Aiyoku

Much preferred over the EDT, unless you like reapplying multiple times a day. This reminds me of: (1) a lemon sucker on a wooden stick OR (2) a lemon throat lozenge That may not sound too appealing, but this is really enjoyable. For me, it’s bright and energizing with a slight woody base. Only downside is that it is seriously overpriced for 30ml. Not listed on their website so my guess is it’s all gone.

The slightest hint of a fresh green and lemony note at the opening is soon swallowed up by the drier notes of vetiver and some rather sour patchouli. After a while, the scene changes decisively from the greenhouse to the compost heap: freshness and new growth evolves into senescence and decay. Depending on your sensibility, this can be seen as a depressing spiral or an affirmation of the natural cycle, with the promise of the returning spring (the re-emerging citrus note), sensed amidst the miasma of moss and roots and damp earth. Aiyoku achieves a similar impact to CDG's Hinoki , but has a far superior longevity. Both fragrances successfully evoke a Japanese forest spa, but Aiyoku doesn't let much light through the canopy. It’s all very “forest-floor” in its lingering mustiness. At first sampling, it seems hard to imagine oneself wearing this fragrance outside of a nature retreat or a natural burial service, but in the dry down the superior quality of the oils and tinctures used in producing this fragrance win out. Aiyoku succeeds where Hinoki fails in both the quality and the staying power of its component parts and the integrity of the perfumer’s art.

Lemon Pledge. I'll wear this again if I ever want to feel like a nice table.