Issara

Looking at the perfume profiles of the Dusita trio, my attention and interest was naturally drawn to the opulent Oudh Infini with its Laotian oud and Mysore sandalwood, and to Melodie de L'Amour with its lush Gardenia. When I got my samples from Ms Umavijani however, it is Issara that became my favourite. Though the other two is pretty stunning! Issara is purity and happiness. Open grassy fields, sea breezes, vast expanse, sweet-smelling air, wind going through your hair, wholesome feeling of being close to nature. These are some of the mental impressions I got. It also evokes aloneness. This is an introspective scent. If there is ever a fragrance equivalent of meditation, Issara will be it. This is YOU under a tree far from the madding crowd, yourself in the whole wide world, when you just want to be left the f**k alone. Elysian Fields, paradise, Pure Land, whatever name one wants to call it, Issara comes pretty close to smelling like it. On me, I get herbaceous sweet smelling clary sage and the coumarin, oh my goodness, the COUMARIN. If you like coumarin or tonka, do yourself a favour and try this. Someone mentioned that it's a reinvention of the fougere, hell yes and what a reinvention. This is not another stiff gentlemanly cologney type perfume that typifies so many unremarkable fougeres out there. This is an unapologetic paean to coumarin and its sweet hay-like accord. Tobacco and Amber puts in a modest appearance to tame the sweetness a little. I'm not familiar with vetiver though I'm sure it's there. And as someone who is Super wary of musk, the musk here is so subdued and subtle, you don't have to worry about it overwhelming the entire composition. I catch whiffs of a certain 'muskiness' rather than musk at times. And my skin amplifies musk, so to me there's a delicate touch here that deserves applause. Definitely full bottle worthy for me. Even Oudh Infini and Melodi, if only I've the money to buy all 3 :)))

I really don’t know if there is even one perfume which I don’t like from Parfums Dusita. I haven’t tried all of them but almost and I have 8 beautiful Pissara’s creations for now. Many of Dusitas open up in a little bit pungent way which doesn’t last long before changing into something amazing. That you have to know if just testing quickly and it’s good to bear in mind as well that these perfumes need a warm skin to perform perfectly so don’t judge based on test strip. Issara opens up with a hazy and soft, sweet aromatic and a little bit greenish scent. It’s very pleasant, fluffy and surprisingly subtle considering that it’s a parfum concentration. This is so calming and indulgent that I like to wear this if I feel stressed or I have had somehow uncomfortable day. Sometimes I wish that it would be stronger but if that would be the case I think the desirable smooth “zen feeling” would be ruined. It’s really hard to think that this scent would bother someone near you: this is definitely office safe but not energising, this is rather something you could wear if having a speech for a big audience. Issara is in the same kind of unisex than all other Dusitas: on my skin it performs brighter and sweeter and on my husband’s skin it’s darker and more woody. In the dry down this is really soft musky, not mossy, earthy and dry like Oakmoss mostly performs. Beautiful scent! I really don’t know from where those notes has came into fragrantica but correct notes are: - Pine needles, herbal notes - Tonka Bean absolute, Clary Sage, Vertiver Bourbon, Sylvester Pine Leaf - Musk, rich Ambergris, a woody Oakmoss It’s really sad that you can’t trust the notes here. Thank you for reading, I hope my review was helpful. I would appreciate a lot if you want to follow me on IG and/or YouTube (English subtitles): @ninamariahperfumes It gives me a lot of motivation to write more. 🤗

