Mandarava

Mandarava is a spiritual sacral essence; here, Prin finds a magical composition using some of the most refined elements in Buddhist ceremonial acts. These are all elements already in existence, individually or combined, in these sacred events. Prin can combine them masterfully like a crazy alchemist and deliver something that nobody has ever done before him, at least to my knowledge and at this level, we aren't playing here. The difficulty here is to balance the extremely prominent Champaca and let it be "atonal," yet, even with this darkest undertone, let it breathe with air and composure. The scent of Mandarava is based on champaca, ylang-ylang, fig dried leaves, lotus, and jasmine on top. In the middle, you will find the spices, Cumin and Coriander, mixed into Incense, giving an unmistakable spice shop feel. The end is deep and very balsamic, with the amber, sandalwood, and civet dominating the dry down and never leaving your skin. The drydown is probably one of the most powerful uses of oils in the Prissana series. Even if it is dry, it follows you like a spirit, it is that powerful, and an experience you can have only using pure oils and attars. I admire this scent a lot, but it's virtually impossible to pull it off, as it smells exactly like a real Buddhist ceremony. Perhaps this wasn't created as a scent for any occasion, but as a meditation link between reality and spirituality, an absolute Pillar of "Incense" scent that probably changed the history of this catalog, pushing boundaries that only people who work with these materials can even imagine to create. This is for sure representinga cerimony like nothing I have come across in my life. Prin confirms his immense talent, and this time, he is showing that he has a lot of respect for the Buddhist world. This is a gift to his Grandmother, and is clear he put immense effort to create it. Note: old batches last forever, the dry down lasts 24+h, one of the strongest scents i came across.

Knock, knock, knocking at Heaven's Door... There is one word to describe this perfume: Beautiful It's like standing at Heaven's door, where you can feel the aroma coming from the other side of the door, and having in your mind the only desire to go in, and enjoy there for the rest of the eternity.. To me this is flowers and incense. Flowers here, mainly champaca, feel very natural, with a hint of civet, but not making it animal or dirty in any case, but the other way around, it's kind of soapy. I think this soapiness is due to a incense accord that makes this perfume a juice for the soul. This incense accord is reinforce by some spices, cumin mainly, but again (cumin could provide perfumes a bio aroma) in here is not dirty at all. Using these notes and ending up with this extremely beautiful aroma you need 3 main ingredients, all found in this juice: 1) Top quality natural materials 2) Hi knowledge in perfumery and blending skills 3) Put all your energy and love while creating the perfume It's performance is also kind of magic. This is not laud but very present all the time. It is not bold but has a lot of volume, it is kind of shy, but everybody will notice... seems to be a catty but it's a tiger, beautiful, elegant, secretive but lethal... Originality: medium-high Scent: 9/10 Performance: high (you may think it's not, but it is) Would I buy it: Yes (part of my collection)

July in London 2021 The sun has finally showed its face today. British summer at times is an amalgam of clouds and rain so when the sun comes most of us celebrate. I grew up in S.E. Asia, the Philippines, and the warmth of the sun is something that I do miss now that I am living in London. Fragrances for me has been a great reminder of what tropical warmth is and for me this is well incapsulated in Mandarava, one of the most beautiful perfume I ever smelled and now have. A perfume that grounds and calms me. Great longevity with strong silage. I grew up in a home wherein everyone wakes up to prayers, sandalwood incense burning and jasmine flower offerings. Afterwards, someone might be cooking breakfast with spice, cinnamon. Later on the day, someone hangs fresh clean laundry to be dried under the sun. The amalgam of scents of what I know as my tropical home is skilfully and thoughtfully created by Prin and bottled it in Mandarava. This is the core of fragrances for me, it triggers memories and recreates new ones. Bridging the past and present. I admire Prin for dedicating this perfume to his grandmother. There is no doubting that Mandarava reminds me of my lola (grandmother) too and her warm loving hugs which smells of incense, jasmine, spice and neroli soap. Mandarava smells of home for me and the memories I keep dearly of my beloved lola.

This is a beautiful fragrance which can probably be characterized as a combination of white flowers - musk - resins. It is natural smelling, rich and dense and long lasting. Champaca is listed as a main note, though I get more the impression of a white flower bouquet where it is hard to distinguish the individual flowers. There is a mild incense component and a prominent musk note that becomes powdery in the dry down. If you are looking for a natural smelling bouquet of tropical flowers, this is it. It leans rather heavily on the feminine side, especially with the combination of white flowers and musky powder...so it will probably prove more of a hit with the feminine crowd. Edit after 2 years: The fragrance has been sitting and matured. It has changed in the sense that the powder note is gone and civet has become much more prominent. The final product is thus more of a white flower bouquet + civet/resins, and it has developed more in a masculine direction as compared to when it was new. Which is fine with me.

Mandarava; Parfum Prissana I test out Mandarava out of curiosity, this is another positive for me. This is Oreintal-Floral, it believe there is Flower Bouquet heart combination between yellow / white floral. The color smell like pale yellow to my nose, it is beautiful. Also, lighter than majority of Prin's offering (but not reducing in Longevity). Mandarava is a solid choice for floral amber lover. I really link this to Mandodari, but Mandodari has strong indole undertone. I like the smell, but it is really strong in both Incense and Idolic flower. Denser. Mandarava is quite liter, easier to enjoy imho. 9/10