Sarah McCartney, perfumer and founder of  4160 Tuesdays Perfumes

4160 Tuesdays is an Indie British brand founded and fuelled by the wild imagination of Sarah McCartney. In her interview for Çafleurebon last year, I reviewed Sunshine and Pancakes. Sarah told us a little about her creative process and the rationale behind her off-beat approach to fragrance. Now it's time to have a closer look at one of my favourite perfumes from her expansive collection, Urura's Tokyo Café.

Credit: 3 cup cafe by Mayuminhttp://mayumin.net/ 

The perfume was inspired by the Green Ginger Café in Tokyo and its owner Urura, with whom Ms. McCartney hosted an event some years ago. Urura translates as 'breeze in the cherry blossoms', so with this beautiful imagery Sarah created a perfume containing notes of Rose, Violet, Geranium, Raspberry Leaf and Tangerine, with a resinous base of Opoponax and Tolu Balsam. It opens like a lovely, fresh rose, petals unfurling in the daintiest of pinks.

Credit: Five Bloom by Mayuminhttp://mayumin.net/

Atop is a sparkling citrus, which feels very bright and airy. Almost as soon as those petals have opened a slightly more aromatic accord appears, herby and green. The perfume is now dappled with shade between the rose bushes. This is most certainly not a rose-centric fragrance though; the floral bouquet is seamlessly woven together with crisp greens and sharp tangerine, creating an image of a flower garden gently swaying in a summer breeze.

Credit: Floral Illustration Mayumin http://mayumin.net/

From beneath, sweet Myrrh stains the green and pink with umber tones. Here it gives the impression of a great splash of strong green tea, saturating the base of the scent with a resinous solemnity, as if the breeze has momentarily dropped and the sun stepped behind a cloud. It is cooling and pleasant to experience the resin balanced by the green goodness of geranium and rose. It has all the atmospheric depth that incense can bring to a fragrance, without any of the smokiness. Urura's Tokyo Café creeps slowly across the skin, like forest mosses. For the longest time it doesn't change, seeping colours across my wrists, olive green, deep umber with tiny pink blossoms opening like stars here and there. For all its depth it stays translucent, like gouache, projecting with amazing vibrancy. Only after about an hour does the perfume start to shift, Opoponax resin turning warmer and the sweet/tart crunchiness of raspberry leaf is powdered softly in violet.

Credit:  Mayumin  http://mayumin.net/Cherry Blossom-sakura

It is at the very end of this perfume's impressive life that I can imagine lying under the aforementioned cherry blossom branches, as the notes all blend together and sing me softly to sleep. It has wonderful balance, clarity and structure; it flows beautifully from the skin, last for hours and is undeniably alluring. 4160 Tuesdays is renowned for making fun, flippant perfumes with wild and wonderful names, but look carefully within the ranks of brightly coloured bottles and you'll find some seriously precious treasures. Urara's Toyko Café is one such fragrance. It manages to be both bright and moody, floral yet resinous and green. It's the one to go for if you like your scent understated and feminine, with an unusual depth of character. This is one of Sarah's most beautiful perfumes in my opinion. Accidental or not, she's created a masterpiece here.

Disclosure- fragrance from my own collection.

Susie Baird- contributor and editor of Epiphany.

Note: The use of Mayumin's art is unrelated and is not an endorsement. If you are interested in seeing her portofolio please click here

Art Director: Michelyn Camen, Editor in Chief. Mayumin Hosoya is a former fashion designer, who transitioned into fine art. Her works show the lives and beauty of women in moments of joy. They spoke to me personally

4160The Sexiest Scent on the Planet. Ever. IMHO won  ÇaFleureBon Best name for a perfume in out Best and Worst of 2014

Thanks to Sarah McCartney of 4160 Tuesdays we have a 100 ml  bottle of Urura's Tokyo Cafe for a reader in the EU , USA or Canada. To be eligible, please leave a comment with what you enjoyed about Susie's review, where you live and if you have a favorite 4160 Tuesdays perfume. Draw closes January 21, 2015

We announce the winners only on site and on our Facebook page, so Like Cafleurebon and use our RSS option…or your dream prize will be just spilled perfume