Citron 28 Seoul

When I saw the "smells like" section of this page, I had to go to my nearest store to smell Light Blue again because my memory of that perfume is nothing like what Citron 28 smells like. I think the strong lemon note in both is what makes people get that connection because their dry downs are so different. Light Blue has a sharper citrus opening that's really fruity and like apples, but Citron 28 has no fruit at all and its lemon is much more natural. Where Light Blue eventually shows it's flowers as it dries down, the strong white florals of Citron 28 are there from the very beginning. Citron 28 also dries down to a musky jasmine that's reminiscent of a lot of Le Labo dry downs and has no sweetness to it. This doesn't smell like Atelier's Lemon Island either, again other than the lemon note, because Lemon Island has more of a creamy sunscreen feel to it similar to Replica's Beach Walk. There is no creaminess in Citron 28, it's actually quite bitter in a way. If you're familiar with Le Labo's main collection, Citron 28 is more like the baby of Bergamote 22 and Lys 41. I love both of those perfumes and so really love Citron 28 as well. My bottle was a lovely gift from my parents, but this honestly wouldn't be worth the full City Exclusive price unless you travel to Seoul or have a special connection to the city. Especially when you can get both the main collection ones I mentioned for the price of just this one.

i didn’t think i would like this as much as i do!!! i usually shy away from lemon since it usually smells like cleaning agents on me, but this was warm and musky. the jasmine definitely does its job in sweetening this up. i lived in seoul when i was younger and i would say this does give me memories of warm summer days and taking walks in the park and learning to ride a bike. i don’t know if it encompasses what seoul is now though, or even what an adult would think of when they looked back on their time there. it sits close to the skin and is fresh and warm and sweet, but would be perfect for summer since the ginger keeps it balanced. i’m torn about getting a full bottle in september however given the sillage and longevity are lacking. i might get a travel size or two just as a treat since i’ve enjoyed this so much, but its very expensive for the effect it gives. i dont agree that it smells like light blue given light blue is fresher. if i find something close for cheaper and more readily available, i’ll pounce on it. for the time being, i would give this a 4/5 for just how pleasantly surprised i was.

I've gone in to Le Labo a few times this September just to try on this one and I absolutely adore it. If it wasn't so expensive I would have bought a bottle in a heartbeat. I'm not a big citrus person so at first I was apprehensive since this is called citron 28, and I hadn't looked it up prior. However, I was so pleasantly surprised at the dry down. The citrus opening wasn't so articial (sometimes citrus perfumes smells like citrus cleaner/dishsoap) and I found myself enjoying it a lot. It dries down into a jasmine that isn't sickly, it still smells quite fresh and beautiful. And it settles into a beautiful musk that I love. I think if you overspray, the jasmine could be a lot. BUT this is top of my wishlist, I wan't a full sized bottle for sure, maybe next year. Love!

This is gorgeous! First impressions: It is a beautiful combination of lemon or citron, and lovely white florals. So fresh, pretty, comforting, and ethereal. It’s sweet but not cloying. On me it starts with a strong citrus that could go cleaning supplies, but doesn’t and instead melds beautifully with sweet, creamy, fresh white florals. It smells very natural, like I’m standing in a citrus grove that’s both in bloom and fruiting. This is my first impression, so I’ll give it a couple more tries, but I hope it continues to smell like this!

I didn’t expect to like this one as much I do, especially not now, in a New England winter, but it’s become a kind of daily driver for me. Like Le Labo’s Another 13 soaked in jasmine water with a squeeze of lemon. It’s a quiet fragrance that lifts my spirits, but one that projects enough to elicit compliments from people close by. Price for this Seoul exclusive is admittedly exorbitant, but I’m happy to have my full bottle. Has a kind of understated and modern Lyn Harris/Perfumer H vibe. Really really like this - maybe even love.

