Koko (RAW)

Koko (RAW) draws its name and its structure from Chanel's Coco, a fragrance renowned for its dense, spiced oriental character, and the pyramid here backs up the comparison with real ambition across all three phases. The opening is unusually exotic for a budget fragrance: angelica, mimosa, frangipani, mandarin, pimento and coriander combine into a warm, slightly spiced floral-fruity accord, frangipani in particular being a tropical white flower rarely seen outside niche perfumery. The heart continues the complexity: cascarilla (an aromatic bark with a faintly smoky, balsamic quality), orange flower, Bulgarian rose, jasmine and carnation combine into a rich, spiced-floral bouquet that carries real weight and sophistication. The base is the most substantial part of the composition: labdanum, ambrette seed, opoponax, benzoin, tonka and vanilla combine into a dense, warm, resinous-sweet finish with genuine oriental depth, evoking the incense-and-amber character that made the original Coco famous. With seventeen notes total, this is one of the most ambitious compositions in the entire range - a genuine attempt at replicating a classic, complex oriental rather than a simplified budget approximation. Best suited to cold-weather evening wear where its richness can fully unfold.