Illustrated poster of sansho pepper, the top note of Umbral No. 04

A sansho pepper perfume

Umbral is the darker one. Pia Long built it around a silk kimono and a tobacco pipe: sansho pepper and star anise, a fruity tobacco with jasmine, then champaca, cedar and labdanum. It is warm. It is not a heavy oud or a church incense.

It lasts, and it stays nearer the skin than most woody perfumes. Cooler weather suits it better than a hot day.

Top
Sansho pepper, bergamot, star anise
Heart
Tobacco, jasmine
Base
Champaca musk, cedarwood, labdanum
In Umbral I was trying to evoke a combination of a silk kimono and a traditional tobacco pipe.
Pia Long, perfumer

Choose it if

You want pepper, tobacco or a quiet woody perfume, and you are tired of thick ones.

Skip it if

You want smoke, leather or a big oud. Umbral will feel too polite.