Kagema

[CiCi]

Himalayan cedar, rum absolute, bay leaf, teakwood, orange peel, wooly thyme, and tobacco absolute.

The opening on Kagema is stunning and everything I had hoped for: deep wood notes from the teakwood, and the gorgeous scent of tobacco absolute. There is also a very faint underlying spicy note that I find extremely appealing. The Himalayan cedar is thankfully light and not overpowering since that note alone would have killed this for me. I amp cedar above all other notes. The scrumptious rum absolute swirls around to mix together with the orange peel and doesn't disappoint to conjure up romantic visions of naked bodies and sweaty nights. This is a wonderfully deep, dark, sexy scent that will age spectacularly. A must try for all.

[Invidiana]

I thought this would be much boozier than it actually came out on me--the drydown on my skin was actually pretty herbal. I like it much better wet because I got that nice boozy rum on top of rich deep woods, but for some reason as it dried the rum and woods faded considerably, overshadowed by bay and thyme with a little citrusy orange peel. It's alright, and for once the cedar doesn't go to cedar of death on my skin, but for booze and wood I think I'll stick to my Banned in Boston.

[strahlend]

I fell in love with this scent immediately. Definitely a favorite from this update.

 

This is what I wrote down as soon as I sniffed it - My loves are in here: rum, wood and tobacco. There's something amazingly fresh and zingy in here too.... it's like.... Tom Robbins. Like a goofy grin on the Mona Lisa. Like pirates who wear sequins. There's something very sexy and adventurous mixed with something very lighthearted and playful. So far this is The One that screams my name and says LOVE !!!

 

Kagema starts out with a delicious blend of rum and tobacco. After a few minutes a little bit of orange peel starts to make its way forward and mixes with the rum and other musky cohorts to give this a little twist. This holds its own as a unique scent. The teakwood is becoming more prominent and is BEAUTIFUL with the rum, the orange is still hanging around in the back. I don't distinctly notice the cedar, bay or thyme, this scent doesn't feel herbal to me in the least.

 

Kagema fades down to rum and soft warm leather and lingers for quite a while.

 

There are several unexpected loves for me in this update, but I will make it a point to get a couple backups of Kagema.

Edited February 13, 2012 by strahlend

[Mellifluous]

As with Narrow Opening, I was a bit worried with the rum note, cause they almost never work on me, and just remind me of old man aftershave. Unlike Narrow Opening however, this is amazingly blended so that I still smell the rum and tobacco, but it in no way resembles old man aftershave. Its still not quite a must have, just a bit too herbal and a bit too much tobacco. But it really is a nice blend, and if I didnt already have 100's of bottles, I would probly be purchasing one of Kagema. I think the teak orange and thyme add a very nice round sweetness, so although I said it was a bit too herbal and smokey, this still is nicely balanced, and probably sweet enough for most people.

[zankoku_zen]

OMG. This blend is fabulous. It's a smoky teak wood and bay rum blend.

 

It's like a sexy japanese pirate. Take Johnny Depp and make him asian.

 

Sexy, adventurous, manly.

 

I'm going to try and slather this on mr. zee_zee now....

[pinkstardust420]

This is definitely a men's scent! I'm totally amping the Tobacco and Rum, with a bit of spice, and sweetness from the orange peel. Very interesting, and sexy!

[milo]

Very masculine, but in a good way. This is like Perversion's even sexier older brother, who's BAD ass. I love the rum and gritty tobacco here, and the teak rounds everything out nicely. This is definitely bottle worthy to me, but it is a bit too masculine, so I'd never wear it. If I were to smell this on a guy, he had better watch out.

Edited March 20, 2012 by milo

[karykeion]

Decanted by lanas, thanks!

 

In the decant: It seems just...perfumey, cologney? I mean, it's nice, but it's not making an impression.

 

On me, wet: Ooh! I do like this. I'm not getting a lot of rum, but I like the woods and thyme and I can smell just a tiny bit of orange peel.

 

On me, dry: Hmm. I'm not sure whether I like this or not. It's not bad, it's a nice smell, woody and spicy and clean, but it's not really grabbing me at all. I'll do a full test run, but for now my reaction is pretty much just "eh".

[ami226]

This one smells dirty. Sickly sweet and dirty. Is that the tobacco? It actually makes me feel a little sick. This one is not for me. Not at all.

 

I feel like this one is similar to Banned in Boston.

[Blood onmy hands]

I make a cologne for my husband that has notes similar to this, so I was excited to try Kagema. But, unfortunately, this is sort of a thin, sour, dirty scent. It starts off underwhelming on me (bone dry, splintery cedar with sour, almost metallic bay leaf and a hint of smoky, sour tobacco that reminds me of the lab's tobacco flower note), but is just gross in the drydown. The drydown smells like dirty pencil shavings and a hint of dirty ash tray. My husband refused to even try this one on after smelling it on me.

I was hoping for a bold, dark, woodsy, spicy scent, but this is sour, dry cedar and dirty ash tray. I usually enjoy cedar and wood scents, but not this one.

[porcelina]

starts off with gorrrrgeous teakwood and just a touch of dusty cedar. the bay, rum and tobacco lend a richness to the drier woods and then there is a little bit of orange spice. it dries down to a nice soft woody scent with some delicious bay rum.

[Balame]

Only one page for this? Get with the program, people!

I admit I wasn't immediately struck by any of the notes. Cedar, rum, orange? Sounds like woodsy, citrus death. But it isn't. It's gorgeous.

Zankoku was right; I can totally imagine a sexy Japanese pirate smelling like this. I don't get "dirty" at all, so I guess I'm one of the lucky ones.

Wet: Very smooth, sophisticated teak with a sweet woodsiness and something that smells vaguely of clove (bay rum). The spice is there but not overwhelming at all. It makes me think of an old but majestic ship moored in fresh water outside of a beautiful forest.

Dry: Guh. This is like being in front of a man so hot and regal that you turn into a drooling idiot. It's really hard to pick out individual notes because they blend together so beautifully. I will say that this is unlike any cedar I've smelled before. It reminds me a bit of the pine in Golden Priapus. If you don't like in your face forest, you'll be fine, because this is sweet and delicate and only vaguely reminiscient of woods... like someone just came back from being outside.

The bay rum is not overtly boozy and lends a delicious mix of intrigue and spice. I don't get much of the tobacco, though I feel like it's contributing to the overall headiness and "yum" that is this scent. The citrus is also very, very sedate.

Overall: This is such an amazing oil. I need to track down a full bottle. Majestic, sensual and adventurous.

Edited December 19, 2017 by Balame

[BoneBone24]

Wet: Sweet and exotic. I'm picking up some sort of flavored rum.

 

Drydown/Dry: I think the “flavored” bit is coming from a mixture of the rum with orange and bay, which goes creamy on me. It’s waxy, buttery, and slightly tart. The cedar, teak, and tobacco add a nice and spicy grounding element. It’s smoky and smooth without being too dark or masculine. The thyme is barely there in the background and adds a touch of sophistication to this already complex blend. In summary, it's waxy and creamy orange rum over spicy and smoky woods with just a hint of greenery.

[whitsunweddings]

WHY ISN'T THIS MORE POPULAR??

 

In the imp: Amazing, like omg I'm going to die. Sweet orange, spicy bay and smoky tobacco.

Wet: Like in the bottle, but moreso. Orange dominant, and there's a note that smells like clove.

Dry: Sweet, lovely, spicy, amazing. I need a bottle.