FRAGRANCE | Follow EDP by Kerosene: When you want your coffee black

I think it's safe to say that a lot of fragrances out there feature coffee in varying degrees. Coffee, for one, has a really nice flavor, not to mention an exquisite aroma that would certainly be a shame if not used at all in perfumery. To certain compositions, it adds depth and flavor that enhance the overall olfactory experience. Yet for all of coffee's wonderful attributes, I have only come across a few fragrances that truly shine the spotlight on coffee instead of simply employing it as an additive or accent. And I could not think of a better example thus far than Kerosene Follow. 

Follow is unadulterated coffee in a bottle. That distinctly dark and bitter aroma just lords it over from the start and carries itself all the way through to the end when the scent finally fades, which takes hours, by the way. There is very little sweetness here, a move that goes against perfumers' propensity for drowning the coffee's bitterness with vanilla, caramel, tonka beans, resins, and other sweeteners. Sugar isn't a bad thing, though, and I do enjoy a frapppuccino or mocha-flavored scent (hello, Al-Rehab French Coffee!). Mind you, Follow does have these sweet notes but they're very controlled, so instead of a macchiatto, what I get is a cup of black—and a strong one at that. I can't help but think of Mugler A*men Pure Coffee in this scenario because no, that ain't pure coffee; this one right here is.

Caution, however, must be exercised with the sprayer, as the scent—which is quite strong to begin with—has an accompanying sharpness that can be too much, headache-inducing even. Yes, I abhor anything too sharp in my frags, so thankfully limiting my sprays does the trick here. Besides, I just love the coffee so much that I'm willing to compromise. The sharpness gradually dulls, however, until we see a bit more of the sweetness coming through. The coffee, of course, is still there even though the scent in general settles into a more relaxed state after several hours. 

Kerosene Follow appears to be every coffee lover's dream. Nevertheless, this one should still be sampled first before committing to a full bottle because even if the smell of coffee exhilarates you, it doesn't necessarily follow that you would want to smell like it. As for me, I'm happy to smell like a cup of joe just as much as I enjoy drinking one.