parfums*PARFUMS Series 3 Incense: Kyoto (2002)
by Comme des Garçons

I find Kyoto to be complex, dark, and even mysterious. It nearly gives me a chill in the way it makes me feel as if I'm in an unknown place, or perhaps walking alone in the woods, almost Twin Peaks-like in tone.

My first thought when I sniffed Kyoto was that there was a coffee note in it. A dark, somewhat sour, stale coffee note which may have been Duchaufour's way of muting the cedar creating an aged, antique quality. Next up, an accord I can only describe as faintly reminiscent of mosquito repellent. I haven't seen this mentioned here but the reviews on MUA and elsewhere mention the sensation and one reviewer names citronella which I happen to agree with. Whatever it is, it's sour, but not off-putting. For me it only adds to the mysteriously calm, meditative aura of Kyoto.

I went to Comme des Garcons to pick one Series 3 fragrance and I was almost certain it was going to be Zagorsk based on previous sampling. After some testing, and now with Kyoto on my mind, I decided on the woody, spicy Jaisalmer, but still needed time to decide. Walking around that day and into the night with all five fragrances on my arms, I was haunted by Kyoto's presence and decided I needed even more time. A week later I conducted the same experiment, left the store and as soon as I walked outside Kyoto gripped me again, transporting me to that strange, quiet, lonely, meditative place, and after about a block I turned around and purchased it without a second thought. I may experience it differently than others but I find Kyoto to be a fascinating three-dimensional fragrance journey.

Kyoto starts harsh in the summer and a lot less so in the colder temps. The initial and middle phases can be beautiful because I am taken to a cold, damp, green forest at dusk, wandering through and catching hints of a smoldering fire in the distance. The drydown is quiet and does lack the "umph" that Ouarzazate provides, but it leaves a very soothing trail of amber and incense. A great scent but I can see how some people don't care for it. I probably won't get another bottle, but I'll definitely enjoy what I have left.

A very well-made modern fragrance, the epitome of 21st century niche: incense, wood, iso-e-super, transparent, short-lived, skin scent, very light, slightly sweet base. The approach reminds me a lot of Acca Kappa's Cedro, another low-key minimalist modern fragrance (greener and woodier, though). A lot less irritating than most of what's on the market, but does not trigger the supsension of disbelief I'm looking for in perfume.

After all the hype surrounding this series, I decided to give Kyoto a go (primarily due to it being the most popular of the Incense line and NOT because of Ricky Martin). On first application, I smelt almost nothing at all. However, based on advice from a fellow Basenoter, this was something I was expecting.

It wasn’t until the second application that I actually smelt something on my skin. However, all I could detect was something synthetically green – I could hardly pick out any incense in this at all. Its sillage was pretty good and its longevity better than I had originally expected but, at the end of the day, Kyoto came across as too soapy clean for me. It’s a very pleasant scent but it miserably failed to overwhelm me.

[Original submission date: 10 April 2008]

Its just as it says, basic incense. I don't know why anyone would want to go around smelling like this.

Kyoto is the driest and most translucent of the scents I’ve tried from Comme des Garçons Incense series. It’s texture is spare – ethereal even – with cedar, smoky incense, and very little else. If Avignon is cathedral incense and Zagorsk is resinous conifer incense, Kyoto is the charred ash of incense already burned. Yet for all of its simplicity, I find Kyoto a compelling scent. There’s a certain meditative stillness about it, and if any fragrance I’ve tried recently comes close to embodying the notion of Zen, this quiet incense is it.

As you’d guess from my description, Kyoto is not a potent fragrance. In fact it may epitomize the idea of the “skin scent.” It leaves the impression of having walked through a cloud of incense smoke, of which a trace has lingered on one’s clothes. Unfortunately, Kyoto is a bit ephemeral, and begins to dissipate rapidly after a couple of hours’ wear. The drydown is a stark as the rest of the scent’s phases, consisting of a sparse accord of vetiver and cedar. On the whole I’d consider Kyoto an aesthetically successful exercise in olfactory minimalism, but I do wish it had a little bit more “umph” and endurance.