Akowa

There's just something so mysterious about this fragrance that leaves me polarized and in awe. I decided to reach for my sample to give it another go today, and I must admit it is such an interesting fragrance. Very difficult to describe what I'm actually smelling but I can't get enough. The wafts I get from head turns and body movements are astonishing yet enigmatic. As someone stated below, this is a "spray and go" kind of fragrance. I agree. It's also very potent, two sprays is all that is necessary. Definitely a unique one, no doubt about it. Most might find this fragrance, off-putting and unappealing but I simply can't help but appreciate this work of art. UPDATE My nose has developed a bit more since my review, and now I've grown to love this scent even more. I see a similarity with MFK's APOM as well, with its woody, amber and orange blossom combination. What sets this apart is the wonderful and unique Thiouraye incense. The whole thing is simply exceptional and beautifully constructed -- best suited for the winter.

The scent is pleasant and arouses your attention because it is contradictory as both familiar and alien to your senses in the same moment. There is something in the melange that I am not familiar with, and it does get the attention of your nose. It is new and interesting, but not so much that you want a whole shelf of scents using the mystery ingredient. One is enough. I highly recommend Akowa. The presentation is very good. The sprayer is great. The bottle is beautiful and looks great on your shelf or dresser. The scent is superior. Sample it. I bought it blind and it worked out for me. It is over my usual budget and I enjoy it, but it will not please everyone. I suggest many people try a sample. It is unique and you will be glad to try something unlike any other scent. It will make you nod your head and your mind will work and try to place everything where it should go and find something has no place. That makes it interesting. And, it also, simply smells good. The cocoa note really works here.

I think I might eat a man like a cocoa nib if he were wearing this. I went into this expecting odd, and possibly bad, things. I got the odd. Whatever root was used, it absolutely isn't something I'm familiar with or can describe. If you're into Niche scents, and what they can be when boundaries are brushed aside, you should give this a test run. Ambered lime is just the tip of a truly bizarre iceberg of scent contradictions that keep me coming back for more, off balance and somehow mesmerised. This is animalic, certainly, but not in a way that's easy to place and utterly in a fashion that will be off putting to some. The vetiver leans towards the dry kind I've found in New Orleans, almost closet sachet like, very M/. It's spice-dry while simultaneously seeming marine. NOT aquatic, marine, with all the salt and body connotations that evokes. Honestly, this wears me more than I wear it, but I am fascinated by it, and the man who could pull this off . . . well, I'd be impressed.

I think this is a unique scent. I have worn it 3 times...and each time....I get something different. But...most importantly, I want to smell it again and again.....!! Hard to describe scent...but yet...."familiar". I tried so hard to think of what other scents it reminds me of. I think finally that it "reminds me" of other scents that have been combined...??? Thus, the getting something different each time I've worn this...??? I get a very different "type" of orange blossom in this....probably because of the other notes blended in...not really sweety floral orange blossom. The vetiver is here also,for sure....as is a earthy musk & slight amber. I was surprised to see cacao is listed....again....not the "typical" cacao smell. And the bergamot is only pronounced, IMO, at the first spritz. I am very intrigued by this scent...and it is a LIKE....but I think it could become a LOVE. Sillage/projection /performance is decent....so far.

Unfortunately, I’m describing Akowa from a memory from 3–4 years ago, but the impression this perfume left on me is still incredibly vivid. I received it as a complimentary sample when exchanging another fragrance—and what a compliment it was! Dark, dense, like freshly laid black asphalt, yet at the same time cold, clean, like the best-smelling laundry detergent. I’ve never encountered this combination of thick asphalt and crystal clarity anywhere else; it really struck me. That evening we were at a garden wedding, and I asked my husband to spray himself a few times with the tiny sample—you can imagine how little that is, three or four small spritzes. My God, I sensed the trail of that perfume all night long—so exciting and magnetic! My husband said it felt strange to him, but I was absolutely mesmerized!

Wore this for the first time today and I love it. I quite like the opening, it's very different. I will see how it develops throughout the day but to me it's a winner. I can't really describe what I am smelling but it's sweet yet earthy and musky but light, not overbearing and loud, kind of wish it were stronger but I am not a master perfumer so maybe it's perfect the way it is. It seems to waft around and I get whiffs of it constantly. Lasted all day long, I could smell it after 12 hours. Women like it as well. I would like to thank Micallef for this one, it truly is different and wonderful.

this is probably my #2 favourite. it's unlike anything you've smelled before; an amazing blind buy for me. it's very rich, warm, reminds me of and amber/oud sort of smell, but i'm not doing it justice. if you like warm, sophisticated, conversation starters, this is one for you. but beware, it's polarizing. people seems to absolutely love it or hate it.

Akowa is orange blossom and vetiver rounded off by cocoa and amber. At first spray you get a blast of orange blossom. Then the dry down is vetiver, cocoa and amber. That is all I get from Akowa. It is very pleasant and lasts a very long time on me.

My first impression from a sample, smells like some purple scented erasers that I used to have in school. I'm not impressed but it is pleasant. I'll try it again. Edit I tried it from a sample with deep stick. It feels safe though nothing weird about it. I get a soft-sweet woody note, very delicate. I can't comment on the performance with this method but it doesn't feel strong at least sillage and projection were subtle. Edit I tried it properly. It feels like a sub-sweet, dusty, woody-earthy vetiver with an aroma very close to some purple erasers that I used to have in school. The dustiness is a little piercing but pleasant. Dominant notes are strong vetiver, mild cacao, strong purple erasers (lol!), mild musk, dry & mild amber, mild orange blossom, faint bergamot. Akowa is a strong like for me. Above the average longevity, moderate sillage, moderate to soft projection.

