Byredo released Open Sky in 2021 as a limited edition, and it has since left the main lineup, which makes it one of the harder recent Byredo releases to track down. That scarcity matters when you are deciding between hunting down a bottle at full price and settling for an impression of it.
What Does Byredo Open Sky Smell Like?
The opening is a bitter-fresh snap of pomelo, a citrus fruit related to grapefruit but drier and less sweet, cut with a noticeable black pepper bite. There is almost no sugar here. Within a few minutes a hemp leaf note arrives, and this is the part people talk about most. It is green and faintly herbal, with just enough of that skunky plant character to read as cannabis without smelling like an ashtray. Some wearers find it realistic and interesting. Others say it drifts toward body odor territory on hot days, so sample before committing.
The drydown grounds everything. Palo santo brings a creamy, resinous woodiness with a soft incense feel, and vetiver adds an earthy, lightly smoky finish. From about the two hour mark onward, Open Sky stops being a citrus fragrance and becomes a quiet woody one. If you only judge it in the first ten minutes you will miss what it actually is.
Performance
Longevity lands around six to eight hours on skin for most wearers, and longer on fabric. Projection is the weaker side. It pushes to arm’s length for the first hour, then pulls in close and stays there. That restraint fits the scent, but at 290 dollars for 100 ml many buyers expect more presence than they get. It works fine in offices and warm weather precisely because it never shouts.
Best Clone Or Alternative
Perfume Parlour’s Beautiful Blue - 0048 is the closest widely available option. Perfume Parlour markets it as belonging to the same olfactory family as Open Sky, and the note list matches almost one to one: pomelo and black pepper on top, hemp in the middle, palo santo and vetiver underneath. It costs 48 pounds for 50 ml, which is a fraction of what the original commands now that it is discontinued.
The tradeoff is depth. Beautiful Blue gets the fresh peppery citrus and the green wood right, but the base feels flatter and less resinous over time, and the blend is simpler overall. As an impression rather than a verified duplicate, expect roughly 80 percent of the experience. Given the original’s price and availability problems, that is a good deal for anyone curious about the scent profile. Buying a small format of the alternative first is the smart move before paying collector prices for a 100 ml bottle.
When To Wear It
This is a spring and summer daytime fragrance above all else. Warm air lifts the pomelo and the hemp accord, while cold weather mutes them and leaves mostly vetiver. It suits casual outings, travel, weekends, and relaxed workplaces. The name suggests road trips and open windows, and the scent actually supports that mood. It is unisex, sitting comfortably in the middle rather than leaning masculine or feminine.
Who Should Buy It
Open Sky rewards people who like green, slightly challenging scents: fans of Byredo Mixed Emotions, Le Labo Santal 33, or anything with a realistic herbal edge. If you avoid sweet fragrances and want something fresh but not another aquatic blue, this profile is genuinely different from the summer mainstream. Collectors who regret missing the limited edition and cannot justify resale prices should try Beautiful Blue - 0048 instead.
Who Should Skip It
Skip it if you want loud projection or a compliment magnet. Skip it if sweet, cozy, or gourmand scents are your thing, because there is no sugar here at all. And if the idea of a cannabis facet worries you, trust your instinct, since that note defines the fragrance and several reviewers find it too prominent.
Final Verdict
Open Sky is one of Byredo’s more creative recent ideas: a bitter citrus opening that settles into smoky woods with a strange green twist. Execution is good, presence is modest, and the price was always hard to defend, which its value score reflects. With the original discontinued, Perfume Parlour’s Beautiful Blue - 0048 covers the same ground cheaply enough that most buyers lose little by starting there.