Kolonya

Kolonya is one of the best releases of 2018, it's an absolute masterpiece and nowadays I find it harder and harder to be truly intrigued by a perfume. After reading Luca Turin's review I was exicted to smell "iris bergamot" and there are facets of iris in this, but I think it is a disservice to label it so simply because this creation is a delicate, glass windchime with dozens of points of refraction. I'm most impressed with how Rasei mastered the use of plum in his work, wielding it as a fencer would their sword, and extension of themselves. It's an icy edge to the plum: it reminds me of smelling the icicles hanging off the bushes in our backyard, evergreen mixing with the frozen elements. Crisp through and through. There's an illusion of cherry wood as well, the rosewood and tobacco coming together to smell of an old pipe on a dusty mantle - a grandfather's - that hasn't been touched in years but still recalls the embers that once burnt that sweet tobacco in the pit of the wooden chalice. Kolonya feels sincere in an age where perfume has started to feel exploitative once more.

Kolonya is very much a Fort&Manle fragrance. I know it is Rasei's side-project and quite personal due to this being an homage to his grandpa, however it could easily be in the main lineup as I can detect the F&M DNA of woody-fruitiness. Personally, I would call this an 'upside-down' fragrance as it starts very woody and smokey with a pinch of bitter petitgrain, a bit of bergamot and some green notes. After about half an hour it really mellows down and that is where the real magic starts. The plum just bursts out into the forefront making the composition quite a bit sweeter, rounder and... nostalgic. I love it because it reminds me of my own grandparents garden which has many fruits growing in it, plums being one of them (they are some of my favourites). I guess I share a similar image with Rasei, which makes Kolonya so special to me. I get great longevity of 7-8 hours with above average to moderate projection for the first 4 hours, and then a skin scent for the rest of it's life. Do yourself a favour and take a trip down memory lane, I know I will continue doing so.

It starts with a lipstick kiss, humid pipe tobacco, and fragmented memories of petitgrain cologne. But this is a whole world at once; it somersaults through moods and evocations—sometimes super femme floral, sometimes masc darkness, all until it lands on this sweet comforting plum with a pepper nuance. I’m not one who believes in perfume progressions—I don’t need a distinct top, heart, and middle—but it sure is magical here. It wears light, as you’d expect of a cologne, but it lasts, and it certainly doesn’t feel weak or diluted; it casts an aura. There’s a vintage vibe to it, but it’s not at all stuffy. In short, I think it might be amazing. My sample is used up; a bottle is on order. This is one I want to have around. PS: One of my favorite parts about this perfume is that it happens to linger on my watch band for days after I wear it. It's an impression and a ghost at once, constantly being recalled. Just beautiful.

I have yet to try any Fort and Manle scents so I was unsure of what to expect going into this. I was pleasantly surprised. Kolonya opens with a beautifully natural petitgrain note, a cozy and slightly sweet tobacco base, and a wonderful rich iris note (I'm still shocked that it's not listed). Every time I've worn this so far, it's gone a completely different direction after this point. In the heat, its been very fruity and almost juicy, with the plum note becoming the focal point. In cooler settings it has gone almost subtly gourmand, reminiscent of TF Noir Extreme's nutty opening. Some days its green and fresh, luxuriously soap-like, other days its heavily woody and rooty, deep and almost vintage developing a mossy shade of modern chypre... A bucolic brown-green nostalgia bomb. Unique yet somehow comfortingly familiar. Exceedingly pleasing yet deceptively complex. 9/10

This is a masterpiece! It is supremely masculine and a dynamic fragrance that will change with the season and on your body. Since it is splash only, it must be worn on skin and is potentially the only intended weakness(since most of us love sprays). The other weakness is it doesn't project like others. But, the strengths far outweigh the weaknesses and should be sampled by all perfume aficionados. The smell itself is both simple and complicated; with a waxy, sweet, citrusy blend. It is both a contemporary and classic fougere with over 40 ingredients. Rasei made this in honour of his grandfather's remembered scent. For me, It is best layered as its quality enhances most other frag's. 9/10

I sprayed ( I poured some in a decant) this on today after ignoring it all summer. For me it really brings back memories of a kid being poolside at Miami Beach with my family. I don’t know why, maybe it’s the orange neroli and other citrus notes that stand out to me. This is a fragrance that I wear just for myself. As far as performance goes I have to be honest and say it’s not much of performer. I purchased this just for it’s beautiful scent only

This is beautiful!!! Very Natural smelling but artistically manipulated into something so complex and perfect that it doesn’t smell like just natural hippy oils thrown together. To me it reminds me of this beautiful rich girl’s incense burning in her apartment

