D’ANNAM
Vietnamese Coffee

2023

PERFUMER
Anh Ngo

roasted coffee

dark chocolate
condensed milk
muguet

cedarwood
amber
tonka bean

‘Vietnamese Coffee EDP honors Vietnam’s delightful brew, crafted from dark-roasted Robusta beans, which exude a bold, caramel-chocolate richness and a pronounced bitterness that harmonizes exquisitely with creamy condensed milk. Topped with ice, it becomes the iconic drink known as “Cà Phê Sữa Đá”, the perfect way to start the day for most Vietnamese. The evanescence of coffee aromas makes them notoriously difficult to capture in a scent. We aimed to create a fragrance that mirrors the boldness of Vietnamese coffee. Upon the first spray, you are greeted with intense roasted coffee notes, enriched by hints of condensed milk. With time, the potent coffee aroma inevitably mellows, making way for a sweet, creamy, woody blend, underscored by the beverage’s richness reflected with a sweet amber and tonka bean accord.’ – D’Annam

The opening has the most coffee, in a nice, roasted, but somewhat subtle manner. It reminds me a lot of the coffee styling in One Day Seoul. Not too creamy/milky, which can make it cloying, but instead, almost airy and with a dryness reminding me of cardboard or paper. Making for a really nice coffee opening.

As it dries, the milkiness increases and a bit sooner than I’d like, the coffee starts to slowly disappear. The last couple of hours of the wear are purely a generic (but very pleasant) vanillic skin scent; reminding me a bit of the drydown of Dior Bois D’Argent.

Overall, super pleasant. For a coffee scent; I think fragrances Akro Awake, Kerosone Follow, Strangers SM Café etc. offer more and for the more minimal coffee scent, One Day Seoul retains the coffee and understated vibe a lot better. However, if you’re into that coffee-into-vanilla wear, maybe like a Montale Intense Cafe without the rose (and the D’Annam definitely has a better coffee scent than that), this is a great scent. Thumbs up.