Sissa

I bought the Amber-based 5 piece set of the Mind Games line specifically for French Defense, but Sissa is quickly becoming my favorite. I am so unfamiliar with those top notes in perfumery that this is such a unique delight for me! I mean, sesame seed oil? C'mon. It doesn't even sound appealing, but my God, I CAN smell the toasted sesame... and it's heavenly. The conjunction of sesame with the other sweet notes is total bliss. The roasted tonka is definitely most prominent on me, and although it's very sweet, the muskiness of this makes this perfectly unisex. I would love to smell this on a man. Perhaps I'm not privy to identifying a singular lactonic note (or "milk accord", as they put it), but whatever creaminess I am getting out of this doesn't feel milky, necessarily; the tonka, vanilla, coumarin, musk are all so rich and well-blended that they alone could provoke the notion of "lactonic". The jasmin is in there somewhere, being shy, not wanting to wrestle with the other notes. Long-lasting, great sillage (but please don't overspray, you do not need that much of this!) and very high quality. I really don't think I could ever pull $375 for one full bottle of any of the Mind Games line, though, no matter how much I love them. I'd rather spend $$$ to have their discovery sets - I love having options and the ability to layer. Mind Games generally has a fascinating mixture of notes, and I think they're a breath of fresh air when it comes to perfumery. A very novel fragrance line.

I've been waiting to review this as I just have stars in my eyes and cant formulate the words for my love of Sissa. I purchased a few decants recently (heavy hitters - BR540, Greenwich Village, Nolita, Lionora ,etc)....and Sissa was the clear cut winner. I couldnt stop thinking about her! It was love at first sniff. I knew immediately she was the signature frag I'd been waiting for. Shes not strictly a vanilla gourmand - she has a nutty, savory side to her sweetness. The sesame note has my heart. When I wear her I cant stop smelling myself! She is blended perfectly. These notes just harmonize so well together. The white floral in the background just dances quietly while the vanilla, musk and sesame get to be the star. Sissa is creamy, warm, cozy. She is airy. Very lactonic. Cookies baking in the background. Sipping a sesame vanilla latte. If you enjoy Commodity Milk, this is right up your alley. Sissa is much better blended and longer lasting than Milk (to me). Vanilla, sesame and toasted tonka are the star of Sissa whereas Milk is more prominent on marshmallow / musk. You need to enjoy creamy / milky notes to like these perfumes. Oh and Sissa lasts FOREVER. I put her on at 8am and by 10pm that night she was still so strong on my skin! She is eternal! Lactonic, sweet, musky, nutty vanilla. I just ordered a FB and cannot wait to wear her everyday!!! 100/10 would recommend.

Mind Games and Christelle Laprade made this one very well, ladies and gentlemen. Aromatically, Sissa has a flavor profile most similar to V&R's Spicebomb Extreme (but without all the harmful chemicals). The 2024 release of Sissa contains: Alcohol Denat., Fragrance (Parfum), Water (Aqua/Eau), Coumarin, Farnesol. Viktor & Rolf's Spicebomb Extreme contains: Alcohol, Parfum / Fragrance, Aqua / Water, Limonene, Butyl Methoxydibenzoylmethane, Coumarin, Linalool, Ethylhexyl Salicylate, Eugenol, Alpha-Isomethyl Ionone, Methyl Anthranilate, Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate (aka: Octinoxate, Octyl methoxycinnamate, or OMC), Citral, Citronellol, Benzyl Benzoate, Geraniol, Benzyl Alcohol, Isoeugenol, Ci 60730 / Ext. Violet 2 (aka FD&C Exterior Violet No 2). The Spicebomb is composed of ingredients that are absolutely terrible for your skin, lungs, nervous system (brain), and endocrine system (gonads and thyroid). Choosing to smell sexy shouldn't be a hazardous decision.

