Ah Biore Aqua Rich Watery Essence...the iconic sunscreen that is a lot of people's first dip into Asian skincare. I'm not special, and when I first got into Asian beauty I immediately scrambled to purchase a sunscreen after realizing in horror the damaging years I had gone unprotected. This frantic search brought me to cult favorite Biore Watery Essence, as it was all the rage on the Asian Beauty subreddit at the time.

If you don't know anything about Asian sunscreens, they are formulated with a different rating system than their Western counterparts. To be frank I can't break it all down and explain it in depth, I just know that the higher the PA rating is, the better (he current highest rating is ++++. So you'll see SPF listed on these sunscreens followed by the PA rating that will look like PA++++.

The other big difference between Asian and Western sunscreens is the cosmetic factor- Western sunscreens are sticky and gloopy and white and just a general mess, while Asian ones dry down to matte, satin, or dewy finishes and sink into your skin and leave no white cast. They are able to do that with the use of chemical sun filters vs physical ones. And again, I'm not the right person to ask about what all this means, but luckily google is free and there are very many helpful links for you out there. Now that the basics are out of the way onto the product...

This retails for varying prices depending on where you get it but I took a quick glance and saw prices ranges from $8-$15. Oop one more thing about Asian sunscreens in general, they are small compared to what we are used to. These aren't your 12 hour beach day trip sunscreens, and if you use them as such I'm assuming you'll 1) go through several tubes and 2) burn to a crisp. That's because with chemical filters in order to properly continue getting the right amount of coverage, you need to reapply every 2 hours of sun exposure. This works well if you are using this as a casual commuting sunscreen where you are only in the sun to and from your car etc, but as for direct sun exposure I would not opt for this product. All that being said this is 50g, so like...fits in your hand comfortably, as you can see from the pictures.


Okay as far as the texture/scent/initial thoughts on the product it is a slightly runny, thinner consistency that smells a bit lemony and fresh. It does contain alcohol so if you are sensitive to that (I know a lot of people have issues with this for that reason), stay away! I do not find this to be drying whatsoever.


Damn I guess there's another bit of general info I need to drop- you will only get the advertised protection if you apply enough sunscreen. "enough" translates to a quarter teaspoon (roughly two fingers worth of product I believe), and its actually quite a bit. The picture shown above is about two fingers worth dotted on, and I usually add a bit more with a second layer on my high areas that are more exposed to the sun.

right after application

I like to apply it using Fiddy's method of applying then patting in with a cushion puff (I'm referring to Fiddysnails on ig, reddit, and anywhere else she has an internet presence, she is a goddess among skincare queens). If I just apply this with my hands it feels like a lot of product and feels a bit uncomfortable, but applying it with a puff does not have that effect. There's controversy among the skincare people over whether or not you need to have a "wait time" for your sunscreen to "activate" so to speak, but personally I prefer waiting 30 minutes before applying any makeup, otherwise my makeup pills and I just feel pretty heavy. After 30 minutes though there is no issue and my face doesn't feel heavy anymore.

after 30 minutes

When I don't wear makeup I find that this gives my face a very slight glow and dries down to a soft matte borderline satin finish. It leaves my skin feeling soft, but I can usually feel it a little bit when I touch my face even after it has completely dried down. I don't find it oil controlling or anything, although it does have a slight, slight pore covering effect for about the first hour (if I'm not wearing makeup after an hour my pores look normal). This wears okay under makeup, but it can pill if I apply my makeup before waiting 30 mins, or just sometimes at random.

Overall this is a good product that I have repurchased twice (I fell off the sunscreen wagon several times but I'm back on in full force!). I think it was a good first step into Asian sunscreens, but I don't think I'll be repurchasing again, as I want to try others.