This year I bought a sample of Citron 28 and another of Cedrat 37 knowing they have the same notes with slight variations. Citron 28 is as classy and refined as Tubereuse 40. The lemon and ginger blend fantastically well with Jasmin. Definitely will get a bottle :) Here the ginger is soft and the jasmin is quite spectacular. The lemon is natural and refreshing. But it does tend more to a white floral , so I loooove it ! As for cedrat well , read my review 😵

this one is soooo crisp spring morning sleeping on your mom's pillowcase staying home "sick" from school i'm sure there's similar smelling perfumes out there at a more reasonable price point, but the jasmine note makes this so addictive. definitely gets better throughout the day. so comforting and spirit lifting. agree with the reviews that this is more jasmine than citrus, wish the ginger and lemon lingered a little longer. i love this scent though!!

By far the best of the city exclusives. I visited Seoul but didn’t have time to shop Le Labo so I bought the sample during the city event. It may have been for the best for my budget since I need 2-3 bottles stat and I was over my shipping budget. Light, feminine, and just unique enough from the lemon and ginger. The jasmine is perfect - I don’t usually like it because it is too indolic - but this feels airy and pretty.

A lovely watery jasmine scent with hints of citrus. The citrus blast is short-lived and blooming jasmine appears quite rapidly. There is a tranquil quality to the scent... The dry down is a clean laundry musk that lingers in a transparent dewy way. The overall experience is ethereal and clear. I'll be buying a bottle soon

Jasmine shrubs growing next to a waterfall surrounded by big beds of green grass under a spring sun. One of the best offerings from Le Labo. Such a crisp and clear floral. Maybe not very edgy, but it is so fresh and pretty in a genderless way. Jasmin 17 who?

The opening of this scent is a photorealistic Jasmine. I didn't get citrus until the drydown. But the interplay between the jasmine, ginger and citrus is gorgeous. It's lovely, fresh, delicate. I wish I could get this perfume as an herbal iced tea.

It smells joyful in a mellow and elegant manner. Despite the name, i smell fresh slightly indolic jasmine that’s brightened by the citrus notes. The overall feeling is a translucent veil, that hovers gently for a decent time.

Lemon and jasmine. Lots of jasmine, fresh jasmine like the flower. If you like the smell of jasmine fresh from the tree, i think you will like this. I like it, but the price is to high for me to buy it.

Very well-blended citrus/white floral perfume. but I don't understand why this is the scent of Seoul. 🤔

I like it . Unique, and staying power is great! Be careful not to overspray, as it may get nauseous.

Wow, what a beautiful delicate scent 💕 lovely fresh clean jasmine

I'm making my way through the City Exclusives before the end of September, when they are due to leave my local Le Labo counter. I'll admit that Citron 28 wasn't a priority for me. Lemon is not a favourite note of mine in perfume - it is a notoriously difficult citrus note to use, as it is obviously sharp and reminiscent of cleaning products. However, C28 managed to surprise me. Instead of being obviously lemon-led, it is a nicely-balanced musky-lemon scent with a generous helping of jasmine. C28 features clean white musk from initial spray, forming a soft base for the bright lemon note that follows. It is very musky throughout - not a bad thing in my book! The ginger reminds me of lemon and ginger tisane - it is very subtle and disappears quickly. As it develops, the jasmine emerges, bold and heady, even slightly indolic initially. Alongside the musk, it is surprisingly slightly dirty, but the radiant, clean lemon balances it nicely. The musky-jasmine reminds me somewhat of Mugler Alien, a scent I dislike, but here the lemon makes it pleasant for my liking. (It also isn't as plastic-y synthetic as Alien). The jasmine fades from view and it becomes a musky-lemon scent as it dries down with a predictable hint of woodiness in the base. Sillage is intimate and longevity is moderate. It is a feminine-leaning spring/summer daytime scent. C28 is an interesting composition featuring a perfect (and inspired) placement of that difficult note, lemon - it cuts through the musky-jasmine cloud like a radiantly clean sunbeam. Expensive, reasonably simple but undeniably good, like so many Le Labos. Not particularly my thing, but a clever and likeable composition that is eminently wearable. 4/5.