Oh my gosh, this is so freaking good! It smells like a yummier, cozier version of milk by commodity. It smells least like the personal, kind of like the bold, and very much like the expressive. I find it like the combo of the best things about the three versions and more! It’s yummier, warmer and sweeter! Some people say I smell like fig nectar. I think I smell like warm sweetened milk one might drink as a kid or marshmallows over a slightly smoky fire! I sure love this Milk (Pro Max)

I’ve been craving this perfume for months on end. The notes made me feel like wearing this would simulate a warm fresh sesame bun hugging me on a bed of tonka. And oh yes it is. This smells like a warm fluffy bread with toasted sesame seeds that was also baked with vanilla extract, accompanied by a warm glass of milk. Starts tonka and coumarin heavy, dries down more sesame and warm. Super cozy and beautiful, will buy this soon.

a bit dense and nutty during the first hour or so, but sissa settles into a gorgeous and creamy blend of vanilla, musk, and coumarin. it has an airiness that a lot of the other recent lactonic gourmand perfumes lack, making this a much easier and more enjoyable wear. not in the notes but i swear i get a hint of coffee.

After spending a little time with this- I get a brown butter chocolate chip cookie kind of note from this. Also a coffee note. If you want to smell warm, cozy and very unique- I would recommend this. It smells expensive and sophisticated. Very modern. I would say this is a modern gourmand.

WHAT A BEAUTIFUL BLEND! Sometimes sesame can overpower fragrances but here it’s just subtly intertwined with all the other notes making this so cozy and sweet. Lactonic yet airy, in the same family as commodity milk/gold but smoother. Is this full bottle worthy? Yes!

If "toasted" was a fragrance, this would be it. Toasted sesame, tonka, and vanilla - like a crunchy, nuttier Bianco Latte. Heavy on the coumarin, but this does it in a way I haven't smelled before. I didn't like this at first but it became strangely addicting.

This reminds me of a smoother Commodity milk. Milk burns my nose and gives me a headache. Even Milk personal does the same where as I get all day wear with no drawbacks to this. The musk smooths it out and I love that.

This reminds me of my favorite sesame latte at my favorite breakfast spot. I can't get enough. More importantly, my husband can't get enough. Very unique and still a crowd pleaser! Give her a sniff!

It's a more interesting and unique vanilla-esque perfume. It's musky, nutty, and lactonic. It's perfect for the cold winter months, and so underrated. This is what I wanted Italica by Xerjoff to be.

Not for me. It's too synthetic. I agree with others that mention Bianco Latte, and I sold that one because I REALLY didn't like it. Very cloying and artificial.

this is beautiful. What I wanted Commodity Milk to be. Light and airy sweetness. Lactonic perfume my love🫶🏻

smells like commodity milk to my nose but more complex and smooth smelling

Gf tried it and first note she pulled was milk. She’s getting better

This one’s peculiar—more eccentric than Gardez, at least to my nose. It opens milky rather than creamy, with a dry, unsweetened sesame that takes center stage. Tonka is used with restraint, allowing that sesame-forward magic to shine. Vanilla weaves through as a quiet balancer, softening edges without stealing the show. There’s a faint dustiness here—though no lavender is listed, perhaps the jasmine is playing that trick. As it settles, the scent drifts into something almost “old-world magic,” opulent and steeped in character. Feminine at first glance, yet entirely wearable for an eccentric man. It draws curiosity; people will ask what you’re wearing. And while there’s no leather in the formula, I can’t help imagining it paired with leather clothing—the combination would be intoxicating.

Sissa and Commodity’s Milk and Milk+ are the same thing with different names. Maybe my nose is amateur, but there’s simply no reason to justify paying the high markup for Sissa when it and Milk were made by the same perfumer. Milk doesn’t smell the least bit different than Sissa to someone who isn’t in perfumery school or a perfumer themselves. I own Milk + and have a tester of Milk and I’m telling you there’s little difference if any at all. I can’t really smell the sesame as much as I wanted to either. Oh, well. I’ll enjoy my 5ml until it’s gone, but count me out of dropping that cash on a full bottle.

This smells really delicious! It’s sweet, creamy, and a little bit indulgent. I get a lot of vanilla and tonka, and I’m getting a soft hint of coffee in there too, though it’s subtle. It has that cozy, caramelised warmth that makes it super easy to like and very moreish. That said, I’m not sure it quite justifies the price. It’s nice, and the vanilla does smell good quality, but this style of fragrance feels pretty familiar and widely available at more affordable price points. It’s enjoyable, but in my opinion, not particularly unique. Try Xplicit Vanilla by Mancera, I find it very similar!

