PHỞ-GERE

Verdant basil, piercing mint, and earthy sprout notes rising through steam. Bold, herbaceous, unapologetically alive.

Up top, it feels spicy-green and a little citrusy, like you’ve squeezed lime over a pile of herbs while pho spices simmer a table or two away, so you get warmth and comfort without smelling like you’ve spilled soup on yourself. As it settles, Saigon cinnamon, star anise, and other kitchen spices hum in the background while Vietnamese oud, galangal, and a soft civet accord add a subtle animalic depth that keeps everything from reading purely “fresh.”

The galangal reins in the funk and turns that animalic edge into something cozy and wearable, making this feel like a playful, green fougère that nods to French tradition while clearly rooted in Vietnamese-American food culture. If you like basil-heavy profiles, kitchen herbs, and a bit of weirdness that still feels thoughtfully put together, this fits both casual days and nights when you want something people will ask about.

Top: Bean Sprouts, Basil & Pho Herbs
Middle: Saigon Cinnamon, Star Anise & Spices
Base:  Vietnamese Oud, Galangal, Civet accord

d.grayi is an artisan fragrance house from the United States, created by perfumer James “Miju” Nguyen and offered through LV1 Studio.

Drawing on Vietnamese and Korean roots, the brand crafts narrative-driven perfumes that blend traditional materials—like jasmine rice, pandan, pho spices, and Vietnamese oud—with contemporary perfume techniques to form vivid “olfactive stories.”

Nguyen’s journey into perfumery began after a vivid dream of a complex, never-before-smelled scent, which he set out to recreate, shaping a collection that now spans dozens of experimental fragrances.