In the month before the City Exclusives month, I’m finally sampling last year’s Le Labo City Exclusive release, Citron 28 (Seoul). Right from the start, it’s an easy winner and quite pleasant, a fresh, semi-bitter/spicy citrus-dominant blend with very realistic green qualities to it. The listed notes are lemon, ginger, jasmine, musk, and cedar. I’m not sure why there’s a slight bitter sharpness to it, but my best guess is that that’s the citrus ingredients pivoting toward the citron fruit itself, a more bitter, less edible citrus fruit that’s one of the original non-hybrid citruses. The woody/musky side is there, too, but mainly in the background, with the lemon/citron/ginger/jasmine aspect being most prominent. It’s a classic case of “what’s not to like?”—an easy-to-wear citrus that certainly fits the current summer weather in the northern hemisphere. The pricing for the Le Labo City Exclusives has always been pretty high, and has increased steadily but not horribly in recent years, now $485/319/134 for 100/50/15ml, so while it’s a nice fragrance overall, it hardly merits the cost, especially when contrasted with some of the richer and more complex offerings from the City Exclusives subline (i.e. Poivre 23 London and Benjoin 19 Moscow, priced at $290 for 50ml in 2016). In fairness, Le Labo’s creations are generally good or great, but I’d certainly recommend sampling Citron 28 because it’s a good fragrance. It’s a great time to order a sample pack of City Exclusives from Luckyscent (in the US) or the Le Labo site as bottles are only sold in the month of September. I look forward to trying latest City Exclusive release, this year’s Cedrat 37 (Berlin). 7 out of 10

Tried this at a Le Labo boutique a few days ago. I just have one question: Where's the citron? Where's that slightly bitter and tangy citrus note? Let me preface by saying that Citron 28 smells great. It's a pleasant fragrance that definitely deserves it's spot in the Le Labo lineup. But, in a similar manner to some of their other fragrances, it fails to make the eponymous note the most prominent one. There's no citron in Citron 28, in fact it's barely a citrus-forward fragrance. The main notes that I smell are jasmine, and a deconstructed musk akin to Another 13. The Iso E super note provides a nice crisp woody backbone to counterbalance the dryness of the musk, sweetness of the jasmine, and the zest of the lemon. I inevitably have to compare it to Le Labo's other citrusy powerhouse, Bergamote 22. And I think of that fragrance to be a much more authentic celebration of bergamot than Citron 28 is for citron. They're both great smelling fragrances but ultimately, the citrus note in Citron 28 isn't the star of the show, but just complementary to the musk and jasmine note. It's almost like a more citrusy and floral take on Another 13. Among the city exclusives, Citron 28 is my 5th favorite behind Benjoin, Gaiac, Tubereuse, and Poivree. Solid release overall.

The review below saying Citron 28 feels like a baby of Lys 41 and Cedrat 37 is a complete spot on, perhaps a little bit of Bergamote 22 too! Lemon ginger spritzed over a bunch of white flowers. There are definitely a lot more than just jasmine - perhaps tuberose, lily, and a tiny bit of neroli? I like that it’s not as oppressive as Lys 41 and not as sweet as Cedrat 37 - it’s pretty smooth, balanced and inoffensive. The best part, of course, is the signature Le Labo musky bubble which I love! Though the perfumer isn’t mentioned, the whole bottle just screams Daphne Bugey name to me - super comfortable, super addictive! However I don’t think this is worth being put in the City Exclusives, and more certainly, it doesn’t give me any Seoul’s vibes at all. I’m excited for the 2022 edition 🤞🏼

This reminds me of Lemon Island in that it's really a white floral with a lovely lemon note. A sweet fresh bright white floral. Because of this, though, It's not as fluffy/airy as I'd want it to be. Still pleasant. WHO I PICTURE THIS ON: The it-girl housewife. Like trendy for her crew, but also has a blog and a millennial pink kitchen. Probably a blonde. Probably brunches with her friends. Maybe was in a sorority in the south. It's like cool blonde girl you went to high school with grown up, and a little more sophisticated. She's a mom now, so she's 'nice,' but there's something a little untrustworthy about her and you're def not about to share your personal business w her.

