Hanamizake

Wow!! This is great!! I love this!! HANAMI is Sakura Viewing in Japan .... Sake is pronounced ZAKE when put together. This smells like drinking sake ....an expensive one which always smells a bit fruity ....under a fully blossomed sakura tree ....could be Sakura Viewing Banquet because the first projection is pretty strong for about 30 minutes ....I see many friends, family and colleagues gathering around in groups on picnic blankets, having a great time. This is an uplifting happy scent. The longevity is 2.5 hours on my arm, then changes into skin scent for another 2 hours. Musk note is very modest, so as the price. This is a total satisfaction ....how I’ve been waiting for this kind of brand full of Japanese culture. Great as a souvenir!!

I normally don't like cherry perfumes, but this is true cherry blossom one and it's so unique. It's not just basic floral scent, but it really reminds me of Japan. I like depth of the scent and it matches with the description on the bottle: "Hanamizake - A scenery that you have once seen. A mesmerizing world with mystical colors. The power or nature. The memories are brought to life wearing nostalgia and warmth. Sometime ago, somewhere..." It really smells mystical and nostalgic. I bought two bottles :) It doesn't last long, but that's pretty understandable since it's very light scent. I don't get, why people describe it as soapy smell. It smells more like clean skin after drying out.

Really lovely. It opens up nice and sake strong, but that quickly fades into a bubbly and sweet cherry blossom. I've found it's perfect for work--- super light, fresh and airey, aquatic berries for the spring and late summer/transitioning fall. There's also something nostalgic about this, and not because I've smelled the fragrance before, but because it happens to remind me of walking through the woods with my friends (when I was in college), or crisp childhood halloweens... Not sure! All I know is that I love it! Though, I will say it doesn't last the longest... Maybe three/four hours max, but that could just be me. No matter! I'll carry her in my bag if I must

Top Notes Ginjo-ka, Pear, Apple, Raspberry, Green Note Middle Notes Cherry Blossom, Rose, Muguet Last Notes Musk, Cedarwood Hanamizake begins with a sweet burst of raspberry and pear that quickly fades within ten minutes, revealing a rich cherry blossom scent. A smoky undertone adds depth, complemented by subtle hints of sake in the background. This true cherry blossom fragrance lasts all day, and I find it much more enjoyable than typical cherry blossom body sprays.

All fragrances in this line are pretty poor performers, and are fairly linear. However they are extremely photorealistic to what they claim to portray, and this scent is no different. It smells EXACTLY like drinking sweet sake during cherry blossom. I never wear this, I just spray it to feel nostalgic about Japan.

love, love, love! opens with a BURST of deliciously sweet apple soda scent. then it comes the dry down and I see a beautiful sakura flower hiding behind the fruity sweetness, which then turns slightly smoky. It's a beautiful and unique scent. Makes me think of eating all sorts of fruit japanese candies.

This made me smile when I first smelled it. It really does smell like sake and sakura blossoms. It brings back fun memories of ohanami with my friends. Very nice! Longevity is decent for such a delicate scent. Scent: 9/10 Projection: 7.5/10 Longevity: 7/10

Very delicate, boozy, sweet and floral scent. It feels like you just drank a nice cup of Sake underneath the Hanami cherry blossom trees. It has something sensual and innocent at the same time. My favourite of all the J-scent fragrances!

Love this scent. The sake accord maybe lost on you unless you have a history with it. The sake adds a subtle booziness that goes beautifully with the cherry blossom. Very uplifting scent that has good longevity.

smells like cherry blossoms, liquor (not strong though) and a little fruity. more of a sweet candy rather than it being soapy or floral. a cute and girly scent to me, honestly in love

Musky, Soapy, Floral I lowkey do not know what cherry blossoms smell like but yes this is a very floral fragrance and is one of my favorites

In January I was in Tokyo for vacation and discovered this brand in the Tsutaya bookstore in Ginza. I took my time to try out the full collection, and a few of the bottles really impressed me. I ended up buying some bottles, among which is this Hanamizake, which was genuinely a love at first sniff. A beautiful and realistic sake scent. On the label on the bottle it mentions Ginjo-ka as one of the top notes, which simply describes the fruity fragrance of sake made with rice that has been polished. I can no doubt get such sake scent from the first sniff. The opening is boozy for sure, as well as fruity, sweet and clean. Unlike those perfumes that open with boozy notes of whisky or other strong liquor, the sake note is instead very gentle and playful. I cannot describe how realistic the sake smell is. You get the fruity scent like apple and berries, but also feel the sweet flavor in your mouth. It gets more lovely when the cherry blossom comes up. It gets creamy and slightly sour. It indeed creates such an image of having sake under sakura trees. As for its performance, it is not a loud speaker; it gets very subtle on my skin, almost like a skin scent. This can be a safe blind buy.

