Istanbul

To me, this is Love Don't Be Shy, but just better. I do prefer Love Don't be Shy for the first three minutes, its opening is one of the best I've ever smelled. But that is short lived. After that, Istanbul is just way better. It's smoother, not as agressive, doesn't smell as unnatural and is wayyyyy more potent. The opening is pretty great, I can definitely get the grapes and there's a very fresh background that tries to appease the extremely sweet components that are present in the fragrance. Then the fragrances goes on to be pretty much Love Don't Be Shy. Sweet, with some floral facets, smooth with a creamy vanilla. This DNA is just incredible. But what they managed to do here is really good, to take such an iconic DNA and give it a fragrance that's just all arround so much better than the original is pretty crazy. 100ml of this very high concentrated, very potent juice with superb presentation and quality costs LESS (at discounters) than 50ml of Love Don't Be Shy. This is absolutely crazy. I used to want to buy the Killian, but now I've smelled this one I'll 100% get it instead. If you love Love Don't Be Shy, please try this. It's not 100% like it, but it is definitely extremely close and in my opinion just way better. This is 100% unisex. Performance is outstanding, the sample kinda struggles pumping out the juice as it is EXTREMELY thick and oily, just a little bit on the arm is enough to radiate for hours and hours. Using a normal bottle with normal sprays will probably create a nuclear cloud arround you so spray with caution. I'll get a bottle for the next winter hopefully.

Unique e Luxury's Istanbul is the brand’s best crafted fragrance, imo. I'm not a huge fan of gourmands, but there are some I really love. When they are done well, gourmands are among the sexiest fragrances on both genders. I fell in love with Istanbul from the first sniff. A sweet-floral scent, with a deep rich base. Yummy. The opening of this perfume is wonderful. It smells like juicy and ripe grapes, with lemon tea and citruses that gives it sparkly feeling that makes it a very pleasant in the summer as well (its 30 c here). You can also smell the toffee and vanilla from the base of the fragrance, and they remain a dominant notes in this perfume. The toffee creates a scent that reminds me of burnt sugar, and vanilla is rich and full, definitely smelling like quality stuff rather than the cheap vanilla i usually smell in the designer fragrances nowadays. The geranium and the pepper in my opinion, serve to balance the sweetness a bit and prevent it from becoming too suffocating along with the woody notes that gives the scent a bit of creaminess. These supporting characters do a great job of giving this fragrance exactly the right amount of sweetness to be "yummy" without feeling like you sprayed a cake on yourself. Comes in a concentration of extrait de parfum. The sillage of this fragrance lasts for about two or three hours. After that, it stays closer to the skin.I wore this fragrance yesterday too, and this morning, woke up with the most beautiful woody-musky-slightly vanilla drydown. In my opinion this fragrance will smell sexyand will definitely attract both genders.

When I sample a batch of fragrances, I usually end up buying the one that creates the strongest instant attraction—the “love at first sight” rule. Istanbul was exactly that for me. After smelling through the Unique’e Luxury lineup, this was the first bottle I purchased without hesitation. It falls into the gourmand white floral category. The opening shows a noticeable blend of fruit and sweetness—something reminiscent of toffee or a grape-like accord. The sweetness is not entirely clean or crystalline; there is a faint caramelized edge, giving it a slightly toasted nuance. As the scent develops, the toffee note begins to recede. Tea and white florals gradually unfold, while the grape and floral tones move forward and form a more refined structure. The sweetness becomes rounder, with a syrupy fruit character touched by a hint of caramel. From a compositional standpoint, it maintains a fairly balanced position between sweetness and gourmand richness. In the drydown, soft musks appear, creating an amber-like, marshmallow-toned aura on the skin. The sweetness remains controlled and wearable. Over time, the florals soften further, leaving behind an amber note with a gentle caramel facet. Many reviews mention similarities to Love, Don’t Be Shy, though to my nose Istanbul comes across as the sweeter of the two. It performs particularly well in autumn and winter. In spring—and especially in summer—it can feel heavy. Longevity and projection are both strong. The most suitable setting is clearly an evening or date scenario, and it is best kept away from light-colored clothing.