Instant love affair after trying my sample. Sesame might be my new favorite note. A friend had some "black sesame mochi" ice cream that smelled good and inspired me to look for sesame as a note. This perfume Sissa does NOT smell like food, more like a shisha or incense I once had that I cannot name. But unlit incense, no smoky! It's very mysterious and yet lighthearted. I think if you like Eilish No. 2 this might be a little more safe for daytime. I compare that because that also reminded me of incense but they don't have anything but vanilla in common.

Warm and grainy, slightly spicy latte. Less sweet than Bianco Latte, so if you are looking for something like that, try this one! It’s very straightforward and not too deep or complicated, but it’s nice. I don’t think it’s worth the high price point since it’s nothing too new or out of the ordinary. 100% unisex and for the colder months. I like it pretty much but I wouldn’t buy it because I don’t think the fragrance is worth that amount of money. But I like it enough to go for a dupe! Rating: 7+/10 🥛

Honesly kinda reminds me of Amore Caffe for some reason. I really liked it in the opening, and I feel like I should still love it in the drydown, but there's just one note in it that's kinda putting me off. I think it might be the milk note? I'm just not a fan of milk notes in general. But apart from that one little thing, this is a great fragrance. I still like the smell overall, just maybe not as much as I thought I would. I'll have to give it more thought, but right now it's a solid 7.5/10.

This is like Commodity's Milk+ with a savory note, but in a pleasant way. I tried this out at a department store and immediately bought it. The coumarin, tonka, and milky notes in Sissa really stood out to me. But I don't think I could ever picked out the sesame in this without being told. I put on a couple sprays of this in the morning, and by midnight I could still smell it. Definitely recommended.

This is a very nice lactonic fragrance that doesn't let the milk do all the work. The sesame is quite strong, especially in the opening, and it accords beautifully with the other notes, setting itself apart from the usual milky gourmands. It doesn't lean very sweet, so the comparison to both Milk and Bianco Latte seems a bit off to me.

I love Mind Games and this is a lovely milk tonka and sesame scent. Cosy, without being too sweet and it works well with my skins chemistry. However with intimate projection and lasting 5-6 hours on my skin. Not worth it for me. Besides I already own Milk+ by Commodity, very similar scent profile, which has the performance I look for.

Floral, yet vanilla-lactonic and creamy. On my skin it feels very similar to Bianco Latte, but with a touch more floral elegance. Great longevity and strong sillage. I’d consider a full bottle once my Bianco Latte is gone.

Nice sesame with sweet and creamy tonka that has a slight saltiness to curb down the sweetness. Very easy to wear if you like sweet or gourmand scents. Very unisex. And definitely not the screaming for attention type.

Commodity Milk, but without the woody notes. Vanilla in this works well. I prefer this to Milk, but like my review between J'adoube and Commodity's Juice it doesn't justify the price difference in my eyes.

Similar to Intimate Silhouette and commodity milk. Intimate silhouette is a much lower price point and similar enough that I’ll just stick to that one.

Thanks @Hifza for the AI-generated ad for the clone. Ape

It smells surprisingly a lot like Dahlia Divin Le Nectar to me which I was wearing frequently recently until I just got tired of the mimosa sweetness & was looking for something a bit more clean, lactonic & skin scent musky. This is very unisex, more woody / aromatic to me, which must be the coumarin / sesame combo since wood not a listed note. This is not as creamy as I hoped. I don’t get the milk note. I don’t get any Jasmine either, mostly vanilla, wood & sweetness. I prefer the feminine makeup powdery creaminess of Le Nectar which is unfortunately discontinued when I’m craving a creamy evening fall gourmand. This smells good. It’s just not what I was looking for which I think have most closely found in Carner Danzatoria, completely different but lactonic & musky and a touch spicy. I’ll be selling my decant of this. It’s just not for me.