I really don’t know if there is even one perfume which I don’t like from Parfums Dusita. I haven’t tried all of them but almost and I have 8 beautiful Pissara’s creations for now. Many of Dusitas open up in a little bit pungent way which doesn’t last long before changing into something amazing. That you have to know if just testing quickly and it’s good to bear in mind as well that these perfumes need a warm skin to perform perfectly so don’t judge based on test strip. Issara opens up with a hazy and soft, sweet aromatic and a little bit greenish scent. It’s very pleasant, fluffy and surprisingly subtle considering that it’s a parfum concentration. This is so calming and indulgent that I like to wear this if I feel stressed or I have had somehow uncomfortable day. Sometimes I wish that it would be stronger but if that would be the case I think the desirable smooth “zen feeling” would be ruined. It’s really hard to think that this scent would bother someone near you: this is definitely office safe but not energising, this is rather something you could wear if having a speech for a big audience. Issara is in the same kind of unisex than all other Dusitas: on my skin it performs brighter and sweeter and on my husband’s skin it’s darker and more woody. In the dry down this is really soft musky, not mossy, earthy and dry like Oakmoss mostly performs. I really don’t know from where those notes has came into fragrantica but correct notes are: - Pine needles, herbal notes - Tonka Bean absolute, Clary Sage, Vertiver Bourbon, Sylvester Pine Leaf - Musk, rich Ambergris, a woody Oakmoss It’s really sad that you can’t trust the notes here. Thank you for reading, I hope my review was helpful. I would appreciate a lot if you want to follow me on IG and/or YouTube (English subtitles): @ninamariahperfumes It gives me a lot of motivation to write more. 🤗

Issara is the most discussed of the relatively new house of Dusita. Described as a fougere, but notably missing the signature note of lavender, Issara is mainly woody, with spicy and resinous elements in the background. I unfortunately don't detect much of the sage or pine that might otherwise give Issara some interesting nuances from the onset. The oakmoss (synthetic of course) and musk could surely be part of the drydown, as the opening is ever so slightly sharper than the bottom, but I can't get a lot of the neat stuff in between like coumarin. Vetiver is ever so slightly part of the mix, providing the dirtiness that I might be mistaking for a smoky sort of incense. The fragrance I easily liken Issara to is Eau Des Baux by L'Occitane, a relatively straightforward blend of vanilla, cedar, and incense that is nonetheless superbly blended to be an infinitely wearable option in cold weather. Issara is certainly a bit more complex but its nuances are not overt enough to distinguish sufficently from Eau Des Baux, at least upon first wearing with a modest application from a sample vial. Still, at $295 for 50ml extrait, it's discouraging that I might need to apply quite a bit of perfume in order to enjoy its full character. Extraits are often said to project more modestly than EDPs, though my experience with this variance is inconsistent, but I can at least argue that for that pricing, irrespective of concentration, I'd expect more than the modest projection I've observed with Issara. Its longevity seems above average, though, as it's remained consistent for the hours I've worn it. A very nice fragrance, but not one I can fathom spending hundreds. 8 out of 10

This is a masterpiece. True artistry at work here. It's hard to explain how breathtakingly good this is. *Boy howdy* is it expensive, though. I got lucky and found it at a discount, but I think I would budget and save up if I ever ran out. Even though it's an extrait, this is not a heavy perfume. It's airy, light, and outdoorsy. It's breezy, sweet tobacco. (No smoke, though - this is more like fresh pipe tobacco.) This is sunshine after a long winter - opening the windows and taking a breath of crisp, spring air (or alternatively, that first evening in fall when there's a bracing wind that makes you wish you'd brought a scarf). The pine and sage add a refreshing herbal quality without being bitter, and the vetiver occasionally pokes through for a touch of dry hay. It's blended so well, but I think the focus is that smooth, light tobacco note. There's a sweetness, a slight vanilla that keeps it from being too masculine, but the pine and sage keep it from being cloying or too feminine. It's unisex and unique. Seems like tobacco is usually paired with a heavy, syrupy vanilla, or a masculine, room-filling smokiness, so this light, fresh take on it feels original. Look, I don't want to encourage consumerism and splurging, so I'd recommend a sample first. I kept the dabber at my desk and found myself opening it every day for a sniff. I carefully rationed my drop of this magic potion for two months, and that's how I knew it was time. Well done, Pissara.