Hanamizake opens with an interesting and bold alcohol flower accord, that after a few minutes transitions to a tangy red fruit shampoo. In my head, this composition evokes two types of people: an artsy / stylish woman in her twenties and a cute teen girl. This scent definitely reads very feminine and lasts about 5 hours on my skin. I like it, but will not buy as it’s too far from what I usually wear. To put it differently: this fragrance may me called “Hanamizake”, but felt a bit like underage drinking to me (in a fun way though). Had it stayed as bold as in the opening and had it possibly incorporated more of a salty-elegantly subtle cherry blossom note instead of going all fruity, it would have been closer to what I imagined. Therefore, while I would not recommend this to anyone who is looking for a challenging or even natural cherry blossom scent, I definitely think it has an audience: under 30, uncomplicated, looking for a twist while staying in a safe zone. For not even ¥5000.- I think this is perfectly sufficient. TD;DR: A cherry blossom red berry pop tart with a boozey start

This is about what I expected. In the opening, I get the sake note and its pretty realistic. Best way I can describe it is cough syrup but it goes away quite fast. Shortly after, you get the florals. Whether its cherry blossom only is up for debate cause I can pick up some other florals plus the musk which give it a soapy floral character. Kinda reminds me of Quelques Fleurs. As it dries down further and losses the other flowers, the cherry blossom scent that I know of does start to come out a bit. When you smell actual cherry blossom, it's not just sweet. It has a roughness to it which kinda reminds me of cloves. This doesn't have that but for a cherry blossom scent, its probably as good as it gets. Even Dior Sakura couldn't capture the scent of a cherry blossom as well as this. Longevity is on the medium to good side for me but projection is on the lighter side. I expected that from a Japanese perfume company tho cause they don't like things that are too strong and its fine for a light spring time scent anyway. Overall, I like it and I might have to get it for my collection.

Hanamizake opens sweet and chalky, with a fizzy incense layered over a fruity undercurrent. A nondescript, but rather pleasant floral tops the experience. Beyond the opening few minutes you're left with a surprisingly refined fruity floral. 'Fruity floral' generally brings to mind shrill, semi-aquatic, sugar bombs of the late nineties for me, but here the bone dry incense steers this in a completely different direction. The end result is really very nice. Dry, slightly powdered florals, sake-inspired fruity accents, and a heavy, sweet incense, unlit and pungent, rounding out the base. The musk here is quiet, and very well balanced, reading as neither soapy-laundry, or barnyard, instead bringing a grounding and human element to the composition. Hanamizake is a genuinely unisex take on the bloated fruity floral genre. Perhaps a touch on the sweet side for me, and not the greatest longevity, but at this price point reapplication is not a problem. Different, without straying into the bizarre, enjoy on breezy spring days, with a cup of dry sake in hand.

The opening is marvellous - sparkling and boozy sake, makes my cheeks ache with how closely you can almost taste it and how badly I want a cup. The cherry blossom note is strong but it's a sweet, sakura flavour, as you would find it in food, so almost a gourmand version - sakura mikado sticks, sakura mochi, pale pink sweets. After the sake note disappears (too quickly, I wish it didn't, it's the best bit) you are left with a soft, Polly Pocket smell. It's incredibly nostalgic, brightly coloured plastic dolls, stickers, scented toys. If I leave the house wearing something fun and silly, I want to have this on, because the soft dry-down makes me feel like a cartoon character (a good thing). It smells like pink if pink had a smell.

This is a very interesting fragrance as it actually smells of sake (Ginjo)... The initial odour is a mix of sake, with hints of pear, banana, red currants, after which a floral accord of natural light powdery rose with blossoms. The base is a very light dusting of wood and musk. I would say the fragrance profile for Hanamizake is a upside down triangle where the top not is very dominant, the sake note lingers throughout the body. This fragrance would last around 2hrs on skin, and around 5hrs on smelling strips / paper. A 50ml EdP costs 3,780JPY (incl. tax), it is a very interesting creation, and it is a culture experience. An absolute bargain!

An unusual take on cherry blossom that opens with a sake note combined with cherry blossom, then the floral remains but with an incense twist that keeps the floral note from turning sweet during the dry down. It’s a floral scent with a dry quality. Japanese perfume style: as noted by others, Hanamizake is light and disappears around 90 minutes. But the price point is good, and I find that during the warmer months I like scents that dissipate so that I can switch mid day to another perfume. Overall I like Hanamizake.