Besotted with this scent! The comparisons to Love Don’t Be Shy are accurate but this is deeper, richer, projects more and just a beast of a performer overall. Call it LDBS intense if you will. A thick vanilla & toffee blend with some florals. Definitely smell the grapes on initial spray and wish that lasted into the dry down but beautiful nonetheless. Packaging is very luxurious and gorgeous. I got 3 compliments within 10 minutes of wearing this the first time. It’s a compliment magnet and it lasts all day on skin and clothing. Presentation is 10/10 - bottle and cap are nice and heavy. Will gladly repurchase as never want to be without it. Scent is 10/10 for me. Autumn /Winter/ Early Spring appropriate. Very feminine and decadent. Pricey but worth it. I managed to score a good bargain for it online on Notino- grateful, eternally.

This reminds me of Mancera's Velvet Vanilla on my skin. That and Istanbul share a lot of similar notes if you compare them side-by-side. HOWEVER this is syrupy and more natural making it feel more mature, with enhanced ingredients, better blended, more smooth to the nose than the powdery, hard candy, pink bubble-gummy, nature of velvet vanilla. With Istanbul you get a delicious boozy toffee syrup that has a considerable hint of fruit and flowers. The scent profile in the dry down projects heavy with vanilla and toffee giving this a lip-sticky and waxy texture but mounted on rich jasmine tea. A potent unisex fragrance that leans feminine but can be worn by the confident metrosexual male. Istanbul will no doubt command attention. 🍇 8.5/10

Grape, marshmallowy vanilla goodness. Those small hints of lemon tea and neroli provide the juice this bright quality that actually allows all the notes to shine individually, which I really appreciate. Unique’e also managed to sneak some semi-skunky geranium in that balances the heart from being too much of a spice bomb. IMO, the neroli is the true star here. It’s so creamy and thick, adding this beautiful floral orange creamsicle aspect that I really love. Reminds me a lot of fleur d'oranger. This actually sorta makes me upset given how well done it is; I strongly believe more grape should’ve been added throughout all 3 stages. Spectacular juice nonetheless . . . perfect spring/summer semi-urban lifestyle scent.

This is probably one of the most beautiful perfumes that I have in my collection. The opening is sweet and lingers throughout the whole duration.. the jasmine is the perfect blend with the toffee and vanilla. Artistry in this Perfume is perfect. It is not meant for a child or a teenager very classy and to be honest it’s worth every penny. I’m going to buy a couple more before the laws change and the scent changes. Because this is perfect. I can’t see this being a fragrance that a man would want to wear, but I don’t judge you wear whatever floats your boat. This does smell related to LDBS in the beginning and from a distance the two are not comparable . This is much more classy.

I just got my bottle. The sweetness is just right, I don't find it overpowering. The opening is definitely green, but after some time, the greenness dissipates, and the floral and fruity notes take center stage. I agree with @Adiam, I also think this is cute, not sexy, but very intoxicating. I thought I wouldn't like this much, but this is AMAZING! I'M OBSESSED! Although feminine-leaning, I’d still totally wear it and would probably go through it quickly! The dry-down reminds me of those floral-scented letter-writing stationery sets my sister used to collect when we were young. Very nostalgic. Scent: 10/10 Projection: 8/10 Longevity: 9.5/10

I can not get enough of this thick sweet floral, great for Spring! yes, it is very similar to LDBS but something is slightly more addicting. A floral gourmand -the toffee, vanilla and whatever else is making this super sweet are thick like honey, the white floral stops it from giving you diabetes. Tea/Neroli add citrus and make it more weight watcher friendly. This will last for a long time and when you do smell it hours later, you are like good gosh, this is delightful (vs considering washing off a fragrance because you are over it).

