Berbera

The scent of ancient trade winds — citrus and incense crossing a burning desert.

Berbera doesn’t whisper. It opens with a flash — bright, zesty citrus like someone just tore through a lemon grove at full speed. But that brightness is a ruse. Just beneath it waits the soul of the fragrance: smoky, resin-rich frankincense from the cliffs of Somaliland, one of the rarest and most coveted sources on Earth.

This is the scent of spice markets and sun-bleached stone. Of caravans trading sacred resins by weight of gold. Of ancient rituals still echoing in the dry heat. And Nissaba didn’t phone this in — they went to the source. The frankincense here comes directly from small harvesters in the Sanaag region, collected by hand from Boswellia trees that bleed their history into the air.

But this isn’t a one-note incense trip. The citrus opening — yuzu, citron, a twist of grapefruit — stays in the mix, lifting the blend with a spark of energy. Then the base rolls in: earthy vetiver, soft woods, a ghost of myrrh. The overall effect? Imagine sun-warmed skin dusted with spice and citrus oil… then smoked gently by time.

Berbera walks a fine line between clean and mystical. Fresh, but not sterile. Sacred, but wearable. It's got the structure of a classic cologne, but the soul of an incense ceremony at the edge of a forgotten kingdom.

What’s In It For You:

• A rare chance to wear real Somali frankincense — no synthetic dupes here.

• Bright enough to wear daily, complex enough to stop people cold.

• Feels like a story unfolding on your skin — sharp, smoky, sacred.

Wear it when:
You want to smell fresh, but not like anyone else in the room. When your soul needs grounding but your energy needs lifting. Or when you just want to smell damn interesting.