Hinoki – The Forest And The Trees

Posted on | August 28, 2008 | No Comments

I think it’s safe to say that no new release this year has been more hyped on Basenotes than the collaborative effort between Comme des Garçons and Monocle, known as Scent One: Hinoki. The project has been lauded as a huge success, and the next project with Stephen Jones is on the way, the nose being Antoine Maisondieu, who created Hinoki along with several Burberry fragrances like the excellent Burberry London.

Hinoki is a japanese cypress, and that is of course a major part of the composition, though other woods such as pine and cedar make appearances as well. The opening blast is similar to what you’d find in a woods-heavy fragrance such as Gucci Pour Homme, but only for a moment. It takes on a personality all it’s own, unique from any other woody scent I’ve tried. It gives a mental image of a misty Japanese morning as you walk through the forest, the smell of pine greeting you with it’s distant, therapeutic smell that clings to your skin as the mist collects on you. It does have a “cold” element to it, and I think in the winter this could be a truly phenomenal scent and I absolutely plan on trying it then to see if it balances my mood as well as I think it will.

The scent is fairly linear but when it’s this good that’s hardly a problem. Sillage appears to be good, longevity was great at a bit over 12 hours. My love affair with woody fragrances continues and gets a little pricier with Hinoki, but rest assured that the hype is well worth it.

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