Umè
Keiko Mecheri (2006)

UME screams "look at me, i'm here, i want to be stared at, I'm young, confident and carefree and i don't give a damn about what people say or think about me". This has a WOW factor. Wonderful plum note in this perfume. It's how you'd smell if you wore a monster plum-bubblegumy sweet perfume and became sweaty throughout the night. Delightful, alluring, intensive and sophisticated.

It starts with warm fruity sweetness. Juicy plum with just enough pleasant tartness. The mandarin just adds to the vanilla in the dry down. The heart really develops into a charming osmanthus & peony with a slight spice and a nice earthiness. The base becomes prominent and the plum fade, and you get the earthy, dark green woodiness of the oakmoss and patchouli blending in equally with the florals, that keep it from getting too sweet. This is a hot and sweaty summer night.

Ume opens with a promisingly – but as you'll learn, also "deceptively" - beautiful accord of powerful, narcotic flowers (I get peony, the rest smell like rose, carnation and narcissus to me), aldehydes, light spices, a hint of bergamot, and a classic chypre-sque base of benzoin, vanilla, perhaps patchouli. Powdery, floral, slightly soapy, it the evolves on a more fruity territory as the fruity notes emerge better – juicy and tart at first, then more warmer and sweet. I honestly smell a microscopic hint of osmanthus, which is basically more a generic and ultra light touch of "tea", and to be honest, all the ingredients smell more "generic" than they appear to be from the listing – I mean that it may look as some fascinating exotic concoction, while in my opinion it's basically more a light, cute, common – almost mediocre – fruity-floral chypre as dozen of others. And as the common trend in niche perfumery seems to dictate, longevity is below acceptable. Barely acceptable.

5,5-6/10

Ume is a sophisticated unisex fruity-floral with a woody-musky foundation. The fragrance is finally averagely bodied, almost sharp and close to the skin. Many talk about sophistication and i have to agree cause the woody-musky base projects a sort of spicy-fruity slightly smoky spark of subtleness in the air. The first part of the trip introduces a sort of lemony-floral light accord that is immediately woody and conservative. The floral spark (sort of jasmine-tuberose light whiff) is not indolic and leaves in a while the stage to a dominant fruity accord really tasty and plummy (i smell the association). The quoted feel is probably elicited by a spicy chord of peaches, blackberries and apricots. It's so edible and spicy and goes progressively to restrain its consistence, becoming more and more subtle and spicy with a sort of pungent and elegant plummy type of final feel over a woodsy-musky base with hints of sharp ambergris. At this point the fruitiness is slightly tamed and the juice becomes warmer and confident. Not bad

I must admit I was expecting this to vanish an hour after I applied it - I've read so many reviews of Keiko Mecheri's perfumes which report terrible longevity.

Well I applied this six hours ago since when I've worked out on the cross-trainer for an hour and had a shower. The perfume is still there! Granted, there isn't much projection going on but I'm still pleasantly surprised.

Ume reminds me of something I just can't put my finger on. It has a lovely warm, woody, spicy base which I can't get enough of. Those warm woody notes are there right from the start, the perfume doesn't change very much on my skin, only the plummish fruit notes fade away slightly. I don't find this too sweet at all, in fact it's not an adjective that ever crossed my mind. It smells rich, opulent and mysterious. I'd wear this during the day without fear that it would overwhelm anyone, it certainly doesn't seem to be a sillage monster! Great for evening.

I'd love to be able to write more about this scent but I'm still a novice and finding my way around. Ume has definitely sparked my interest for plum scents and I'm on the lookout for more. Definite thumbs up from me!

