Hiya Posse! A Drop d’Issey (From here A Drop dIssey because of SEO crap) completely passed me by. I thought it was a new release, then noticed there were already two flankers beside it with almost identical packaging. I don’t remember there being much chit chat on the scentbloggosphere about it. To be fair though my reader is very small nowadays. Now it’s at nine blogs. It seems the dozens and dozens I’d read every night have all floundered, redirected or stopped writing. I’ve not kept up with the trend to watch perfume content on the socials. I can’t seem to find anyone who does their videos in two minutes and is not just sounding like a pay per adspeak shill.
Sure, I know my focus is on things I like and appreciate. While I enjoy the differences and impact of most things I review, not everything written about is THE BEST THING EVER!
Having said that, A Drop dIssey just might be one of those that could be.
The first thing you’ll note is the very cool bottle. I do love an all in one, no cap, bottle. My first was YSL Jazz and it always felt like the perfect way to present perfume. Excellent for gym bags and travel. Never having to worry about the cap is a minor but important thing to me.
A Drop d’Issey by Issey Miyake 2021
Issey Miyake gives these featured accords:
Top: Damask rose
Heart: Llilac, orange blossom, almond milk
Base: Musk, cedarwood, vanillin
Based on the dream of a lilac and using no part of the lilac. A Drop dIssey is so interesting. It’s a dewy floral, fresh and clean to open.
One of my dearly departed girlfriends Francesca and I were in Paris together a few years ago and we came across a park with a row of lilacs in full bloom. We could smell them long before we could see them. As we finally discovered, the lilac scent changes as you near the flower. From far away it’s an alluring white floral but a funky one. The same clarity as jasmine but a far removed, funkier and more layered version. Moving closer it has becomes more animalic and has a real milkiness. Then putting our heads into the inflorescences we were swooning with pleasure. It’s both feather and fur soft and yet sharply green at the same time. Darker than hyacinth but not nearly as feral as narcissus.
A Drop dIssey captures this extraordinary wander towards flowering lilac as perfectly as it can without being a Demeter style reconstruction. There is still room for this to be a fine fragrance creation, a dream of lilacs. It’s like that perfect afternoon with Francesca. This was the last time we would spend time together in real life. So A Drop dIssey hits on both a perfume level and as the memory scent I never knew I needed.
Almond milk, dewy, animalic florals, lightly spiced and a vanilla/amber dry down with snatches of salty coastal breezes and whiffs of rice cooker steam. It’s freaking amazing.
How is A Drop dIssey not a major perfumista hit? So fabulously weird.
A Drop dIssey is utterly unisex, lasts beautifully. Very fragrant for the first hour or so and settles into a lovely soft wash of scent that is noticeable but I’m thinking would be totally office friendly.
There’s also that smell of rice in the pressure cooker blended through. GAH! You must try this.
Do you feel like A Drop dIssey might fit your bill?
Portia xx
Perfume Love for Everyone!
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You had my interest the moment I saw the lilac blossom and then the cool bottle! The note list and your review sealed the deal. I will always try to find a sample of a perfume that has lilac in it. I love them and I know what you two experienced in Paris.
Very well put – “pay per adspeak shill”. That has been my experience also, so I don’t watch anyone.