Kayali: Freedom Musk Matcha Review

Description - It begins with a fresh burst of matcha, maté and uplifting bergamot, transitioning into a creamy heart of oat milk, warm vanilla and caramelised praline. The dry - down lingers softly with the KAYALI signature accord, sensual sandalwood and sweet musk creating a cosy, grounding scent that feels like a serene ritual for your senses.

Despite my relatively low hit rate with Kayali's offerings (there's something about how the descriptions always rope me in, and I'm morosely disappointed with the abstract interpretations of the scents), I was actually pleasantly surprised by this. Matcha/green tea is a difficult note to know which one you'll get from the listing (famously, I actively dislike both Le Labo's Matcha or Elizabeth Arden's Green Tea, the usual posterchildren for matcha.) To put this in the realm of more recent matcha notes however, I would say this is very similar to the matcha note from now discontinued Matcha Meditation (Maison Margiela) and to a lesser extent, Matcha Break (Chasing Scents), and frankly, I was surprised at how true to description this actually was as a real matcha note. The herbal grassiness of the matcha was photorealistic, although the combination of the bergamot and herbal does give it a more interesting shape. I also get a peeks of the oat-y, nutty sandalwood, and to my surprise, I also didn't hate the musk in this - I am also deeply averse to most heavy musk notes but the sweet musk almost reads as skin like to me, which was a treat. Although there's something in here which still keeps in line with the almost sharp Kayali perfume DNA with its abstract olfactory note that feels almost screechy, this scent could have definitely been something else, but what it is, is nice. I'm not sure I'd ever go out of my way to wear this one, but I'm glad to see more matcha notes on the market.