Top Notes 
Blood orange
Mandarin orange
Nashi pear
Yuzu
Heart Notes 
Neroli
Black pepper
Lapsang Souchong tea
Violet
Base Notes 
Amberwood
Cedarwood
Cypriol
Fir balsam
Saffron
Vetiver
GDawg
49 Reviews
GDawg
2
Fantastic tea scent, vaguely reminiscent of Imagination . . .
This one's a winner. When I first tried it, there was an evolution in this fragrance from open to heart to base, but it wasn't totally linear - everything was well-balanced and a nice alchemy of all ingredients. I initially found it to be basically 30% soap smell (opening), 30% floral (heart), 30% "bite" (cedar/vinegar as a base) - with the balance of other official notes softening everything out. They all mixed well and the sum is greater than its individual parts.
But now that I have a full bottle, and have worn it many times at this point, it's important to note that this is really a TEA SCENT at its core. You'll smell like a really nice cup of tea. It's low-key, but with a small edge, and exceedingly pleasant.
It vaguely reminds me of Lous Vuitton's Imagination. One evening I put Kensei on one arm and Imagination on another to compare. Imagination is 100% pure bar of white Ivory soap, and Kensei is more like 30% soap, with more complexity and a slight edginess to it. Kensei could serve in the same circumstances as Imagination - a pleasant-smelling, inoffensive scent for everyday or frequent wear, when you don't want to blow the world away or are in the mood for something low-key, or simply want a nice default scent. And given that Kensei has more nuance and a slight edginess, I actually think it's better than Imagination.
I get a solid half-day of performance out of Kensei, which given my poor blood circulation is quite good. It's clear to me now that I'm personally on a a low end of projection, regardless of what fragrance I'm wearing, so while for me the projection and longevity was moderate (half-day), on the average person it'd probably be much longer.
At $95 for a full-bottle, this occupies a sweet spot of an extremely high-quality fragrance at a reasonable price. I also think this totally works as a unisex fragrance. It's fantastic.
But now that I have a full bottle, and have worn it many times at this point, it's important to note that this is really a TEA SCENT at its core. You'll smell like a really nice cup of tea. It's low-key, but with a small edge, and exceedingly pleasant.
It vaguely reminds me of Lous Vuitton's Imagination. One evening I put Kensei on one arm and Imagination on another to compare. Imagination is 100% pure bar of white Ivory soap, and Kensei is more like 30% soap, with more complexity and a slight edginess to it. Kensei could serve in the same circumstances as Imagination - a pleasant-smelling, inoffensive scent for everyday or frequent wear, when you don't want to blow the world away or are in the mood for something low-key, or simply want a nice default scent. And given that Kensei has more nuance and a slight edginess, I actually think it's better than Imagination.
I get a solid half-day of performance out of Kensei, which given my poor blood circulation is quite good. It's clear to me now that I'm personally on a a low end of projection, regardless of what fragrance I'm wearing, so while for me the projection and longevity was moderate (half-day), on the average person it'd probably be much longer.
At $95 for a full-bottle, this occupies a sweet spot of an extremely high-quality fragrance at a reasonable price. I also think this totally works as a unisex fragrance. It's fantastic.
Updated on 07/03/2025