I'm delighted to finally try out Rasei Fort's release under his own name after having tried all of his creations to date under the Fort & Manle brand, Kolonya, exclusively available via Luckyscent in the US at $120 for a 60ml splash bottle. Immediately, it’s not like most so-called “cologne” fragrances (I’m thinking the Acqua di Parma Colonia line as a prototype). It doesn’t open with a blast of fresh neroli; it isn’t a bergamusk; nor is it something alcohol-intensive that feels like an aftershave. Rather, it’s an interesting, semi-herbal, semi-green, mostly-fresh blend that involves a mix of citruses and a very lengthy note list overall, a few standouts (that I’d like to think I get whiffs of) being petitigrain, rosemary, hay, oakmoss, white pepper, coriander, vetiver, and cedarwood. I doubt I do it justice to speak to notes specifically, though, and rather, my best way to communicate how it feels is to analogize it to something in real life. It has a bit of the smell of actual papyrus but mixed with citruses, herbs, and other woods. It’s not completely fresh, just mostly fresh with a touch of dryness. It’s restrained, while being complex and interesting. It performs decently well, not loud but not light and airy either. The price point is reasonable, as I usually regarding $2/ml as a good point for niche/independent perfumery, and so I’ll have to give this some strong consideration on the grounds of its uniqueness and inventiveness, attributes I usually assign to Rasei’s creations under the Fort & Manle brand, even those that don’t fit me as well personally as those I love like Amber Absolutely and Bojnokopff. I'm really intrigued by this one--not smitten, but pleased and encouraged to retry, especially given the fair price point. 7 out of 10

Very nice stuff. I tried with splash and also I've started decanting a few ml and then spraying that on myself instead. Reminds me a little of vintage givenchy gentleman with that herbal aspect and slight animalic tinge leaning against the clean fougere aspects (but with a plum tobacco twist in this one!). It's like a very modern dry woody slightly fruity take on that old cologne style to me. I do wish it was a touch stronger than it is, it does lay a little lower than I prefer but it lasts a way and smells natural throughout. Great stuff at pretty reasonable prices. As an aside, presentation is one of the best its simple but something worthy of display.

Certainly not a masterpiece. Something gives off a stale/sour like odour in the base on my skin. The opening stages are very pleasant, bright and green and the same petitgrain that is in Fatih Sultan Mehmet is noticeable. Given that it has much better longevity and half the price of FSM, the pricing is fairly reasonable. Note that this comes in the traditional splash-on format used for colognes.

NOT A REVIEW Of the Fragrance but a review of the reviews below. :) WOW - some of you guys have reviewed it very poetically. Loved the play of words and am even more intrigued with Kolonya now. I have been following F&M for a while and have been meaning to try Kolonya and probably will very soon. There is a reseller not far from my place so will drive down this weekend. Getting back to a review of the reviews, here's a quick recap of the amazing descriptions. Keep up the good work guys. The beautiful words are these ones below: ------------------------------------------------------------- ...I'm most impressed with how Rasei mastered the use of plum in his work, wielding it as a fencer would their sword, and extension of themselves. It's an icy edge to the plum: it reminds me of smelling the icicles hanging off the bushes in our backyard, evergreen mixing with the frozen elements. Crisp through and through. There's an illusion of cherry wood as well, the rosewood and tobacco coming together to smell of an old pipe on a dusty mantle - a grandfather's - that hasn't been touched in years but still recalls the embers that once burnt that sweet tobacco in the pit of the wooden chalice. AND Unique yet somehow comfortingly familiar. Exceedingly pleasing yet deceptively complex. AND ...It happens to linger on my watch band for days after I wear it. It's an impression and a ghost at once, constantly being recalled. ---------------------------------------- :D

This is my 4th (depending how you look at it) Fort & Manle (and adjacent) scents this week and the house DNA is everpresent in this one, too -- fruity-rose amber, though this time it's applied to a barbershop theme with a heap of citrus and dryish woods. I have a 2 ml decant of this, and I remember heavily considering this scent a few years ago, and I remember sorta-kinda thinking the same thing I did back then -- there's NOT ENOUGH going on with this one. Not enough movement or evolution, which is fine for some people, but not for me. I wish this did more, I wish there was more wow and pizzazz in this one. I tried hard to like it, but it's not for me...

I'm not sure where all the notes went. On me, this is orris root first on; strongly, waxy lipstick-y orris root. It dries rapidly to a soft vintage face powder kind of thing with florals and fruity notes, but very faintly. It mostly smells vintage. Soft, light, not strong. Ends up too sweetly powdery on my skin, but is pretty.

Fricckin awesome. Reminds you of yesteryear in a modern sense. Like Bogue Mem does but a masterpiece in its own. 10/10 Presentation is incredible. The price is great considering the quality.

Would love to buy a partial or full bottle of this ! Please dm if you would like to sell :)