Hana Hiraku

What a beautiful perfume! I have been obsessed with Japanese aesthetics for years and have searched for a perfume artist from Japan for ages. There are not many, however during my research one artist stood out: Osawa Satori. I initially came across a review for Hana Hiraku on a Japanese blog. I settled for Satori in my mind as this perfume was more catered to the scents I prefer, however due to backorder of the item in the States I purchased Hana Hiraku instead. Hana means 'flower' in Japanese, and Hiraku means 'open'. It can translate to mean 'open flower' or 'blooming flower'. This perfume starts off with a creamy melon ball, and progresses gently to a floral magnolia. I smell the umami of the soybean and it lays close to the skin. The melon remains present throughout, intermingled with the magnolia. I do get a light incense drydown that adds spice to this beautiful creature. I believe it to be the sandalwood and cedar. This has moderate longevity on my skin, however it remains close and soft in sillage: catering to the Japanese aesthetic of being non-offensive and caring about the effects it might have on others. In my culture, sadly it has become a take all and give none approach to life. This scent reminds me to care about others and to radiate a soft and peaceful presence. It remains for quite awhile and I can still catch whiffs of it throughout the day, but it never becomes beastly. It remains present: a flower standing alone, only caught in bloom by the lucky passerby. I cannot wait to try Satori and recommend Hana Hiraku to any who wish to venture into Japanese perfume. I will treasure until the last drop.

I've been searching for a photorealistic honeydew melon scent for a while. Not necessarily in the sense of the fruit, but in the flavor you see in Japanese snacks and candies. This smells the way artificial melon tastes. It's one of my absolute favorite scents. If Hana Hiraku was easier to get than Angel Nova, I'd definitely wear this as my signature. At almost 200 a bottle though, I think this is too niche to blind buy, and it's too expensive for me to readily invest in. It's candy-like at first which can be hard to bear for people who don't like the smell, then there's more of a milky melon scent, with a floral/woody ending. I've tried a few different melon perfumes. Not all of them have gelled well with my nose, I can bet there are a ton of people who don't like this specific brand of honeydew scent, but if you're a huge fan of melona ice cream or melon pan you will love this.

Satori Hana Hiraku (2016) - melon umami - Beyond #satoriosawa ‘s knack for creating these beautiful and airy accords, she also develops them with such a unique and joyful perspective that makes her creations a delight to wear. This perfume is one of them. Honeydew melon freshly cut - sweet & ripe, mixed with smoky Incense and a floral accord - bitter, cut-grass, powdery with a human skin facet. As it dries down, I get notes that I am shocked to smell on my skin, as I associate it with Japanese food! These accords are soy sauce and miso - both powerful agents of Umami and first time for me to witness in perfumery. Lay your fears aside as you won’t smell like yakitori, but it lends a beautiful rounded smoky saltiness that creates juxtaposition with the sweeter elements. It was love at first sniff and I recommend anyone visiting Japan to get a hold off a sample to sniff.

Haven’t ever smelled anything like it. I’m always on the hunt for weird stuff, this one knocked my socks off!! Top note is loud blast of ozone and melon hard candy, then it leans more into Melon pan, + those mochi cubes covered in soybean powder, and some miso umami. It’s not totally photorealistic which is why it’s great - It’s really wet and juicy, and it's got that boggy vomity white floral stank. Makes me think of a swampy shaded pond. So there's lots going on. Fascinating and addictive contrast between squeaky-cute artificiality and a muddy, algae-covered rock you'd dig up from the bottom of that shaded pond. Grounded by that soy nuttiness. Idk how they pulled it off but it works beautifully.

This is my first Janapese perfume that I own, and I think as far as the scent goes, the scent is niche quality, a milky melon that feels a bit dirty, a bit indolic. However the silage and longevity is somehow lacking, just like any other perfume from Japan. I tried a couple of perfumes from Satori, but they suffer from the same low-silage and weak-longevity. I think it's more about Japanese culture , that a perfume could not be intrusive. I expected more actually...