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Alba di Seoul Santa Maria Novella 2012

7.4 / 10 67 Ratings

A perfume by Santa Maria Novella for women and men, released in 2012. The scent is fresh-woody. It is still in production.
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Main accords

Fresh

Woody

Green

Spicy

Citrus

Fragrance Pyramid

Top Notes

Bergamot

Nutmeg

Heart Notes

Jasmine

Lavender

Violet leaf

Base Notes

Amber

Cedarwood

Musk

Patchouli

Ratings

Scent

7.467 Ratings

Longevity

7.152 Ratings

Sillage

6.653 Ratings

Bottle

7.146 Ratings

Value for money

6.816 Ratings

Submitted by DonVanVliet, last update on 10/07/2025.

Smells similar

What the fragrance is similar to

Hawas for Him

Reviews

2 in-depth fragrance descriptions

08/03/2023

Maxs10
5 Reviews

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Maxs10

2

Shopping made easy!

I bought the fragrance directly in Florence at the Santa Maria Novella - what an experience! I had no great expectations of the oldest pharmacy in Europe. However, those expectations were surpassed by miles during the visit. Simply a beautiful atmosphere.

But now to the fragrance:
This one caught my eye first while testing the entire collection - it’s no wonder it’s the bestseller.
It starts with a combination of zesty bergamot and nutmeg, which, in my opinion, really comes through.
Over time, the fragrance becomes more floral until it transitions into a creamy scent.

Overall, a very, very beautifully crafted fragrance!!!

If you are looking for a fragrance with strong sillage and longevity, you are definitely not in the right place here, as the scent fades quite quickly (about 4 hours on my skin).

However, since this purchase was more about the memories, the Alba di Seoul simply had to be taken home.

07/18/2019

8.5Scent 7Longevity 7Sillage

Turandot
839 Reviews

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Turandot

Top Review 47

An Asian Silhouette.

That a walk in the woods is good for body and soul, allows for deep breathing, conveys serenity, and provides a break from everyday life is, for heaven's sake, nothing new. But in our time, everything must have a name that is as interesting and extraordinary as possible, so that the information-overloaded person engages with a topic, no matter how normal and well-established it may be.

So I had to pause and then smile recently when I read that the relaxation one can gain from a walk in the green lungs of our cities is now called "forest bathing," and that contemporary authors find it necessary to write books about it and identify the trend as Japanese, because we fact-oriented Europeans apparently are no longer capable of immersing ourselves in the relaxing and strengthening atmosphere of the forest without guidance.

I don't want to claim that Alba di Seoul is, so to speak, the forest bath for the handbag, but the gentle conifer scent does entice me to breathe deeply. Unlike some other forest fragrances, I don't feel like I'm about to spray resin spots on my clothes, or that around the next corner a forest troll or the last unicorn might appear. Alba di Seoul is much more subtle and gentle and reminds me not of Japanese gardens or pagodas, but rather of the airy pine forests that let sunlight shine down to the ground and where, at this time of year, the swamp gladiolus are blooming nearby. The woody notes do not give the impression of about to get a splinter, and the oriental scent notes actually represent the Far East for me rather than the Near East. The fragrance is soft, calm, and cool, but without the chill that some green-fresh scents cause me. The clear theme of the fragrance is aptly depicted on the packaging, as it shows the silhouette of a forest in a paper-cut style, with light shimmering through the trunks of the trees.

As with Citta di Kyoto, the Italian perfumers have also succeeded in Alba di Seoul in uniting Asian-meditative flair and Mediterranean art of living in a fragrance.

Statements

23 short views on the fragrance

Erswan

9 months ago

1

Lavender bergamot wooded light amber, rather delicate. Then more lavender. Reminds me a bit of Serge Lutens Gris Clair.

KimJong

1 year ago

7.5Scent 6Longevity 6Sillage

1

Honey-soaked little ginseng in the refreshing forest scent? Nice try, but speaking as a Seoulite, this city is much more neon than nature.

Floyd

5 years ago

7Scent 7Longevity 7Sillage

34

22

Park malt with powder
Outside in the garden
Flying herbs
And bergamots
The hint of a bright pine
In delicate
Pastel green watercolor shades

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NuiWhakakore

2 years ago

6.5Scent 7Longevity 7Sillage

29

27

under flawed citrus sun
lovely lavender dies
under a powdery blanket
sweet-woody fading away
1 violet leaf marks the spot

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Salva

5 years ago

8Scent 7Longevity 7Sillage

28

19

Very nice!
Citrusy-spice
Surrounded by pines
& rounded off with light patchouli
Comes across as mature & grown-up
Serious & sincere
I like it

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Pollita

4 years ago

8Scent 7Longevity 6Sillage

24

15

Initially summery and refreshing, like a cocktail, then a fine barbershop note follows. This is beautifully done again, typical SMN.

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Mörderbiene

5 years ago

7Scent 8Longevity 6Sillage

24

17

More needle-like than woody, I also suspect herbs.
Ethereal, fresh, calm, and somehow floating.
I'm not fairy enough for this one.

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Ergoproxy

4 years ago

9Scent 7Longevity 5Sillage

24

15

A really great all-rounder that remains unique despite its versatility. Green, spicy, subtly woody, delicately patchouli. The brand knows how to do it.

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