Gorgeous vetiver musk based fragrance from the woefully underrated house of Micallef. This evocative beauty (reminiscent of my African travels) mixes in gorgeous Tchouraï and vetiver root extracts with musk and a bunch of other notes including orange blossom, bergamot, cocoa, and amber. The result is a masculine fresh cologne that radiates off my skin. Moderate in sillage/projection and long lasting, this is eclectic modern perfumery of the highest order. This one is for the adventurous explorer types. Must have an open mind to appreciate. Enjoy!

I found Akowa quite disappointing. I guess I was expecting something a little more challenging but this is a grassy vetiver with orange blossom and a thin, toasted aroma that i guess is cocoa. It instantly reminded me of Parfumerie Generale's thematically similar Djhenné, but with vetiver swapped for the lavender. I don't like the PG and I don't like this, the orange blossom and vetiver (ironically 2 of my favorite notes) come across grating and somewhat cheap while the cocoa clashes and never really sits right in the mix. 4/10

I should state that if you believe that you prefer mainstream scents or you are new to smelling fragrances.......go away this is not for you Smells challenging and such a synthetic opening which I can see it easily putting people off But wait a couple of minutes and the cocoa comes lurking slowly getting closer to the skin after every passing hour until the 5th then it starts disappearing

I don't know how to describe Akowa I hate first two hours of it Probably because I don't like orange blossom which is very dominant for the first two hours But after that I just love it Love the vetiver and the patchouli amber dry down It is wired one to my nose BTW the secret ingredient is TCHOURAI

I don’t know why nobody said it yet but to me this has a detergent vibe; very synthetic but not screechingly so that it hurts the nose just by sniffing it like most detergents are. This is a soft musky scent that invoked a sense of cleanliness just by smelling it. I liked it.

Not your usual niche, not your usual designer frag, somewhere in between. It has the ingredients: like L'Instant Homme, or Kokoriko with an exotic twist, greener, more natural, coming from a very hot place, you can feel the heat. Dry plants, trees with thick leaves. The vetiver/cocoa combination is a spot on. Orange blossom/cocoa - also great. Yet, from a different angle, a vetiver/orange blossom combo easily creates a shaving foam facet, on the verge of generic masculine. Although I like it in theory, I rarely find the right occasion to spray it on. Maybe it's just too vivid, too colorful; a story for tourists, a beautiful picture from a travel agency, but without the real flesh, no real humans in sight. A magic plant, an exotic sight, a story that most of the time isn't me. And I'm thinking that if I reserve this fragrance for my vacations only, and not try to implement it into my not-so-colorful everyday surrounding, I might change my opinion. A site-specific scent, for sure.

Nice orange opening. Lovely, if unoriginal powdery soft Vetiver drydown. Would need to experience the cocoa note to see if worth it. Just didn’t get that note on three wears with my sample. With my nose and on my skin, moderate projection and 5-6 hour length. Understand it is discontinued.

Eau No. (On me, anyway.) I can forgive it being too punchy-male-aftershavelike for my tastes, because it's a punchy male scent and I'm a female user. But there's no forgiving the catastrophic and deeply uneasy mix of cacao with bergamot/lime. More a collision than a mix really. These are two things that just shouldn't go together ever IMHO. For once, the vetiver - an ambivalent note at best for me - is not the major problem here. My major problem is really harsh scrubby overtones of bathroom scourer cream mixed with something dirtier and even sourer. A shame because the cacao seems much deeper and well done - could be lovely if set off by spice and wood instead of being soured by that Terminator-strength citrus and dirtied up with the vetiver. Might work well on the right man. But for me? Just repellent I'm afraid.

Unfortunately, this smells like dry erase markers on my skin. Seek joy elsewhere.

Not my cup of tea you get the vetiver for sure and the citus! 5/10

Impact Hindi incense, unfortunately two dimensional rather than an aura of sweet spicy smoke. Some will claim the candy fireballs, maybe fireball whiskey shots. Wearability? It’s confusing, I think I want to compliment it as balanced, because this is a bit of a choose your own adventure. Musk, purple, or dark green aged vetiver, with a bit of soap. I’m going to say it’s complex and well constructed, however with the notes chosen, I’d prefer this to be more solid, strong, more exacting. In other words, this scent kicks up my anxiety rather than comforts it. Egyptian barley beer, Turkish figs, pomegranate, sweet opium smoke, dusty clay enclosed walls, mummified. If you’re dressed as a mummy, this is your role play scent. This scent conjures what ancient musky tombs must have smelled like. As much as I like that scent thought, I think others wouldn’t appreciate it and instead might think of a grotesque purple medicinal drink. Almost grape flavored powdered candy, the kind you scooped with the white dipstick. I can see this as a party scent. It’s unisex but I don’t find it sexual, it’s more heady. It’s distinct, not unique, but will create immediate love or hate reactions from anyone that comes close to you because the projection is good. As is the silliage and longevity. Bottom line You’ve probably smelled this at some point, whether in a head shop, or from grape candy, maybe sweet incense. Unfortunately it’s such a scent that if smelled, others might not take the time to appreciate this particular vision. I’d recommend layering this, something with booze and chocolate or an herbal and woody oil.