Monocle Scent Three: Sugi by Comme des Garçons

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Monocle Scent Three: Sugi Comme des Garçons 2013

7.8 / 10 186 Ratings

A popular perfume by Comme des Garçons for women and men, released in 2013. The scent is woody-green. It is being marketed by Puig.
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Main accords

Woody

Green

Spicy

Fresh

Resinous

Fragrance Pyramid

Top Notes

Mediterranean cypress

Madagascar pepper

Heart Notes

Florentine iris

Virginia cedar

Base Notes

Haitian vetiver Pine

Pine

Perfumer

Antoine Maisondieu

Ratings

Scent

7.8186 Ratings

Longevity

6.6142 Ratings

Sillage

5.8141 Ratings

Bottle

6.8136 Ratings

Value for money

6.942 Ratings

Submitted by Apicius · last update on 04/10/2026.

Source-backed & verified

Interesting Facts

This fragrance was created in collaboration with Monocle. Sugi (スギ・杉) refers to the Japanese cedar.

Smells similar

What the fragrance is similar to

Monocle Scent One: Hinoki

St. Vetyver

Escentric 01

Juniper

Angéliques sous la Pluie

Escentric 02

Reviews

16 in-depth fragrance descriptions

12/15/2013

7Scent 2.5Sillage

Drseid
828 Reviews

Drseid

Helpful Review 7

If This Is What Japanese Cedar Smells Like, Consider Me A Fan...

Sugi opens with a turpentine-like coniferous pine and cypress wood tandem. As the composition reaches its early heart the coniferous elements recede as a black pepper-laced natural cedar emerges seemingly out of nowhere to star through the entire mid-section with the remnants of the open as barely noticeable support. During the late dry-down the pepper-laced cedar remains in a supporting role as slightly sharp, somewhat lemony vetiver takes the fore through the remainder of the composition's lifespan. Projection is below average and longevity is slightly below average at 6-7 hours on skin.

Sugi's turpentine-like pine and cypress open is definitely an acquired taste. It comes on all at once and may scare away folks seeking a "crowd-pleaser" early, though its off-beat unexpected start is very much in-line with the quirky Comme des Garcons house style. The unexpected piecing open quickly fades over a twenty minute span with the fragrance seemingly completely dying. Out of nowhere, it rises from the ashes with a gorgeous peppery cedar that takes over and dominates the vast majority of development before sharing the spotlight with nicely done vetiver that meshes with the pepper and cedar seamlessly. My guess is that those not scared off by its first 20 minutes will be very happy with the latter rewards on offer, and this reviewer is no exception. A minor gripe with Sugi that merits at least a mention is less to do with its fragrance profile and more-so its somewhat below par performance characteristics, particularly in the longevity department. The bottom line is the $120 per 50ml bottle Sugi is a bit tough to enjoy early, but it gets really good real fast, earning a "very good" 3.5 stars out of 5 and a solid recommendation (especially to fans of the house).

02/12/2025

10Scent

celeblas
119 Reviews

celeblas

1

Fleeting Masterpiece

When I first bought a bottle I fell deeply in love with this scent. I didn't understand what was happening when I sprayed this. I immediately got a clean laundry accord, like Big (Lush), and then it dried down and became sweet marshmallow and wood, a bit like By the Fireplace (Maison Martin Margiela). I loved it, and it was astonishing that one fragrance could contain both of those experiences for me.

However I then finished the first one and bought a second bottle of Sugi - and it barely did anything that my first bottle did. It felt like it had its soul removed. It had lost all of the punch in the opening, all of the depth in the dry-down, and it lasted maybe 5-10 minutes at most before entirely disappearing. Comparing the new bottle with the original side by side was night and day, it made me terribly sad. When CdG continue to produce classics like 2 and 53 all these years later so faithfully, I wonder if and why they reformulated this? It was a masterpiece.

06/19/2024

ScentStudio
157 Reviews

ScentStudio

1

A fizzy memory....

This will be a short one. It's one of the many old notes I have on my phone that I am trying to get through. I smelled and dotted down some points back in October 2021... Yes, indeed, almost three years ago.
The sample is long gone and I can only add these, very few, remarks today: if I recall correctly, SUGI was a fizzy scent, like that of Remarkable People and On A Date (but not as sweet).

From October 4th, 2021:

A very fresh opening, almost bitter. It smells exactly how a classic gin and tonic tastes - fresh slice of lemon, bitterness from the quinine, bubbles from the tonic, a juniper note from the gin.
It changes a couple of minutes in, becomes more spicy, maybe slightly woody.
And that's all I have on SUGI.