Out of the jasmine-forward Le Labo offerings (this, Jasmin 17, the new Myrrhe 55), I think the jasmine note in this one is my favorite - as a whole perfume though, I think I prefer the other two. While I enjoy the cheery citrus-jasmine combo here, all I can think of is Di Ser's Akanesasu, which has a similar character but to me feels much more vibrant and brimming with life. Definitely worth a try if you like Citron 28 (relatively affordable as well).

This review is based on a decant, sprayed onto my wrist and body. With a name like Citron 28, I expected a citrusy fragrance - instead, I got a sugary (but not cloying) jasmine. It feels like I'm wearing a scent inspired by milk tea - jasmine tea with sweet and creamy notes. I personally love it, but I'm wondering where the citron went!

Super elegant lemon fragrance, with a jasmine heart. The jasmine note in here is the exact same one as in Myrrhe 55, so you need to like that. Its light and airy, yet slightly spicy from the ginger. Super elegant scent. This is just my first impression, i need to wear it on me to fully conclude how i feel about it.

I enjoyed this! I'm not the biggest fan of white florals but I think this was made where I could appreciate the white florals not in an overpowering headachy perfumery way, but as a canvas for the other citrus and green notes!! It was clean, I liked the hint of cedar!

another ginger/citrus city exclusive. this is cool and airy, a little muted, with jasmine whereas Berlin is very warm and enveloping like the ginger lemon tea it smells like. i normally don't like jasmine or ginger, but i do like this.

Sir where is the citrus???? it said Citron on the tin and it smells like what? Jasmine!!! oh I have to laugh truly a citrus with the twist, the twist being it doesn't smell like one. It still smells beautiful though

smells so pretty, like THE it girl in the summer, but its so expensive. It is very elegant and timeless. it is a unique citrus, with a noticable hint of ginger at the top note. Very nice, but very expensive.

This fragrance is so so beautiful on skin. It smells a bit like bananas to me but in a really sophisticated way. My only issue is the longevity and sillage, it is really really really subtle after an hour.

Not bad, but smells like a jasmine bomb. It's a citrusy jasmine though, with a hint of ylang-ylang. Longevity is not as good as other Le Labo perfumes.

Pretty and simple jasmine, citrus, musk fragrance... Because of its simplicity, It is a unisex jasmine fragrance, which is nice if you happen to be a guy who likes the note of jasmine. However, to my nose, it’s the most subtle Le Labo scent I’ve ever smelled... more intimate than Gaiac 10, Another 13, or Vanille 44... which makes sense considering that it’s marketed for Seoul, but is not great when you consider how pricey the city fragrance line is. I might be slightly anosmic to it, I’m not sure, It’s not got great longevity to my nose. I am glad I got a sample though... It is lovely and very nice to finally be able to smell all of the city exclusive fragrances. Also it kind of reminds me of Molecule 02 but with jasmine. There’s a kind of subtle Ambroxany/aquatic note deep in the base. Edit: Okay after wearing this on skin for a few days I’ve come to appreciate this fragrance more. It is subtle but it has good longevity on my skin, especially the musk note. Really pretty and clean. Still not worth the price tag but definitely a sample I’m hanging onto for a simple and sunny day where I want to feel special but intimate. Edit 2: I had to return to say that this fragrance is really growing on me. It’s got such a tranquil and soft aroma. So clean and fresh. I think I was initially anosmic to it. Kind of like Another 13, It’s a subtle stunner. I’ve also worn it out and have gotten compliments. Definitely considering a 50ml bottle now. Just wish this had more longevity. Edit 3: So I actually went ahead and bought a full bottle of Citron 28 last September... now that it is finally spring I have been wearing it and I am so happy with my purchase. Yes it is expensive for what it is... but it is also one of the cleanest and freshest jasmine fragrances I’ve ever put my nose on. After the bottle has had time to macerate the fragrance is a lot stronger, especially the jasmine note. Absolutely delicious.