It’s sweet, nutty and spicy with a bit of bitterness, likely from labdanum. It does remind me of Commodity Milk, which makes sense, since both Sissa and CM were created by the same perfumer. This perfume does not really excite me, but doesn’t bother me either, unlike most of the other Mind Games creations that tend to be cloying. For me it sits right in the middle as comfortable, unisex, without clear identity. I can’t really see it fitting anywhere except maybe a weekend brunch with a pumpkin latte and a book.

there is something bitter in here. if that would not be in here, it would be stellar vanilla. and it leans masculine for me a bit. which is not good, cause I don't like masculine scents on me. sadly I am still looking for my perfect Mind Games scent. I love the bottles... Queening is too quiet, Lionora is too syntetic, Counterplay after wonderful top notes turns into another Erba Pura cousin.. Others are not my style.

A very divisive frag apparently. On me, it's a sweet vanilla with added depth of tonka and a bit of musk. I don't get the sesame or many other notes. Even the milk is hard to pick out. There is a creaminess from it, but I mostly get sugary vanilla. As it wears, the musk becomes more prominent and sweetness fades. By the end of the day, it smells like soft cinnamon rolls.

Thought I would like this. I don’t think it’s too much going on but it was just... weird. The lactonic/vanilla notes didn’t last very long due to the sesame not being the main star of the show. The sesame absolutely makes you smell like food and not in a good way. Very odd concept. 5/10

Feminine leaning in that it smells like straight up chocolate chip cookies with a glass of whole milk and tonka bean. Smells nice, but milk notes often end up smelling sour on my skin. Doesn't appeal to my personal vibe, but it will probably appeal to any gourmand fanatic.

the tonka and vanilla read like caramel to my nose. i don’t pick up the sesame at all unfortunately. much sweeter and less musky than what i expected. i’m a bit disappointed with this one, i think i’d like it much more if the musk and sesame dulled the lactonic sweetness

So very close to being the lactonic perfume of my dreams. I don’t know what is turning me off but something isn’t quite *right*. Probably the coumarin cause I get the same feel from Bianco Latte. Stellar performance though!

It would be nice if it weren't for the aromatics. It's leaning too leathery with that vanilla and milk on top of whatever that licorice scent is.

Smells like a synthetic latte that's had a pound of sugar poured into it. Definitely femme, not at all unisex. 5.5/10.

Extremely cloying in warm weather

I really wanted to love this one based on the notes, but unfortunately the labdanum completely dominated the fragrance on my skin from the very beginning. The opening came across as pungent, bitter, and almost cosmetic-like to my nose — not leathery exactly, but more like an old makeup bag or a slightly floral resinous scent that reminded me faintly of linden blossom. I kept waiting for the fragrance to become more lactonic and creamy, especially with the milk, tonka, vanilla, and sesame notes listed, but that never really happened for me. I never got the rich milky quality I can detect easily in fragrances like Oriana, Dirty Milk, or Candy Dust. The sweetness was definitely there underneath, but it stayed trapped beneath the labdanum-heavy structure. A few hours in, the fragrance did soften considerably and became less bitter, but the labdanum remained present throughout the wear and continued to give the scent a slightly pungent, resinous quality that I just couldn’t connect with. I can see why some reviewers describe this fragrance as “bitter,” though to me it leaned more pungent and perfumey than truly bitter. The fragrance also sits very close to the skin. This is not a loud projecting gourmand or a scent that fills a room. Instead, it stays soft and intimate throughout the wear, which may appeal to people who prefer subtle fragrances. To my nose this leans feminine, though the resinous labdanum gives it a slight unisex edge. Unfortunately, the creamy gourmand experience I was hoping for never fully emerged on my skin.

Strong, headache-inducing opening for me. Sweet vanilla and tonka. I thought there might be coffee or coconut until I saw the notes -- I guess I was misreading the toastiness of the sesame. It remained suffocating for hours, getting more and more vanilla-milky. My husband said I smelled nice, but I think milk notes are just always gonna be a no for me in fragrances.

Licorice, maybe some milk powder. Not for me, I'd say one of the weaker entries from Mind Games.

