Berlin

Miguel Matos’ Berlin is an exercise in pourhommecore, revisiting the structural density of 80s masculine powerhouses with a distinct, brutalist edge. It certainly does not shy away from the gritty reality of its namesake. The opening is defined by a clever, abrasive juxtaposition of bitter bergamot and cumin. This accord mimics the scent of cold ash or a stale, enclosed space, evoking the specific nostalgia of a public phone box (or a club, as Matos says). While Nightclubbing attempts a similar cigarette-smoke-on-clothes vibe, Matos sustains this intro with far more conviction and longevity. It is stark, grey, and undeniably urban... something that the bottle's tag depicts pretty well. Matos describes the scent as a personal memoir of the city’s techno scene and concrete landscape, and the progression follows this narrative arc perfectly. As the sharp, ashy top notes settle, the fragrance sheds its armor to reveal a mellow core. The dry down is a blend of vanillin and musk that retains a "pleasantly sweaty" quality: lived-in and human rather than dirty. Performance is solid, easily lasting 8+ hours on skin with moderate projection that creates a consistent, intimate bubble. Berlin may be challenging as you spray it for the first time, but eventually it will become comforting and atmospheric. All in all, Matos created a wearable and performing scent that captures the narrative of his memories of a city, and a certain subculture. Not many perfumers can achieve this.

Underground night out with your kinky friends ready to get filthy and exchange body fluids. Instant love.

what I smell is a perfume with a sweet opening but not bubble gum. A nice sweet with a large dose of ambergris. A dose of smoke that isn't too annoying but it's there. Which goes on to compete with the sweetness. And at times you can smell a sour and very animalic smell. Yes, this is a faithful reproduction of the sweet smoke emanating from the disco machinery, combined to smoke but not cigarettes, a smoke that is never dark or annoying, but it's there. The sweetness, for a few moments, touches the gourmand to retreat and let a nice mix of acidity reappear. the vanillin is really strong in the drydown along with my hated tonka bean. the cumin is very reminiscent of sweaty bodies dancing but without being unpleasant. But the scent is still a mix of acidity and sweetness that doesn't drive me crazy. Echoes of old style oak moss are there, almost reminiscent of old Saturday Night Fever style perfumes. Leather jackets and a too sweet aoud go together . The scent is pungent in the throat... very strong. I'm honest, I was expecting something completely different, really similar to the smell you breathe in Berlin, but with this almost cloying sweetness at the end, a bit of cumin and bergamot, everything gives me the impression of wanting to be mixed badly without having a beginning and an end, sometimes a note comes out like smoke and then disappears and the same goes for all the other notes which in my opinion are unrelated. It's Miguel's idea, of his personal respectable way of smelling the air of Berlin and its wonderful places, but in the end it's a sweet perfume, slightly citrusy, with smoke and compared to what I said before, full of aoud . As a lover of Miguel's creations this is a clear criticism. Excellent performances, but absolutely not a perfume that wants to be niche and ends up being a slightly smoked molasses and forgive me Miguel but similar to a banal invictus with a lot of smoke and notes scattered here and there, disconnected and meaningless. Rating 3/10