If you are hoping for a citrus fragrance, stop right there and get Limette 37. Citron 28 is mostly cedar, jasmine (but it feels like an interpretation of the flower instead of the real thing) and some subtle ginger right at the beginning. This fragrances are not affordable. At all. And that’s not a problem because we buy whatever we choose to buy even if we know our budget will suffer a bit but to spend that amount on things that are not what they suppose to be it’s infuriating. for example Aldehydes 44 doesn’t smell like aldehydes, it’s mostly a powdery musk. And now Citron 28, a wood fragrance with very subtle citrus/ginger notes. I got samples, thankfully. So far the only real citrus perfumes are Limette and Bergamot. Longevity is terrible. But I have to applaud their genius marketing. There’s nothing more irresistible and tempting than what you can’t reach or afford.

Okay, but Citron? I don’t know her. The inital smell is slightly citrus-y, but it is overwhelmingly much more jasmine in comparison. This is more like a jasmine scent with a little bit of musk, then ginger, and after that you can maybe find a trace of lemon. It might give a slight tea note, but that is it? Le Labo writes themselves: «CITRON 28 meets the need for purity and simplicity and, as such, delivers something almost universal and easy to understand» Is that a nice way of saying «We know that this is boring»? It is absolutely not worth being a city exclusice in my opinion, but if it was a cheaper niche, or even a designer it would be okay, but nothing more than that. And if you really love Le Labo, I feel like you would be better off by buying ‘Jasmine 17’ instead.

This is one of my favorites in the city exclusives line, along with Mousse De Chene 30 and Myrrhe 55. Citron 28 is a very pleasant and easy wear citrus white floral. High quality. Completely unisex. Office appropriate. Having said all that, the city exclusives are worth much less than their retail price. In the case of Citron 28, its longevity is abysmal. I sprayed it on my wrist exactly at midnight, and by 1:40 am it was completely gone, skin scent and all. None of the city exclusives are any better than the regular Le Labo line. The city exclusives are some of the most overpriced fragrances available in the history of perfumery, and unfortunately they cannot be found at a significant discount. So I will move on without any regrets whatsoever.

The opening is magical ✨✨✨ A burst of citrusy and fresh notes that are effervescent and joyful 🍋 🍊 It lasts about 30 seconds and then, the jasmine comes sweeping in all that. To my nose, the jasmine is indolic, but weirdly enough, it doesn’t last too long. Before I know it, it has become more of a skin scent thanks to the musks during the dry down. I wish the opening of Citron 28 stayed longer, honestly. I am not sure why this is called citron when the Jasmine takes over. I’d have called this Jasmine 28 🤭 Anyway, to the declutter pile it goes because even though it is a beautiful fragrance, it just doesn’t speak to me...

very headachy white florals, don't really get citrus or lemon after opening. dries down more floral and less musky to me. definitely not up my alley but i think could be very pretty! NOT a blind buy!!

I agree with some reviews I read here. This is more of a jasmine fragrance than citrusy. I just wear this to break the chain of my citrusy-inspired collection.

Dolce et Gabbana light blue ... but not as well done and less longevity.

One of my round of tries for this year's city exclusive, I'm a little sad it took me so long to get to this one. The opener is straight lemon, in the way you'd expect from le labo. You smell the juice, the rind, the pith, all of it, front and center for the first minute or so. Ginger kicks in with a bit of green flavor, like petitgrain, and behind it comes the best jasmine note I've ever smelled in a perfume. It's simply lovely, and seems to be mixing with a hint of neroli and a touch of the citrus is lingering. From there a green note accented by musk and ginger with the citrus (more like the lemon peel) he front takes over, with a very pure heart of cedarwood lingering in the background. It's a very fresh, unique take on a classic citrus fragrance. There's also something like bamboo? Hard to describe, kind of like a spliced open bamboo plant with that sort of mild earthiness lingering in there. There's an unmistakable cleanliness to this perfume, a bit like a fresh lemon cleaner but the kind you'd find in the richest house on the block, with a maid using it to scrub the floors. I could see a stylish lawyer woman wearing this as her secret weapon. It's got an almost edge of crispness to it with a sort of understated white floral bringing up the background. Will probably upgrade to a full size.

