What is it?
It's one of the world's most expensive fragrances, with a price tag of HK$45,000 for a 50ml crystal bottle. There are only 500 bottles available of the limited-edition fragrance, and Hong Kong has four. Each numbered bottle is elegantly packed in a solid birch box, with bird's eye veneer and leather lining.
Who are the creators?
The French house of Mane, perhaps the world's leading perfume maker, and creator of fragrances for well-known brands such as Michael Kors, Cavalli, Calvin Klein and Ralph Lauren.
Why is it different?
Inspired by the Chinese word for rain, Yu represents the ideal convergence of nature and state of the art technology, says the perfume house. To capture the peak freshness of the essences in Yu, the blooms and plants were hand-harvested at the precise time that each flower was at its fullest and most potent, whether that was at night or during a particular phase of the moon. To ensure the original fragrances were preserved, the company invented a portable extraction processor, which doesn't use high temperatures. Yu's introduction is also noteworthy because it's designed by a fragrance house but sold direct to customers. Traditionally, brands commission fragrance houses to design a fragrance for them to sell.