In the Sawtelle district of Los Angeles, you can buy a Cherry Blossom soda and Hokkaido Sweet Cream Bun for less than ten dollars and eat them under the shade of a Jacaranda tree while fizzy J-Pop music bounces out on the wind from the Manga shop nearby. Life feels warm, pink, bubbly and incredibly sweet in this moment. It may not exactly be Harajuku, but it's pretty good if you enjoy the feeling of happiness, bottled, with just a slight boozy taste of Japan.

Upon first spray I was hit with an incredibly strong (and rather unpleasant scent) but within a few minutes it dries down to a sharp but sweet scent which I find myself enjoying thoroughly. It's sillage is rather intimate but this is common among Japanese scents. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys floral scents. I have never personally smelt sake before but there's a boozy undertone present in the perfume which adds a remarkable layer of depth.

upon first spray, i get a very strong cherry blossom scent. it dries down to more of a musky, sake scent. imagine a long night of drinking, you spill some sake on your clothes and it sits with your body heat. combined with the soft smell of detergent and smell of the cherry blossoms in the air. its honestly a very beautiful fragrance, the cherry blossom has a slight medicinal smell, but other than that, 8/10! would buy a full bottle.

A boozy cherry blossom that spends a few minutes teetering slightly on a toilet bowl cleaner scent without falling in (lol). Despite those few sketchy minutes, I like it. J-Scent perfumes are always light and a bit fleeting but I'm okay with that. Sometimes I like to switch my perfume up throughout the day. I agree with others who said this has a bit of a shampoo vibe. It's perfect for spring.

I’m obsessed with cherry blossoms and love the smell of sake so I thought this was the perfect perfume for me. This fragrance was not what I expected! Hanamizake has a really bright fruity and floral scent but doesn’t last a long time. This will be my everyday perfume for spring. It’s great quality product made in Japan. I’m okay with this blind buy. :)

Hanamazaki starts off with a BIG blast of sake. As a Westerner Sake is an acquired taste. I have had it before but it wasn't for me. But once that initial blast of sake mellows out Hanamazaki becomes a pretty cherry blossom scent with just a hint of incense in the background. Very subtle wears close but is very pretty after the hit of sake calms down.

I’ve never had cherry blossom liquor, and I never thought cherry blossoms had a scent—maybe because it’s always windy when I see them. The perfume smells like fruit liquor. The fruitiness is tart rather than sweet, but it’s very fresh.

Beautiful fruit fragrance for the clean girl aesthetic lovers

this is high femme lesbian realness

the initial spray smells just like opening a can of sparkling sake under a blooming sakura tree - having just gone through that exact experience last week, i was beyond happy to boost it with this perfume, making those memories immortal. it's refreshing, lightly sweetened, delightfully floral and you can almost taste the fizziness. unfortunately the longevity of it is quite disappointing. that joyful opening lasts only about 30 minutes (around 1 hour on the clothes) before it transforms into a basic laundry detergent. while it's inoffensive and you end up smelling like freshly washed clothes, it's just kind of underwhelming...

A youthful, feminine cherry blossom. There's a synthetic vibe that could be the attempt to conjure up a sake accord. It doesn't smell like any sake I've ever had, but I've never specifically drunk cherry blossom sake, so I can't fully attest to the accuracy. It's a very light and airy scent, which I'm grateful for since a stronger dose would probably induce a headache. Reminds me of Herbal Essence shampoo or maybe something Marc Jacobs might come out with. It's easy to wear, particularly if you don't like to smell "perfume-y".

A very sweet cherry blossom scent, very reminiscent of a 2000's take on the smell (think Bath & Body Works). I couldn't smell any incense at all! I think I would have enjoyed it more if I could so it would cut down on some of the artificial sweetness. It doesn't feel like a realistic scent to me, but I think lovers of that imagined cherry blossom smell would like this a lot.

This is more of a soap-candle type scent than perfume. It reminds me of cherry blossom shampoo from OGX, and those L’oreal “no more tears” kid’s shampoos with the fish-shaped bottles from the early 2000’s. Very pleasant and nostalgic, but sadly I'm not looking for soapy scents so will have to pass.

This resembles Cherry Blossom Dove body wash in the opening. Once it dries, it smells like generic hand soap. It's a fragrance that lasts 10 minutes at most :(

smells just like a nice shampoo, leaning almost TOO clean. pretty but doesn’t feel like anything interesting.

This doesn't smell like cherry blossom to me. It opens with a very fruity candy scent, similar to Life Savers. About 45 minutes later, it's a light, lemony floral. I have no idea why this is listed as an amber floral. There is absolutely no amber note in this perfume. Amber is laudanum, benzoin, and vanilla, sometimes combined with other resins and balms like tolu, or opoponax. If you're looking for an amber floral, please don't purchase this perfume. It's a fruity, light floral. Update: after wearing this several times, including overnight, I've categorized it as a dislike. There's an unpleasant, sour note which must be the "sake" accord.