Tonka bean and vanilla bomb. Very one note. For this price? Nope. Never.

I tested this (Sissa) on one arm and Queening on the other at HoD the other day, and couldn’t stop sniffing myself. I worried that the dry down may go weird on me like Counterplay, but fortunately, I think both of these have different fixatives. Since I couldn’t decide between them, I got a 10ml decant of each. Some of the fragrance got in the Sissa cap, so over the past week, anytime I go through my box of travel sizes, I would get some Sissa on my fingers, and it was like the perfect amount, that day by day enticed me until I finally sprayed it on my right arm this morning. At first, this is straight up labdanum on me with whispers of vanilla and sesame. It was strong for a couple hours, but gradually mellowed. Now, at 10 hours, I get some slight toasted vanilla, but the labdanum is gone. I love labdanum, and for those of you who think this smells weird- that might be the reason. It’s definitely warm, but unlike others, I don’t find this super sweet. I have a love hate relationship with fragrances because I never know if they are going to give me a headache. Fortunately, this doesn’t turn as bad on my skin as Counterply (had an amazing opening that made me start looking at a FB, but then the dry down was awful on me to the point I had to wash it off). I can wear Sissa all day without a headache, but if I put my nose close to my skin now 10 hours later, there is definitely something left from it that doesn’t agree with my head. It reminds me of the same scent I pick up from the dry down of Erba Pura on my skin. But since it’s only if I put my nose close, I just won’t do that with Sissa. Haha

As a reviewer of many words, Sissa’s description escapes me. However, this has been in my top 5 for cold weather rotation (it horrified me in the warm months, I should mention.) Comforting near-gourmand hard-hitter, with a strong personality and unique scent profile. Lactonic yet aromatic opening, smooth and warm, creamy. Vanillic, a bit of spice, a bit of something dark and nutty. And a specific “coffee” hidden accord that sneaks in through the drydown. Caramel coffee. The drydown is HEAVENLY, long-lasting yet personal if you don’t overspray. Layered in with the opening, this is a salty/sweet sesame cafe au lait poured over an aromatic tonka base. Sweetness is a 4/10, which dials back the syrupy gourmands that saturate the market. PS- the “reminds me of” on this fragrance are truly all over the place. Bouquet ideale, Bianco latte, Milk, and Herod are absolutely all different scent profiles that share almost none of the DNA- but if you LIKE those, this could be a safe scent for you to try.

THIS is what I was hoping Blanche Bete would smell like! Sissa is beautifully lactonic, nutty, sweet and comforting. It reminds me heavily of Lost in a Dream from Navitus and Commodity's Milk (these two are dupes to my nose), but Sissa smells smoother and a bit sweeter which I really enjoy. And it's also got the wonderfully nutty quality of the sesame. In all honesty though, this is absolutely a dupe for Milk. It's just got some extra flair in the form of the sesame on top. Same perfumer for both as well which just drives the comparison home. If you're on a budget or don't care for anything nutty, go with one of the other two and you won't be missing out. This is easily my favorite scent that I've tried from Mind Games so far.

This smells like milk after eating 2 bowls of fruity pebbles. Fruity cereal milk isn't a bad smell, albeit very artificial and cheap, but something about this is sickening. I like fruity pebbles and I don't mind cereal milk smell at all (I just think it's juvenile and not worth the price tag), but the scent wafting from my hand made me nauseous before I even made it to my car from the fragrance counter. It's not a bad smell but somehow it's sickening and I'm not sure why because cereal milk shouldn't be offensive. Really hard to scrub it off after too, which could be a pro if you like this fragrance.

Reviewing sample from 2025. Sissa was launched in 2023. Opens with a prominent coumarin note which is unfortunately a bit challenging and drowns out the sesame. This fades quickly to a very sweet lactonic vanilla musk skin scent. Not well blended. I would have preferred less coumarin and more sesame to make this truly unique. Quality- average 2/5 Unisex - leans feminine Performance- stays close but lasts 4/5 Overall an okay vanilla musk skin scent. Too sweet smelling and safe for me. 6.5/10