04/10/2026

OlgaPopova
1 Review

OlgaPopova

1

Subtle yet stunning beauty

I absolutely love Sugi for conveying subtle Japanese aesthetic like no other fragrance - its minimalist and avant-garde approach combined with traditional materials makes it so appealing. It not only smells meditative thanks to cypress, but also has prominent green mango skin (piney accents) and even mango pulp nuances which makes it interesting to wear and observe throughout the day. Unexpected discovery that quickly became my go-to scent

03/22/2014

9Scent 5Longevity 5Sillage

Yatagan
416 Reviews

Translated · Show original

Yatagan

Top Review 52

Zen - Japanese Fragrance Ceremony

Surely not coincidentally, the symbol of the internet/magazine Monocle, which is embossed on the packaging of the three Monocle fragrances by Comme des Garçons, corresponds to the Enso (Japanese for "circle"), which embodies emptiness and completion in Zen Buddhism and serves as a metaphor and symbol of Zen.

In contrast to classical religions, Zen does not offer an actual doctrine, no clear answers to questions, but it can help to resolve the confusions created by the never-silent voices of our thoughts and our illusion of a "self".

It seems to me that with Sugi, the ideal connection between Japanese aesthetics and European perfume tradition has been achieved. The clarity, simplicity, and radicality of the fragrance, without complex philosophical overtones, has none of the Catholic-Baroque solemnity of many fragrances, none of the floral playfulness of European garden tradition, and none of the melting sweetness of Arabic-opulent scents. The fragrance is reduced to the essentials, is fragrance in itself; seen this way, it is closer to Zen tradition than most other fragrances I know.

In analogy to the Zen-dedicated Japanese tea ceremony, I offer here a suggestion for the appropriate enjoyment of Sugi.

Prepare the fragrance. At first, do not pay attention to it. Be completely yourself.

Wander through nature. Prepare yourself for the enjoyment of the fragrance by shedding the everyday. This takes you to the first stage of enlightenment.

Retreat with the fragrance into a quiet room that grants you the necessary calmness. Turn inward.

Once again, turn to nature, even if only by looking out of the open window.

Avoid any haste when testing the fragrance.

Ensure that you are cleansed both internally and externally. Wash your hands and face again if necessary. Make sure that no other scents distract your concentration on the essentials.

Sit down in the Japanese seiza position. Find your calm. Leave your restlessness behind.

If you feel hungry, light foods are ideal for preparation: fruits and raw vegetables.

Place the fragrance before you, open it without haste. Focus on the scent.

Spray Sugi on your cleansed skin, particularly suitable is the surface of the forearms with their fine hairs.

Wait a short while.

When you now smell the fragrance, treat it with respect. Take your time in your judgment.

What do you smell? I do not know what YOU smell, but I smell something that closely resembles the successful description in the comment below: the alcoholic sharpness of gin, which initially dominates the fragrance development.
Then coniferous notes (pine and/or cypress, with the latter seeming to be dominant).

The pepper indicated in the fragrance notes is rather present through a certain sharpness. The tingling that pepper occasionally evokes in the top notes of some fragrances is only subtly perceptible here, while the alcoholic sharpness does not dissolve from the fragrance and accompanies the wearer, who, like most CdGs, hardly experiences any significant development.
Floral elements remain discreet and underlying.

The woody note, which is also recognizable from the beginning, corresponds to the faint yet perceptible scent of hard, dried wood, less so that of freshly cut or rotten, moldy wood; nor that characteristic forest scent, which blends with green plant notes. The wood tone remains cool, dry, elegant. The image of gin in a turned wooden cup from the aforementioned comment seems to me ideally fitting.
I also feel somewhat reminded of the wood in front of our fireplace, which fills the room with a consciously barely perceptible yet present wood note that one would only notice if the wood were no longer there, if the presence were filled by an emptiness.

However, one should not be deceived by this description: Sugi is not a quiet fragrance. Sugi has character and is a clear statement with which many, both men and women, surroundings and wearers, will not feel comfortable.

Moreover, Sugi is not a fragrance that reveals itself casually. Zen offers no simple answers. Zen is life, meditation, immersion, concentration. This principle is embodied by the fragrance better than any other.
The approach described above is not meant ironically. It is appropriate to the fragrance in its aesthetic clarity.

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