Bois 1920 was founded in 2005 by Enzo Galardi. Inspired by his perfumer grandfather, Guido, Enzo reinterprets his old formulas with the finest ingredients to create modern and unique scents. (paraphrased from the house bio on Luckyscent.com) Apparently some liberty was taken with naming these "modern and unique" scents. At least, this particular one. "Sushi," in Italian, means "sushi." Yep, the Japanese seasoned rice dishes we have all come to know and love. Sushi Imperiale does not contain notes of wasabi, nori, and pickled ginger, nor is it reminiscent of fish in any way. Whew! That's a good thing.
Turns out, the scent is genuinely a good thing. It's a bright and autumny concoction of citrus and sweet spices on a base of vanilla. It reminds me of a friend's recipe for hot apple cider, in which she tosses several sliced lemons and oranges with a goodly number of cinnamon sticks. But without the apple part. The nutmeg is most evident in the opening, along with the sprightly citrus notes. They are tart, but not sour, and marry perfectly with the bit of pepper and the cinnamon that comes up a bit later. The vanilla isn't obviously vanilla, but it lends an overall sweet softness to the background.
Although Sushi Imperiale could be considered unisex, there's something about it that makes me think it might work better on a man. Perhaps my sushi-lovin' man....
Notes: citrus, pepper, nutmeg, cinnamon, Madagascan vanilla
