The next stop in my journey through sampling smaller indie brands in 2025 is Boka Fragrance. This project, which received its name from the affectionate childhood nickname (Boka) of the founder, Boris Zrnic, focuses on using fine oils and essences in the crafting of their fragrances, focusing on conjuring emotional responses and incorporating Boris’ Serbian heritage.
Boka has just two fragrances — Zelen and Suze — which both struck me as incredibly well-crafted and quite beautiful, as well as focused on capturing natural scents. Boris spent much of his childhood in nature, so it was important for him to incorporate this into his fragrances.
Branding and Packaging
From the fairly straight forward website to the well-designed packaging, Boris put together a total brand experience that feels elevated and luxe. The samples are individually boxed 2ml spray samples (with lids!) and all of the paper products are quite beautiful — though, I am a little bit biased since earth tones are my favorite.
While I do not own any of the bottles (yet!) they are really nice frosted glass with unique marble lids crafted in Mexico by hand to give a special touch that makes every bottle a bit different. Custom lids are a great way for small batch fragrance brands to add a unique touch that will make their bottles stand out without needing to place massive custom bottle orders with enormous minimum order quantities. I’ve seen quite a few iterations of this idea now and Boka is among the best for my taste.
Zelen
The first fragrance that caught my eye from Boka was Zelen, which means ‘green’ in Serbian. The name is fitting as it is a fragrance wholly crafted around celebrating vetiver, which Boris succeeds with as, to me, this is one of the finest vetiver fragrances I’ve put my nose on.
Opening with a burst of citrus notes such as Yuzu, Mexican lime, and bergamot, I also got a pretty hefty dose of peppercorn initially, which almost tricks my nose into smelling something like a bitter citrus rind. Short of the very first burst of the opening, the vetiver is ever-present but never overwhelming (to me, something like Encre Noir is quite overwhelming). Some softer woody notes like cedar and sandalwood round out the base here. It’s very green but bright and soft instead of dense and heavy.
With wear, I get a solid 8+ hours on skin, with a persistent scent on clothes or a test strip for over 24 hours. While this is quite long lasting, it sits fairly close to skin for much of its life, which is perfect.
This is vetiver buttoned-up. Imagine a business exec wearing this in a linen shirt and pants on a vacation by the sea. It’s elegant and refined, but not too formal. Casual enough to wear to a tennis match, but elevated enough to transition to a fancy brunch right after. Its endless versatility had me struggling to imagine scenarios where it would not be a good option. It really is that good.
Suze
I’ll admit, the first time I smelled Suze — which means ‘tears’ in Serbian — I didn’t really know what to make of it. However, after revisiting it a few times, I’ve really grown to love it. The concept around this fragrance focuses on recognizing all of the catalysts for tears, both celebratory and reflective, and after spending time with this it definitely conjures up feelings in both of those camps.
The fragrance opens with a burst of citrus black tea with a hefty dose of spearmint that adds a bit of unexpected freshness. As the tea fades to the background, it leaves a bit of a wistful aura behind, like the scent of someone on your clothes breifly after a hug. Various florals then push through, including jasmine, magnolia, and lily of the valley. This floral accord made me imagine a bouquet placed over a casket at a funeral or one handed to a ballerina after her final performance or even one held at a wedding. Flowers are often planted (pun sort of intended) in important moments in our lives that tend to accent and emphasize love, community, and rememberance. A bit of drier cassia and orris help transition to the base notes, which are more resinous and woody, bringing to mind more solemn occasions.
Suze took me on a journey and does every time I spray it on. It somehow captures the bittersweet joy of seeing a friend after a long absense, the celebratory nature of something like a wedding or graduation, and a more reflective, reverent tone as it shifts to dry down. It’s complex and quite a delight!
Closing Notes
Boris has put together two wonderful fragrances as his first releases, along with carefully designed packaging, branding, and overall experience. I’m quite impressed with both of these releases and would love to own both!
While some may scoff at the pricing on these — they are definitely on the premium side of the market — looking at the ‘whole package’ of this luxury product it’s pretty clear why. I personally find them well worth their asking and would much rather spend this kind of money with a small indie creator versus a conglomerate.
If you have not already, Boka offers a 2ml sample pack with both fragrances at an approachable price point, so I’d recommend giving them a try for yourself!
Disclosure: This post is not sponsored and solely reflect my thoughts and feelings on the samples I purchased with my own money.