Tonka Cola
Mancera (2022)

Mancera - Tonka Cola
Ok, some niche heads love to look down their noses at Mancera, but they are just missing out IMHO. Other's poopoo this for smelling like 'off brand' cola. They don't know what tonka smells like. This opens with a combo of gummy cola candy sweetness (one of the kinds I can't resist) and the medicinal aspects of tonka. As it dries down the medicinal drops away, and a spicy cinnamon kicks in. As that drops off, a very cozy amber like accord takes over for the rest of the 8+ hour wear. The whole while that gummy cola is lurking in the background adding that perfect cheerful amount of sweetness. This seems to take the role of the powderiness you find in many amber accords.
Overall, this feels like a much more complex fragrance than the name suggests, and what most would expect from Mancera. I personally rate it way up there as a favorite scent, and when ever I'm in the mood for it, Iike today, I really relish the wearing. Enough so that I just dosed myself again before sitting down to write this and take a photo to post. It's the perfect adult cola, at least in my opinion. I think either a man or women could wear comfortably wear this, all depending on their affinity for niche gummy cola candies.

Would anyone be a fan of someone barging in with: "Hey, bro, did you spill Coca-Cola on yourself?" Well, not really.

Sticky sweet, more feminine than unisex, but that's my subjective opinion. Vanilla and cherry are noticeable, very well done, and it has touchpoints with Mancera Red Tobacco and YSL M7 without the animalic touch and oud note.

What exactly do you get in this fragrance? You really get cherry, Coca-Cola, vanilla, tonka, and benzoin, all processed with high quality. Sweet, intoxicating, spicy winter evening gathering that I would skip as a participant in the role of wearing this scent, but definitely embrace as an admirer of some attractive lady wearing it.

There's something really sweet and sticky in it, obviously because of Cola and cherry, rather seductive, but I don't see this scent on myself. Somehow, I have the impression that Guerlain, with its L'Homme Ideal EdP, has managed to give this type of scent a more masculine character, or less feminine at least. YSL M7 especially made this type of scent more masculine because of the animalic, oud approach to this theme.

I would wear it in winter, in the evening, exclusively for my own pleasure while sipping mulled wine, punch, or good whiskey after a hard day's work, but in a solo setting and not in anyone's company. The fragrance is well crafted, everything is harmonious, nothing stands out too much, it is long-lasting and very projecting.

Originality 4/10 - this type of sweet story is already on the market.
Scent 8/10 - phenomenally done, but I repeat, it suits girls and women better.
Longevity 8/10
Projection 8/10
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Overall subjective impression 8/10

I get cola in this but only when burying my nose in it. Otherwise, it is dark, dry, and dusty vanilla, with almost no sweetness, and no sparkle. Feels more formal and nighttime-appropriate. Has an old-lady vibe to me.

To put cola in the name is one thing, but when there are other fragrances out there that have more of a cola vibe, it is disappointing that this is not more of a reference fragrance for cola.

It’s not lacking in performance, with a long scent trail and solid projection.

Interesting name, and pretty unique in skin. Now I will say.. this does capture the smell of cola, but only briefly in the opening. after the initial blast, which is kind of like a spicy potpourri type of thing where I get some type of patchouli as well. but once that dries down a little bit, it really does smell like vanilla Coke. There’s a bit of a oud vibe in there as well, but not a very prominent oud. There’s also a citrus giving it a little tartness. Dare I say.. I’m getting some serious Ultrazest vibes here.. and for me, thats a good thing, because I love Ultrazest!

by the end of things, it’s mostly just patchouli vanilla and benzoin.

This one has a good aura, good scent bubble. strong projection. Smells more patchouli heavy up close, and more incense heavy in the air. Very good longevity too, at 12 hours.

excuse any typos, I am writing this on my phone, using microphone dictation.

I may tweak this review, as I sample this more.. this is based off of 2 separate wearings.

This is my first wearing of Mancera Tonka Cola, a 2022 release that, for me, is fortunately as described, as I enjoy the taste and smell of cola, though it’s proven to be a bit difficult to capture in fragrance, the balance of the citrus and caramel in particular being the most elusive. The fragrance seems to have yielded some mixed responses, which I at least partly attribute to the difficulty of capturing cola but also that ideas about cola can vary somewhat.

I’m really delighted by this fragrance, which does have some of the brightness and citrus that are required to round out the cola concept, particularly in the opening, though it leans little more to the dark, caramel, spicy side of things, of course with a pinch of the sweet/nutty/sharp tonka to round things out, though the fragrance does not scream “tonka” to me at all, really.

Additionally, it performs well and has a very subtle evolution, predictably a little brighter and sharper in the opening, becoming a little darker and smoother during the dry down, while essentially remaining mostly the same fragrance throughout. I’m not familiar with many cola-themed or cola-dominant scents but this and Hendley Cola are surely my favorites as of now, and I’d recommend looking into this one. It does not appear to be for sale yet in the US but I’ll have to keep an eye out.

8 out of 10