Äican by Kajal

Dahab is the start of a niche house that, in my opinion, does the best with fruity fragrances: unique, exotic, and rounded. Äican is a more potent version of Dahab with bolder nuances; both feature passion fruit as the star, but they aren’t clones. Äican lacks a strong musk, it’s sweet-and-sour, and dries down with more vanilla notes. Looking for something top-tier for summer parties? They’re very projective; alongside Almaz, Lamar, or Ruby, they make you stand out. It denotes class, blending Western and Middle Eastern culture; it’s one of the best fruity scents and my favourite from Kajal.

Well, after months, I finally have my Äican. I didn’t want to buy blind because it happened with Masa and I didn’t like it. Obsessed with Almaz, I thought the next Kajal release would be my style, but I tried this first. I didn’t like the opening and set it aside to try others. Minutes later, smelling the blotter papers with a coffee, it became my absolute favourite. Fruity juicy dry-down, Almaz style but less sharp. I get a peach note from it, even though it’s not listed. Passion fruit, pineapple, and ginger dominate. Quite musky, but it’s NOT an Erba Pura; it doesn’t have that strong Xerjoff musk. Perhaps the opening reminds you of it, but it’s not the same. Moderate longevity, 5-6 hours on skin and longer on clothes. Not at Lamar or Almaz level, but it’s decent. I like fruity scents and this one is juicy. I’ve worn it for four days; I hope it improves with time.

After trying beautiful launches like Lamar, Dahab, Mara, and Almaz, I was expecting something original that would blow my mind, but I’m disappointed. Gentlemen, this is an inspiration of Erba Gold. I won’t deny that I like it; it’s lovely and has differences: it doesn’t have that scandalous Xerjoff musk; here it’s more contained. The fruity part shines, it’s juicy. But in the opening and trail, it smells like Erba Gold; in the dry-down, it separates a bit, becoming more fruity, sweet, and creamy due to the sandalwood and praline. In terms of composition, it’s more wearable than Erba Gold. It’s used all year round and isn’t invasive. But it’s an excessively cloned scent. I like it a lot, but I already have Erba Gold; for performance, I take Äican everywhere and Erba Gold for special occasions. Update 1: 2 hours after the dry-down, we’re already moving away from Erba Gold. Juicy, fruity, vanilla-dusted phase. The musk fades and it sweetens. I’ll wear it all day tomorrow. Erba Gold still lingers in my mind. Update 2: Macerated for 3 weeks. I admit I was scandalous at the start. Does it resemble Erba Pura or Gold? A little, only in the opening, a one-hour effect. Then the chocolatey vanilla base of the praline does magic, combined with the juicy fruits that come and go. It’s rich, long-lasting, with moderate trail. It’s not scandalous or cloying; it doesn’t overwhelm me. Easy to wear, versatile, daily all year. For night or formal events, there are other options. Depending on the temperature, sometimes more fruity, other times more vanilla-dusted. Delicious aroma, first-class ingredients. My initial annoyance was thinking it was the same as Erba Gold, but that’s gone now. It’s totally different. How unisex is it? For me, in the niche world, it’s quite unisex. Every skin does its magic: juicy, sweet, versatile. And the bottle, ladies and gentlemen, is gorgeous.