Gokugetsu

[zankoku_zen]

Deep red musk, oakmoss, white mint, tuberose, woodsmoke, and brocade chypre.

[birdieflyaway]

I've tested this one several times now and I just don't know what to think yet. The mint is throwing me, like it's really nice, but it seems like such an outlier. After drydown though, the combination of red musk and woodsmoke is SUPER satisfying. On the fence since initial application is weirding me out.  

[Casablanca]

A curious blend. The white mint is prominent, and a bit candied, like a fine version of an after-dinner mint. It's quite odd at first in this mix of notes, but as the perfume blends and settles, it becomes part of a greater whole.

 

That greater whole, though, is like a milky, minty, fruity breakfast cereal?

 

I mean. I can pick out the mint, smoke, tuberose, red musk, and a perfumey sort of chypre, but my brain is putting them together and saying breakfast cereal.

[zankoku_zen]

Musk, chypre, and smoke. This one to me smells mainly of a red musk and chypre, with other notes to make it more multi-dimensional. Good throw and wear length.

[groovyrooby]

I just love that minty, musky opening! And a little bit of dirt, which is usually a note that concerns me, but I guess the mossy version here was just right for me.

 

Mossy woods and minty greenery. I initially didn't get much musk, but eventually the scales tipped, and this turned into a powdery musk on me. I think I like my musk a little more damp than this. Did not detect the tuberose (which might've sullied that musk a little more for me!) or smoke.

[Threemoons]

Is there such a thing as an herby red musk?  If so, this is it!  It's also a great summer red musk.  In the bottle:  Spearmint!  Really!  Imagine spearmint chewing gum, plopped on top of something deep and warm.  On, wet:  The tuberose briefly bursts forth, along with some sharp not-sweet herbiness (the chyrpe) and the moss.  Then after an initial BOOM on the skin, it settles down to this really interesting lighter red musk.  This is a new red summer formal dress red musk, not a deep winter sexytime under a zillion blankets red musk.  I wore it all late afternoon into evening while sitting in the sun and did NOT sweat it all off; however, it definitely lasted a long time and was definitely a red musk thing.  Refined and more complex than a what you may think of as a red musk blend.

 

[VetchVesper]

I agree with Threemoons' "herby red musk," except I'll add "mossy" to the descriptor.  This is really nice and kind of odd. The tuberose and mint sweetens things a bit at first, but the red musk and smokey, peppery moss are by far the strongest notes on me.  It's almost leathery smelling and leans masculine on me. I considered upgrading to a bottle with this one, but talked myself out of it b/c I probably wouldn't wear it that often.  I'm really glad to have my partial though.

[Honey]

This is very different from what I expected.

The red musk is super strong to me and reminds me of Mme. Moriarty and other scents in the family.

The tuberose gives this blend a sweet floral vibe that I actually quite emjoy.

The mint I rather notice cold on my skin than smelling it in the blend. It even burns a little, like when you put on peppermint EO.

The combo of the deep fruity musk, floral and mint make me think of hotel bathrooms when I travelled through the States or Cananda. This mixture of toothpaste, floral lady soap, musky hotel body lotions. This is not a bad memory, just very peculiar I think.

The moss and wood(s) ground this blend and give it depth. I cannot wait to find out how it dries down.

 

This becomes a woodsy, slightly spicy, slightly herbal red musk.

I don't need another red musk scent in my collection, so no need to hold onto it.

 

[Llanval]

I really wasn't sure about this one - mainly because of the mint and tuberose.  I'm not at all familiar with what a mint note does on my skin, and don't have enough experience with floral notes yet to really know which succeed on me, and which don't. But I was so intrigued by the brocade chypre, red musk (which I have never tried and didn't have in my collection),  and woodsmoke I blind-bottled it anyway.

 

In bottle: A deep rich, silken scent, sweet and a little odd, which I assume is the brocade coming out to play.

 

Wet: Luckily, this works really well on me and I don't get the toothpaste/mint blast I was worried about.  The tuberose and mint give this bottle a bright, airy sweetness and my nose doesn't clock the white mint as specifically "mint". The red musk and the woodsmoke give the brocade chypre a lightness and depth at the same time.  This is a lovely, redolent gasp of thick silk, warm red musk and bright almost sparkling green sweetness that I know is mint, but is not specifically clocking in as mint. The woodsmoke really whispers when this is wet on the skin.

 

Dry-down and Dry: For me, this is a very atmospheric scent.  It feels very like a pristine, neatly ordered room nestled in a wood-walled and shoji-screened home. There is a thick silk kimono, freshly and carefully laundered on a wooden stand.  Not too far away is an open shoji screen, letting in the scent of rosy green sweetness, with the distant burr of woodsmoke to ground it, turning it into something more complex than I was initially expecting.  For me this is beautiful, atmospheric and lush, a very luxe scent.  I very much wish this was a bolder blend, with more throw and a louder dry down. Here's to hoping age will deepen and strengthen this notes and it will become a little punchier as time passes.

 

I stepped out of my comfort zone with this one and really ended up loving it - so much so I've put Woman as Dragon and a few other red musk blends on my to-purchase-list, lol. Super thrilled with all of my first time ever Shunga purchases!