the interaction of the lemon, musk and jasmine give off an almost sour and rotten overtone (like the scent of a cut lily that is one day too old to enjoy) but despite that small note the whole is of aquatic meets spring freshness anchored by the musk and ginger. interestingly as it develops honeysuckle comes to the fore. yeah boom BIG honeysuckle. what an unusual and pleasant surprise. i'm not going to buy a bottle because for me it's a bit too floral. but at worst Citron 28 shows off Le Labo's creativity and vision and range. after all this is a perfumer that almost got crushed to death just for making a virally successful scent so successful it made fragrances cool again. just when i begin to think so many of them dry down to le labo's characteristic tea and white musk accord.... surprised to see the relatively low rating given the extremely high ratings that some garbage industrial potions are getting on this site.

My sample of Citron 28 (among five others from La Labo) arrived today. I initially very lightly sprayed it into to air to step in to it (Having experienced how huge their patchouli 28 is, just one drop is huge and lasts forever) I sniffed the air and myself and all I got was a faint hint of neroli. I sprayed it directly on my wrist this time, and again neroli which instantly faded into a faint weird halitosis smell and then into nothing. Again I sprayed myself, now multiple times just to try and register some some of dry down. Now I can get something, but very very faint. Like almost nothing. Honestly, I would save the money and use some neroli soap in the shower with the same results.

I am a big LeLabo fan girl. I own 5 creations 2 of them city exclusives. So trust me when I say this smells identical to a perfume I hate. Dolce Gabbana Light Blue. And I say I D E N T I C A L. Also Seoul holds a special place in my heart. It’s where I fell in love. It’s such a modern and trendy and upbeat city. To think that it would smell like this is....disappointing at the vision. Tokyo Gaiac 10 is their greatest creation after Santal 33 but I am just so so so so sorry for Seoul. It rains in Seoul year round. They could of paid tribute to that rain nostalgia or something majestic about Seoul but no. They had to give us lemons. LEMONS!

Citron 28 is definitely a Le Labo twist in that its not your typical refreshing or effervescent citrus. In fact, I smell so much jasmine and aromachemical-y woods... Probably the ambroxan base found in Another 13. The tone is rather mellow and almost creamy/dry woods citrus floral. The jasmine to me isn't completely cleaned up, occasionally I do get whiffs of indoles (which others have detected as being 'rotten' or 'a day old' flower smell) So I guess that keeps it interestin

Such a magical true jasmine scent with a bit of citrus and woodiness, a touch of musk in the base. Wore this for an anniversary dinner and felt like a garden fairy- super ethereal, lightweight and clean. Not indolic at all- normally I don't gravitate to jasmine, but this is like the least heady interpretation of the flower so I can really get behind it!

I like this one. Very easy to wear. Great balance of citrus and florals, and has decent performance and longevity. I think I prefer the opening of jasmine 17 (and I find that a lot more white floral dominant), but this has a lot better performance and a more versatile fresh balance to it.

Just got a sample--this is definitely more jasmine/soft musk that citrus but I love it (I tried spraying it on my shirt, and then it reads more citrus than on my skin). As much as I like it, seems like there is almost no projection so debating whether I want to pay for a whole bottle.

A lemon/bergamot spiked Another 13 with a jasmine backbone. Really pleasant imo and a solid release by the house. Probably my fav of their clean/fresh scents because you find a bit of each in here. 9/10 with good performance, unisex.

Scent - jasmine, salted lemons & musk. Season/Time of Day - I prefer to use this one in the warmer months, during the day. Projection - I didn't get noticed, I didn't get a compliment. Longevity - I get 8hrs consistently.

I’m actually in love with this fragrance. Its a beautiful jasmine and ginger elixir. If it wasn’t so expensive I would wear it every day. Its gorgeous and so comforting. My perfect jasmine scent.

jasmine note was a bit indolic at first but after sitting on my skin for like five minutes it developed into a beautiful soft scent really regret not buying when it was available worldwide :(