison Dior releases that were squarely aimed towards the Chinese market. It also reminds of something that Jean Claude Elena may have put out for Hermes, specifically it would have slipped right into the Jardin collection. It's a lovely rose fragrance, but very light and I have to say, a bit disappointing, I'd have killed for more incense and wood, a bit more depth and interest. Instead, we get a beautiful but very sheer rose with a subtle fruity edge that feels a bit simple. If there's any meditation going on here, it's me wondering where the hell the incense is.

ok, so, diptyque is already responsible for some of my favorite frags, and who even makes a beetroot scent? between my love for the book Jitterbug Perfume, where beets play a vital role in the plot, the Phoebe Bridgers song "Kyoto", and the lovely furoshiki presentation, I was absolutely primed and ready to love this. however, this turned out to be one of those fragrances that would be so, so much better as a candle or room spray rather than a wearable fragrance. first, it's extremely green. the beetroot accord, to my nose, is so much greener than I anticipated, and it honestly reads more like a jalapeño pepper. maybe if the vetiver was more dried and yellow, or the incense was more earthy and smudgy, it would be closer to a beet? I don't know, I'm just a lay person so who knows lol. it does perform well, and it stays fresh in the dry down, so I still recommend giving it a test run if you can. I just can't vibe with it, especially for the full bottle price tag

Kyoto - A true savory gourmand? This fragrance has a carefree and friendly charm about it. It’s green, fresh and crisp. The opening is quite garden-forward with lovely tart raspberries and rosy notes in a joyful springtime atmosphere. Very soon the scent's main character is emerges: Salad! As in, it smells like a salad! A very «having lunch at a french restaurant in 2003, with handtorn, crunchy crispi lettuce, julienned carrots and radishes, thin slices of bell peppers, all of it topped with a tangy Y2K beetroot vinaigrette. I kind of like it but would not buy a FB. The presentation is gorgeous. Scent-wise, nothing about this reminds me of the city of Kyoto. It might be somewhat related to Comme des garcons’ Rouge, and maybe Diptyque’s own L’ombre dans l’eau. Like many Diptyque offerings, the scent is very light and has poor longevity on my skin.

On my search for fragrances featuring beetroot notes, I came across Kyoto and learned that it was a limited edition, now discontinued. The note list seemed so perfect to me that I had to try it, and I managed to get a decant. At first, I found it intriguing, but with each subsequent wear I realized it simply wasn't for me. It's one of those cases where the notes sound perfect, but the result isn't quite what you imagine. It opens very vegetal, rosy, earthy, translucent. As it dries down, though, it turns into something almost savoury, with a sour undertone. I don't get much incense, unfortunately, or perhaps just enough to contribute to an overall balsamic, salad-like impression. In the end, it comes across more as a savoury gourmand than the earthy beetroot and rose fragrance I was hoping for.

Hmmm, interesting, interesting. Not my favourite rose scent. But nothing what I have smelled before. I will probably not write anything new, because this is pretty straightforward scent. An earthy, a bit dirty rose after the rain. Very unusual sour note blends (the beetroot) in and makes the scent far from dull. I feel a bit of citrus in the drydown. The scent is simple, but not simplistic. For me, the wearer of the scent would be a mystical woman, who knows what she wants, yet is sensitive. This scent is something I could imagine on the heroine of Geisha movie. A girl full of promises and of ethereal beauty.