BYREDO
ALTO ASTRAL
2025
aldehydes
coconut water
jasmine
incense
milky musk
sandalwood
Cashmeran
Salted amber
‘An embodiment of positive energy, Alto Astral Eau de Parfum takes its name from a vibrant Brazilian Portuguese expression that evokes an elevated state of mind – alto astral is the feeling of joy, optimism, and good vibes that uplift everyone around and waves its way through nature and culture. Opening on an addictive coconut note blended with vibrant aldehyde, the fragrance embraces an intense fruitiness that dynamically balances freshness with addiction, for a sparkling gourmand experience. A heart of incense, jasmine petals, and milky musk intensifies the scent before settling on a base of sandalwood, cashmere wood, and salted amber, that grounds this scent. Its intensity continually diffuses through the air, leaving a trail of positive energy in its wake.’ – Byredo
Alto Astral definitely seemed like one of the more interesting Byredo releases on paper for me. On skin; there’s some of that interest coming through, but ultimately, it’s a strong miss for me. Let me explain.
The opening is overly aldehydic. Of course, aldehydes are listed as a top note, but I did not expect a full-on, soapy, sharp aldehydic blast the way Alto Astral delivers. This style of strong aldehydes is not often done these days and while definitely not to my personal taste, I could appreciate it.
Straight from the opening you can sense a sweetness creeping underneath too, but for about an hour, the soapiness wins the battle. And it’s fully that watery, greenish, soap-bubble scent that you can almost taste; not the clean white musk from a Blanche for example.
What happens next is a nosedive into contemporary, harsh, screechy amber woodiness. It’s sweet, it’s still a tad green, but most importantly, it’s grating. The texture and wearing experience here is simply not pleasant to me. Almost bitter, nutty facets come through. There’s a small period of time in which it blends with the aldehydes, creating the strange ‘coconutty, sweet-but-not-gourmand scented liquid laundry detergent’ combination.
However, it’s when the soapiness fades out and I’m left with the pure screechy, tart woodiness that Alto Astral completely loses my interest, and this accounts for the majority of the hours that it’s on skin. There’s a faint sort of fruitiness that saves it from being totally unpleasant, but as a whole, most of the wear was a clear thumbs down for me. Not even so much in scent, as in the way it feels.
Alto Astral feels very much like a victim of its time and is reminiscent of many other harsh drydowns that have plagued perfumery in recent years. What I was hoping/expecting to be one of my favorite Byredo’s, is probably pretty close to the worst Byredo for me.
