Yohji The first perfume from Yohji Yamamoto pounds 40.00 for 50ml bottl e of Eau de Toilette

Try Me

Just before Yohji Yamamoto's hit show last month in Paris samples of his new perfume "Yohji" went on offer to the fashion-pack. The hundreds of miniature samples disappeared in minutes, straight into the handbags of international fashion editors.

The reason for the frenzy was that, of all the designers, Yamamoto had never succumbed to the lure of creating his own perfume in the 19 years since his first collection. With the help of Jean Kerleo, one of the best noses in Paris, and the perfume giant Jean Patou, he seems to have produced a hit.

The bottle, which comes wrapped in an origami-style packaging looks like a test-tube when standing but is designed to lie flat. A raised bump on the underside, to prevent the bottle from rolling off the dressing table, gives it the appearance of a spirit level when horizontal.

The scent itself has amber-fruity notes, and contains bergamot, linanol and galbanum, which expand to base notes of sandalwood, musk and vanilla.

We tried it on several women in the office. Some loved it, others felt it was overpowering. ("I knew straight away that it contained bergamot, and after about five hours on it really came into its own. The high notes were terrific, exotic and citric"

In all Yohji got the thumbs-up. It is a new departure for women used to ozonic scents such as CK One, Eau D'Issey, but a fitting one. As Yamamoto says, "Sexiness is what we don't see. It has to be discovered. The most important thing about a woman is her mystery."

Yohji is available in Harrods, Knightsbridge, London SW1 and Liberty, Regent Street, London W1 until Monday, and thereafter in 50 stores nationwide, call 0171 328 1036 for stockists. Perfume, pounds 87 for 15ml; Eau de toilette, pounds 40 for 50ml and pounds 55 for 100ml.

MELANIE RICKEY