Istanbul makes LDBS look like a joke. It takes all the best parts of LDBS and eradicates the artificial candy, dusty qualities and replaces it with jasmine, toffee, and cedar musk. It's sophisticated yet dainty and elegant without being overpowering. I personally do not interpret this as "sexy"....cute in a mature way? 😅 Not sure, but it's fun and cozy to wear in or out of the house! Not sure if it is redundant to have this if you also have LDBS. If anything, you should get rid of LDBS and have this instead.

i was in LOVEEEE with LDBS by kilian for so long until i went into scentbar and smelled this. BOYYYY when i tell you this had me hooked immmmediately. i was stuck between this and sintra by memo n i went with this because it was so less spicy to me. it's more spicy than LDBS and has more aromatic/green note to it. but as the day goes on, this bad b loses her spiciness and dries down into a soft version of herself. the sillage on this is insane, will last all day without being to cloying.

90% similar to LDBS. This one does have the slight grapey fruity opening but that only last 5min. It is a touch less sweet than LDBS and doesn’t have the fluffy marshmallow texture but the toffee gives it a similar vibe. They are almost exactly the same. I’ll buy this one once my LDBS run out because you get twice the amount of juice for the price with this one. They both project the same amount and have the same lasting power imo. I sprayed one on each arm to compare.

Since I heard the review of "the perfume guy" in you tube about how diluted is LDBS and that it is not what it was before, I decided to check "Istanbul". When Sebastian said that Istanbul is a much stronger version compare to LDBS, I decided to buy this one. Istanbul is definitely worth buying. You can smell grapes, through all the life of the perfume. It is very well blended and its performance is very good.

This smells like Love Don't Be Shy with added toffee and on steroids. An absolutely beautiful creation. I do have to note that this definitely has been reformulated. Comparing it to when I first tried my sample last year and the bottle I purchased now, it definitely is no longer as beast mode. Now it lasts like a normal perfume does (about 6 hours with good projection) instead of the 12 it used to.

Might just be my most favorite perfume of all time. Sophistication in a bottle. Dress up and use 6-7 sprays of this perfume; you will turn heads. Stays on cloth over 24 hours and over 12 hours on skin. Projects really well for the first 2-3 hours. I wouldn't say it's blind buy safe, one needs to be accustomed to middle eastern perfumery to truly appreciate this masterpiece.

Revisiting this perfume. Seeing some of the comments saying "weak performer" "average projection", you guys either got a fake or a ruined perfume. This is borderline obnoxiously strong. If you have performance issues with this fragrance then other fragrances must last 1 hour and be skin scents from the start because there's no way this is weak.

I dont like this as much as LDBS or Oriana, it's probably number 3 or 4 for this specific profile but I ADORE this profile and wear this when I dont want to use my LDBS or Oriana. I feel like the newer versions of Istanbul don't have the longevity as the others

Absolutely beautiful fragrance! I get the LDBS comparisons but I think the grape, toffee and woody notes add a little more depth or thickness to this scent. So perfectly formulated. If you like sweet fragrances you will absolutely love this one.

Yes, it smells like LDBSE initially. But there’s much less green in this, and the toffee note persists and eventually overtakes all the elements that remind me of LDBSE. This is why i purchased it. I can smell like toffee all day!

One word: SEXY. Feel very sensuous in this fragrance. Transports me to be a beautiful woman who is desired! Transformational experience. Subtle and sneaks up on you. I am a poetic woman walking in the city!

This is LDBS twin sister😆😆 All that “I can smell this note and these notes are different...blah, blah”. Ya’ll have some STRONG noses because these smell identical monozygotic twins to be exact.

I've smelled this before! 95% similar to something I can't name 🤔 One of the best from the brand @Unworldlyking YES!! Love don't be shy!

I love this one but I have Oriana and they would compete in my collection. Very very similar. I might like this one better

Unbelievably good ,seductive and addictive. The scent is heavenly, with insane performance!

Its similiar to Love dont be shy, but smother and half prize, also more powerfull

This is LDBS on STEROIDS 🔥 Well worth the money, absolutely beautiful.

