Kola Bean

A budget take on Mancera's playful Tonka Cola, Kola Bean opens exactly as you'd hope: a fizzy, spicy-sweet cola hit with cherry, a squeeze of Sicilian lemon and a dusting of cinnamon and nutmeg, conjuring a glass of cola with lime. As the effervescence fades the creamy heart steps forward - a touch of orange blossom and patchouli leaf bridging into the base everyone wears this for: rich tonka bean and vanilla, warmed by benzoin and labdanum into a smooth, caramel-sweet dry-down. Against the real Tonka Cola it leans sweeter and more two-dimensional, the cola fizz briefer and the tonka base less plush, so it reads more like a fun gourmand than a refined one. Projection is moderate and turns cosy after the first hour, with respectable but not the original's long-haul longevity. Even so, for the money it nails the novelty-meets-comfort mood - a fizzy, sweet, tonka-vanilla warmth that suits cool-weather casual days, easy dates and relaxed evenings, reading as playful, cosy and crowd-pleasing.