NISHANE
ANI
2019
PERFUMER
Cecile Zarokian
Ginger
Bergamot
Pink Pepper
Green Notes
Cardamom
blackcurrant
Turkish Rose
Vanilla
Benzoin
Sandalwood
CedarWOOD
Patchouli
Ambergris
Musk
‘Having shown by the perfume lovers as the best vanilla scent and becoming an iconic scent, highly celebrated ANI is a romantic and calm perfume created under the inspiration of a famous Anatolian folk song called “Sarı Gelin” (in Turkish) or “Sari Gyalin” in Armenian. As the similarity of the name of the song in both languages suggests that both nations share a very similar culture as far as art, food or other aspects of life are concerned. ANI is the name of an ancient city that is now known as the Ani Ruins, which was included on UNESCO’s World Heritage List. The only boundary is in the imagination of the people. This perfume is dedicated to ruin any border between people and to empower the wearer to build his/her own empire even in a situation when all he/she is left with nothing but the ruins.’ – Nishane
Ani is one of Nishane’s star releases and in my opinion deserving of its status.
Straight from the opening you get a huge dose of citrus. When I first gave Ani a quick sniff during a Jovoy store visit, it didn’t really register as a vanilla fragrance. On skin however, the vanilla does come through straight away, it’s just engulfed in supporting notes. If you’re trying Ani for the first time, make sure to give it a proper wearing.
It’s not a subtle scent. Ani has everything dialed to the max. It’s a loud opening, with ginger, bergamot and vanilla as main acts. When you zoom in, you get the deeper, sour fruitiness of the blackcurrant, but honestly in the air they don’t register much to my nose.
It’s simultaneously more vanilla and more not-vanilla than the remotely similar Lira. The sweetness here feels very warm, custardy and rich. The citrus has more tartness, probably because of the ginger. The cardamom adds a fresh spicy kick and combined with the citrus it gives this an almost traditional aftershave/cologne tinge, reminding me of Bijon’s Aura Sublime (by the same perfumer Cecile Zarokian). Aura Sublime is an interesting one to compare to, however personally I did not enjoy it nearly as much as Ani. In 2023 Nishane released Ani X. A similar, but more versatile version of Ani that loses the slight masculine leaning cologne tinge in favor of even more vanilla and citrus. There is also Zarokian’s Jovoy Remember Me, which shares some notes, but that’s a much more cozy fragrance and ultimately, has my preference.
As it dries, you get more of a powdery woodiness and patchouli, but both the sweetness and the brightness last. While rather complex, it’s not a sophisticated scent; as mentioned it is quite loud and I think it’s also quite harsh initially, but that’s what makes Ani more invigorating and exciting than many of the citric vanilla fragrances on the market.
To be honest, I was skeptical about the hype, but not anymore. Ani perfects what it set out to do and it stands out in a field of hundreds of vanilla releases.