I understand Japanese fragrances are lighter but this genuinely smells like nothing on my skin and wafts away almost instantly. I get sake but almost no cherry blossom, there's no indole/floral/fruity accord to this perfume. I would describe it as soapy.

Too floral for me and almost soapy. So soapy that I almost thought there were aldehydes in this. Otherwise very nice. Reminds me of bath and body works though in a way (not a bad thing, just not for me)

According to J-scent webpage the notes are as following: Top Notes: Ginjo-ka (Sake), Pear, Apple, Raspberry, Green Note Middle Notes: Cherry Blossom, Rose, Muguet (Lily-of-the-Valley) Base Notes: Musk, Cedarwood. This perfume is not for me. There is this nauseating sweetish scent which I cannot tolerate. I don't know what it is: sake? Pear? I would not discourage anyone to try it though. Everyone has different skin chemistry and different tastes and perception of scent. So go ahead - either order a sample (as I did) or try it in perfumery.

J-Scent’s portmanteau Hanamizake (hanami (花見, flower viewing + 酒, sake) is the water perfume’s sheer boozy equivalent. Like drinking underneath bright pink cherry blossoms, the specific fermented rice smell unique to hot sake is produced here with startling accuracy, paired with a bright and fruity accords somewhat synonymous with the actually unscented blossoms of the sakura tree. Part of me almost wishes the fruity-floral aspect of this perfume could be toned down to really spotlight the work done on the more alcohol-forward notes, but I have also found that as it ages, the actual alcohol contained within the perfume itself pairs nicely with its own decaying scent. Another example of l’eau-in-l’eau, one gets the sense that actual cherry-flavored sake, decanted from a bright pink Hello Kitty bottle and sprayed from a plastic atomizer might feel and smell exactly like this. I see potential references to the ambroxan-bomb Kira Kira, inasmuch as shampoo-like fruit is paired with sharply alcoholic undertones. Wear this in Yoyogi Park to take copious selfies underneath the blushing-blossomed trees, or in Shibuya to drink cheap fruity alcohol with your salaryman boss after work until you both can’t see straight.

oh wow... the very start, like, the first 20 - 30 seconds, smells EXACTLY like sake. EXACTLY. I once did a sake sampling session (niigata eki) where you spend sen-en and you get 5 tokens to use on 5 sakes of your choice. think of a locker room, with each locker being like a dispensing station. all up there are about 100+ different types of sake available to drink. you can only choose 5. each 'locker' has a description of the sake (brand, sweetness, complexity, etc), and it's basically pot luck, really. my wife did it along with me, and it was SOOO fun, both because you're getting drunk, but also because you're sampling all these amazing sakes. artisanal, small-batch and TOTALLY niche. AAANYWAY, the sake note is gone too quickly -- before I've even finished dabbing myself. I feel that this might work better sprayed on, which I will need to experience. that said, after the sake goes, the scent kinda reverts to a floral, borderline white floral and musk number, sorta kinda smelling like tsubaki conditioner, if that at all means anything. the sake isn't around for long enough, which is unfortunate because that's what attracted me to this in the first place...

I tried this without looking up the notes, and my first thought was this smells like sake??? - so I'm SO GLAD that that's what this scent actually was , because I was starting to question my nose. So yes! It absolutely opens with sake, and, on me, it hangs around long enough to still pick it up in the mid. And while I haven't tried cherry blossom sake, I have tried cherry blossom liqueur ( Sakura Sarasara ) - and it kinda nails that note too. So nice work, J-scent, this one does exactly what it sets out to do. It smells like cherry blossom sake. Not sure I actually want to wear this, but as a calorie-free alternative to drinking it, I'll give it two thumbs up!

I have perfume oil of this and it smells slightly mature on me, but in a good way. it is suprisingly sweet, i was worried the sake would be too strong, but it is just enough to give it a touch of something sensual.

The opening of this reminded me of a cherry flavored medicine I took as a kid. The kind your mom poured into a little cup for you to take. Once that settles, it's a soapy cherry blossom. It's fine.

Yep - cherry blossom and sake! Very pleasant. Shampoo type scent but delicate and a little different than the average floral. Very pretty and inoffensive.

Wow, this smells almost exactly like the conditioner that comes with Loreal hair dye. I enjoy it!

Where can I find this scent in Europe. The official website does not ship outside of japan. :(

Bath & Body Works cherry blossom shower gel and that’s okay with me

Smells like japanese shampoo. Love it, but it doesn't last.