akro

Six transgressive fragrances.

Cigarettes. Weed. Sex. Chocolate. Caffeine. Alcohol.

Addictions turned into perfume. Undiluted and addictive to be consumed without moderation. Each is an escape hatch from the conventional.

The discovery kit, for the curious and intrigued.

2ml samples of  6 Akro perfumes: Awake, Dark, Haze, Smoke, Night and Malt.

Awake is a fragrance that captures the evocative smell of a warm coffee shop on a cold West London day; the freshly ground beans, the steam, the heat, the bitter luxury.

Top Notes: Santos Coffee, Italian lemon

Middle Notes: Green cardamom

Base Notes: Haitian vetiver

DARK | Dark borrows from chocolate its most seductive facets to play with emotions and captivate the senses.

Dark Chocolate, like foreign films and black coffee, is something you only get really into as you get older. A​ ​petite décadence that ​you’ll only understand when your tastes mature, when you’ve fully explored your sensuality.

Our baptism into the darkness came about when we discovered Said London - the legendary Soho chocolatiers. Just walking in there off the cold, dark streets of W1 feels like a sensory reawakening, as you let their aromas into your airwaves, and the flavors onto your tongue.

Said soon became a weekly, guilty pilgrimage spot for us, a place to train our senses. When it came to creating bottling our addictions, it was one of our first places we thought about. Bitter and sweet, without being bittersweet, ​Dark ​is a fragrance of pure indulgence.

TOP: Cocoa, dark Chocolate 
MIDDLE: Cinnamon, hazelnut
BASE: Vanilla

Haze, like a breath, liberates by creating an unresolved sensation. Between two states, two notes.

Picture the scene: Notting Hill Carnival, the Rampage stage, 2009 - the summer of UK Funky. Donae’o, the man of the moment, the MC behind this year’s carnival anthem is on the mic. He takes one look at the DJ, and they drop 'Party Hard'. The whole street seems to explode. Those in the throng of bodies, who had been grinding that fragrant, fresh kush are now lighting up, toking, passing. Within seconds All Saints Road becomes engulfed in the smell of the green - and through some strange urban chemistry it merges with the beats, the beer, the charcoal, the mood. Together they create the real scent of London - the one we dream of whenever we’re away for too long.

Top Notes: Absinthe

Middle Notes: Armoise, eucalyptus, spearmint

Base Notes: Clary sage

For those who’ve fallen under the spell of the ancient art of tattoos, it’s much more than a bit of body decoration; it’s a reminder of a time, a place - a fleeting moment that becomes a permanent memento. In many ways, a good fragrance works similarly - something you carry on your skin, to remind you of who you were at a moment in time.

The fascination by the parallels between tattoos and perfumery, is the inspiration of Akro's new scent, ink. Cold, alluring, with notes of black ink, tar, vetiver and jasmine - ink is a scent that will transport you back to the day of your first tattoo, whenever you want.

Top Note: Vetiver
Middle Note: Black ink, jasmine
Base Note: Birch

Malt is the perfect synthesis of a delicate liquor and a drunkenness that leaves its trace on the skin.

A really good whisky is a sensory experience; it's the bite on your tongue, the warmth in your cheeks, the smoky aroma that releases when it falls over ice. It’s a scent we first became enamored with when working the pubs and bars of Ladbroke Grove, a scent that will forever be associated with that dangerous ‘tipping point’ in a night; that witching hour and a bit before closing time when the beers become shots, relaxation becomes hedonism and night edges closer to morning. We just knew we had to bottle it for you.

Top Note: Whiskey
Middle Note: Rum, leather, seaweed
Base Note: Patchouli

Night brings back the moment of desire and its musky flavour. When the night belongs to those who lust and love.

A drink in the flat. A taxi. A warehouse party, somewhere in the depths of Hackney Wick, the Olympic Stadium guiding your way. You pay, you drink, you dance. Your eyes meet another pair across the dancefloor, in a nanosecond between strobe flashes. You follow them to the bar, you say something stupid. You buy them a drink. You move to the smoking area, and then back to the dancefloor. You talk. You dance. You touch. You kiss. You book another taxi. You spend the night in bed, and the day in the pub. You make plans to see each other again, but never do.

Night​ is the smell of those long-lost, one-night dalliances that stay with you long after they probably should.

Top Note: Bulgarian rose
Middle Note: Cumin, saffron
Base Note: Agaroud

Smoke is inspired by the pleasure of the first drag of a cigarette, which is consumed as quickly as it is born.

Smoke: it's a scent that splits us down the middle, the ultimate acquired taste. It might not be for everyone - but for those who are pulled in by it’s taboo aroma, it’s the abiding scent of the best times of our lives; first kisses, last dances, 5am enlightenments, after parties and mornings after. It’s the scent you’re not supposed to like, but the one you can’t forget.

Top Note: Balkans tobacco leaves
Middle Note: Cade, nicotine
Base Note: Benjoin, tonka bean