Layer this with Swiss Arabian's Casablanca... you're welcome.

My third purchase from Unique Luxury, such a sexy one🔥💯

Love Don't Be Shy on steroids.

I was eyeing Istanbul for almost a year, since buying Harmonised Senses and Hidden Accords in 2024, but not wanting to pay full retail price for it. Those two perfumes were both blind buys and instant love. I had finally found Istanbul for a decent deal and I am not loving it. It is so subdued and faint that I don’t know what to make of it... I have received my bottle yesterday and I am wearing it today but I can’t smell it on me. It sits so close to the skin, not radiant or diffusive at all, just a light, minimalistic fruity floral with some vanilla. Nice scent but I need to sniff closely my skin to be able to smell it. Based on my previous experience with the other two Unique’e Luxury perfumes, Istanbul is not delivering longevity or sillage for me. Performs rather weak, like a EDC concentration, not extrait de parfum. I see here that most people have voted it as long lasting with great sillage. I am bummed, because I am experiencing exactly the opposite, I’m not going to lie... I will put my bottle aside for a couple of weeks to see if anything changes regarding performance and will update my thoughts on this at a later date! First impressions are not great at all!

The toffee note in the base is overwhelming right from the opening. Has a mild charred/burnt smell to it, almost but not quite smoky, like it got left on the stovetop too long. Underneath that is warm, almost stewing, grape and fruit blend which slowly becomes the dominant accord as the toffee starts to settle ~30min in. A simmering soup of syrupy fruits and slightly burnt caramel, with the vanilla and woods holding base in the drydown. Moderate projection for 2-3hr, longevity 10-12hr through which I do catch faint whiffs for most of that. I don't get the comparisons to Love Don't Be Shy. It's toffee to marshmallows, although they both pick up caramel in their respective drydowns.

I didn't read too many reviews of this one and wasn't prepared for how much this resembles LDBS. I had LDBS and enjoyed it but I no longer really gravitate towards this scent profile. That being said, Istanbul is lovely and has impressive performance, both in regards to longevity, projection, and sillage. I may like it more than LDBS, it is not as bubblegummy. And I definitely like it more than Sintra, since the neroli in that one just does not smell good on me. I haven't smelled Oriana so I can't compare it to Istanbul but if you enjoy a scent profile akin to LDBS or Sintra, I recommend checking out Istanbul.

I get the warmth of patchouli incense sticks feom this. Pleasant. I have no idea why I don't get any of the listed notes – I might be getting a sliglt whiff of rose, also not listed – but it is what it is. I actually thought to myself that the name is apt, with its warmth and depth. I cannot speak for its projection, since it has been dabbed on from a sample vial, not sprayed in quantity, but I'll be back with an update on its longevity after sleeping.

My first from the brand It’s all about the sweetness it’s very very sweet Candy like sweet so sweet I almost smelt rose there though it’s not listed as a note I enjoyed it thoroughly for some reason I remember givenchy lintredit very close but this one has better Quality definitely Longevity was great projection was moderate

It does smell a lot like love don't be shy, Sweet orange blossom. BUT, Istanbul is a bit sweeter and its sweetness feels warmer like heated caramel or heated honey, and because it has strong performance the opening might be too much. LDBS is more powdery and marshmallowey, and for that, I prefer it, it is more refined.

*Blind buy diary* Unique, very smooth blend I can smell every notes described, bold but softly delivered on to My nose 1. Scent profile : 6.5 2. Longevity : 9 3. Sillage : 8 4. Projection : 9 5. Blend : 8.5 Overall : 8.2/10 Objectively, it has an excellent quality.. Sadly, the scent profile is not for Me

Maybe it's just me but all i get from it is vanilla toffee smell . Good longevity and medium projection. Overall it's something you will love to wear if you ok with the unisex slightly feminine perfume.

Solid alternative to LDBS that performs better on my skin. This may be the most feminine scent I wear frequently. Love the vanilla-white floral blend. Not for Bros or anyone nervous about pushing norms.