On my first trial on test paper, the opening gave me a beautiful, elegant broad-spectrumed osmanthus / bergamot accord supported by a fruit note (peach?… apricot?) and the merest touch of resinous wood and a suggestion of citrus. It did seem almost a classic Chanel except that it is a bit too fruity… I have never been able to replicate that first paper test… From that time on, I get FRUIT.The first time I tested Umé on my skin, I got loads of wood accord coupled to an excellent floral combination. I loved it! Subsequent tests have brought fruit… LOADS of fruit: Apricot… peach… persimmon… whatever. Unfortunately, I very quickly lost the floral and wood notes while the fruit notes rose to dominance. And dominance is where the fruit notes stay… test after test after test… peach or apricot. After a couple of hours, I do get the wood accord of the base coming through but it is mainly a very softened Hiniki and moss, and there might be a hint of persimmon in there. The base sends out little sillage but is a lovely skin scent. I would have loved the first version I got of either the paper or the skin test, but since the first trial of each, all I get is fruit. This subsequent fruitiness quietly emanates off my skin and leaves me totally uninterested.

I second the Christmas theme here, I can't pinpoint it, but every year my Mom puts out this vine-type runner around the living room and it smells just like this. Or at least something she's putting up in the living room smells like this scent. I got a sample of this becuase it is in the same category as Mitsouko, and I was interested to see how the plum note came across. This isn't on the same level as Mitsouko (but what is, really) Nevertheless, this is a nice, well rounded fragrance that lasts in the medium range.**UPDATE** I pulled my sample back out now that the weather is cooling off. And I must say I'm liking this so, so much more now.This one really snaps, there is a wonderful spicy note that comes across, and it is quite sophisticated. Love it

My favorite of the Keiko Mecheri's I've sampled. All KM's seem formulated not to offend, to the point of being bland (Hanae) or stuffy (Grenats). Ume narrowly avoids a similar fate by adding a delicate salt-and-smoke edge to the fruity heart notes that is enough to keep you interested over the course of it's relatively short lifespan. I totally get the Coco Mademoiselle comparison. Both are chypre-lites with a bergomat/jasmine/woody accord. Prada Tendre is even more of a lookalike, being all of the above, but with plum instead of apricot. In fact, if you like this kind of thing, Prada Tendre is half the price and worth a try.

A really lovely fragrance that opens with strawberries and lemon -- it can jolt you a bit at first. This is then enhanced by what was suggested as lychees, but turns out to be a gorgeous, lush plum rendition. It then stays linear with the above notes for it's duration (it musks out slightly), which is a long,long time. It all sounds rather feminine, but surprisingly isn't -- the notes mix wonderfully and Ume doesn't turn powdery at all, so I wear it happily. The sillage is really good, unlike Bois de Santal, where it is quite minimalist. I shall be trying more from this House, especially the peach rendition for the summer. I haven't smelt anything quite like this before and Ume goes straight into rotation. This fragrance needs to be experienced by everyone.

The notes and the fragrance (to me) seem not to match; this made me feel as if someone had cut out a segment of Coco Chanel and transplanted it over a different base. Extremely pretty and wearable.

A woody floral that's really, really good. I like the tuberose-like accord that's possibly the combination of several fruit notes. A rich, warm, musky drydown. Men, wear this with confidence.

I first received UME as a sample with another order. From the description and notes listed, it sounded a bit fussy to me, nothing I would have ordered unsniffed. My initial impression was that it smelled similar to my husband's shaving cream. It opens with a blast of lemon that is creamy/hot and balmy rather than sweet/tart. It is a savory lemongrass note. The plum note is there as well but it reminds me of salted dried plums instead of wet, fresh or overly sweet ones. At the heart of this scent is full bodied persimmon, which is sweet, slightly pulpy and slightly tangy but rounded out nicely with rich spices. Under all the exotic flavors is a wonderful wood base- Japanese cypress which is also called Hinoki, which smells similar to Juniper but softer. I love this perfume- some other reviewers seem to find it rather sweet and derivative. But to me, it is utterly unique and LuckyScent describes it rather well as to me it does indeed recall the orientalism of the Art Deco period. This is a perfect fall scent to wear with a big leather jacket, lace shirt, stove pipe jeans and high heel boots! A winner in my book.