Nishane
A unique visual signature based on accords, character, and seasonality
That black grape note hits like a handful of fruit so ripe it's almost questionable, immediately sharpened by a green herbal brightness that smells like crushed basil stems mixed with something more medicinal. The pineapple adds a tart, fermented edge – think natural wine rather than piña colada – creating an opening that's boldly fruity yet oddly savoury.
The neroli emerges with its characteristic bitter-soapy quality, creating fascinating friction with the damp, mossy patchouli beneath it. Jasmine weaves through sparingly, adding just enough indolic warmth without turning the composition floral, whilst the green accord persists like chlorophyll running through everything.
Vetiver and oud create a smoky, slightly austere woody base with amber adding just enough resinous warmth to keep it from going ascetic. The fruit has completely retreated, leaving behind a refined woody-green skin scent with subtle spicy facets, like the smell of wooden prayer beads that have absorbed years of incense smoke.
Karagoz opens with a startling collision of overripe black grapes and crisp green herbs, the sort of juxtaposition that shouldn't work but somehow does. The pineapple here isn't tropical suntan oil; it's sharp and nearly fermented, adding an acidic brightness that cuts through what could have been cloying fruit. Jorge Lee has created something genuinely odd – a scent that smells simultaneously like a Turkish bazaar spice stall and a northern Italian vineyard after harvest.
As the fragrance settles, neroli's bitter petals wrestle with earthy patchouli whilst jasmine attempts to mediate between them. This isn't pretty white flowers on a bed of woods; it's a proper tug-of-war where the florals have grit under their nails. The greenness persists throughout, keeping everything from sliding into conventional oriental territory. That vetiver-oud pairing in the base adds a smoky, almost charred quality that grounds the composition, preventing the fruit from overstaying its welcome.
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3.5/5 (155)