How come nobody mentioned it? It smells lot like Absolute Aphrodisiac from Initio. Good longetivity but not as loud as mentioned sillage wise. To me nothing super special, just a nice fragrance.

Selling my Istanbul bottle. Few sprays missing, full presentation. UK shipping

This lasted like a couple minutes on me, do I have to overspray?

A friendly old lady would wear this. It’s that powdery jasmine.

I decided to give it a try and ordered a sample after seeing all the excited reviews claiming it’s like LDBS but stronger, and I love that DNA. At first, it smelled exactly like LDBS to me. However, in the dry-down it takes a different direction and becomes thicker and heavier, which makes sense because of the toffee note that adds a syrupy feel. I also pick up the green notes. It kind of reminds me of a Middle Eastern bazaar, which isn’t surprising since it’s inspired by Istanbul, but that’s not something I personally enjoy that much. It feels a bit too heavy and dense for my taste, since I really love the light, airy marshmallow note in LDBS. Maybe it needs to grow on me, but for now it’s unfortunately a pass. I don’t hate it, but I don’t love it either. As for performance, at least on me, this is definitely NOT a beast mode with crazy projection like some people claim. For the first 2 hours I get some good whiffs, but after that it becomes more intimate. Maybe it needs more time to macerate. That said, it is stronger than LDBS, because Love is honestly wayyy too shy: basically gone within 3–4 hours and doesn’t project much at all. I have samples of both, and for now, scent wise I still prefer LDBS. But who knows, I might take my words back later. I’ll give it a few more wears. 6.5/10

Testing this blind from their discovery set, it opened with a sweet dark vanilla and woody-musky body. As it dried down it carried a more powdery side. It is relatively mellow and reserved on the sweetness. Kind of like an aromatic sweet flower growing from sap in the forest. Looking at the notes now, the toffee with the vanilla sticks out the most, and most of the other notes are floating around but none to me really take the lead. At times it's the jasmine or tea, and other times the geranium or neroli. What I can't really identify is the pink pepper and lemon. It leans feminine from opening through the day, but not by much. Its a winner of longevity and that is worth something.

It is true, a lot like Love Don't Be Shy by Killian. But this one is more vivid, somehow brighter. And to be honest, I'm not a fan of either. I love the idea of this scent... But on me it nothing exciting, or rather, it is simply not my cup of tea. What does it smell like? Bright vanilla, neroli, fruits... It has this unique twist to it. It is really sweet, but not a full gourmand... And the florals in it are quite indolic, animalic even (on me such scents tend to smell a bit like piss). Performance is great and I'm sure many ladies would absolutely enjoy this scent, especially if they like LDBS :)

I wasn't aware of this before spraying it, and thought it was a dupe for LDBS. It is a little less floral in the beginning before taking on a syrupy grape quality. It's a little sharp to my nose, the way that honey is a thick and sharp sweetness. This seemed to make me a little uncomfortable as well - I wouldn't go so far to say nauseous, but that's never happened to me before. I'll stick with original LDBS. Also I didn't expect this to be this pricey! Longevity and sillage are low-medium.

I would agree that this is quite similar to Love Don't Be Shy by Kilian, but with weaker performance. For me, this sits extremely close to the skin and lasts 2 hours at most. It's missing the civet note, which is great, because it's my least favorite note in LDBS. I would also agree that replacing the marshmallow in LDBS with toffee in Istanbul, makes it more syrupy and rich, which I prefer. Overall, because of how faint it is on me, I won't be buying a full bottle.

Too feminine for masculine straight men.

Why, why, why? Why produce an exact copy of the 'Kilian LDBS' for a city like Istanbul, which has enormous cultural significance and is full of history! Very sad... And from a perfume house with 'Unique' in its name. Much more original things could have been done to honour this city...

my God this is so sweet..like I am in sugar factory..just too sweet..and the smell stick in side in the nose, even when I put water in my nose to clean it...the smell doesn't leave the nose.. please sample it before any one buy this thing.