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Dof – :
too late already went up.Too bad noone will pay those prices when there are nicer ones for less out. At the old price it was an ok buy and fair but at 50+ dollars its just not worth it
nca042speagoessenda – :
Get it while you can. The prices are going up and the supply is getting smaller.
Game_over – :
You might be thinking “Do I need this?”
Well, you do.
Ambre Gris adds something else again to your existing collection of oriental woody fragrances. Get it now before you need a team of archeologists to find this discontinued treasure.
pokimonchik – :
SpiceyPickledGinger, thanks for the warning. It’s a pity, another beautiful fragrance was discontinued for nothing. I just got myself another 75ml bottle.
nicks74 – :
its ok but not that great to rush out and get one before prices go way up. This to me is like avante garde for men in terms of it no a wow enough to get even when discontinued.
nefu – :
Ginger vixen, it’s been discontinued. You may want to grab another bottle.
Liza2004katia – :
I bought a 75ml Ambre Gris bottle online, and it was a blind buy. I just bought it because I saw the perfume’s notes in here and thought it seemed absurdly intriguing and interesting and I had to buy it. I love benzoin and to see it in both opening and bottom notes was a surprise.
Well, what can I say? I definitely DO NO REGRET IT. What a masterpiece! This is a beautiful spicy animalic balsamic dream. It smells oriental and mysterious to me, in a very good way.
I am wearing it on my wrist right now and I can say the opening notes are VERY SPICY, they ended up tickling my nose and I enjoyed it very much – I love aldehydic and spicy notes exactly for stimulating more than one sense! The first 20 seconds after you spray it on your skin are DOMINATED by pink pepper and cinnamon – they weaken a little as time goes by, but they linger until the end, you can smell them even among the bottom notes, which is quite impressive – this perfume stays basically intact after hours, changing only very slightly.
Seeing tuberose in the middle notes made me worried before I bought it because usually tuberose is in very boring florals , the contemporary fragrances you see nowadays. This is NOT the case. The tuberose here is smoky, adult, mysterious. It gives a sensual (not innocent or girly) vibe to the fragrance. Immortelle is not overwhelming but it is an ESSENTIAL component in this perfume – it helps give the fragrance its beautiful, mesmerizing smoky quality.
But the king of the fragrance, in my opinion, IS DEFINITELY BENZOIN. I bought it because of benzoin – I love the benzoin in Givenchy’s Pi (but it is masculine) and I was looking for a feminine benzoin for myself. WOW! BEST CHOICE EVER. This is basically the female Pi, since benzoin dominates the fragrance just like it does in Pi. The deep sweet and mysterious fragrance of benzoin, together with myrrh, make this perfume smell absolutely oriental, sexy, intriguing. I cannot forget the importance of musk and ambre gris in here – musk makes the fragrance balanced and ambre gris makes it even sexier and more animalic. It smells like a vintage niche and very expensive perfume. Yes, this is a relatively cheap perfume but I could swear, if blindfolded, that it was niche, something by Serge Lutens or Kilian. The only con is that the silage is not that great – well, I love perfumes that fill a room. Longevity is fine and it lasts at least 6 hours on my skin.
Ambre Gris is an underrated gem. It is NOTHING like anything I have ever smelled before. I can only compare it with Pi, but to me, Pi is Ambre Gris’s masculine equivalent. It has the same touch of smokey chocolate and incense that Pi has – the same sexy and mysterious aura, but now destined to be worn by tasteful, strong women. Also, it is very, VERY BALMAIN and it perfectly captures the essence of the brand and the image of the BALMAIN woman – a powerful, feline goddess who has many secrets and treasures.
zoobik420 – :
Balmain Ambre Gris opens with a dash of pink pepper and a massive, sharp, squeaky clean note reminiscent of laundry products, which I don’t particularly care for. But soon enough, the sweet resins and immortelle arrive, and the olfactory landscape of Ambre Gris heads to a more interesting direction.
Benzoin and immortelle impart their languid, caramel-like golden sweetness, with immortelle adding an extra touch of bittersweet licorice alongside with musty myrrh. Despite its enveloping resinous sweetness, the fragrance curiously never feels cloying or overwhelming. Besides a pinch of balmy smoke from guaiac wood, there is also something translating as a cool powderiness akin to iris to my nose that seems to absorb any extra grease.
The most intriguing aspect though, is the initial laundry-like white musk still lurking around, now fully integrated into the resin matrix and behaving like a refreshing breeze over the golden resinous lake. Not only does it lighten the balsamic amber, it also serves as a tantalising radiance to contrast the deeper resins.
The end result is a surprisingly refreshing yet still satisfyingly cozy powdery amber skin scent. Ambre Gris stays comfortably close to skin for a total of 8 hours.
Personally, I don’t think Balmain Ambre Gris aimed at imitating the smell of ambergris, nor does it smell like the samples that I had the chance to test. I’d rather put it in the same category as Hermès Eau des Merveilles, inspired by the intriguing fresh/warm duality of ambergris and reimagining a fragrance around this central concept, even though they don’t smell like each other per se. Although I still struggle with the laundry-like opening on a personal level, overall I think Ambre Gris succeeds in recreating this duality in spirit. If you happen to be looking for a powdery, balmy amber with some freshness and if you don’t mind strong clean musk, Balmain Ambre Gris is well worth a try.
emume – :
This is only spices and musk,no cinnamon, no amber, but i will try it in a cold weather.
FriendMason – :
This is a very good unisex scent with cinnamon, benzoin and myrrh in the first phase. Guaiac wood is there holding it together in the base.
This is my third time wearing it and I feel like it performs better when the weather is slightly warmer. It’s too early for me to tell if this one projects much but longevity is decent. Leans slightly masculine, but good for women too.
There’s a tiny bit of a synthetic sharpness during the first phase, not sure what it is but I still like it. (If it wasn’t there, this would go from a B grade to an A)
This smells much more expensive than the price I paid, around $22 for 1.3 oz, and rivals some of the best niche quality scents. Bonus: The disco ball top is hilarious in a cheesy “I can’t believe they did that” way.
Hailey_fromAC – :
Ambre Gris is a cool cuddly fragrance. What is ‘cool cuddly’? Well if ‘warm cuddly’ is a happy, wiggly puppy then ‘cool cuddly’ is a mature, self-contained cat.
Ambre Gris has a warmth but it is not sweet or gourmand. The cinnamon is actually rather reserved and the amber is moderate. It is a very comfortable fragrance to wear. In spite of the rather formal look of the bottle, I find it a bit casual. I would wear this to work (which I am today) and I would wear it to a casual, friendly activity. I would wear it when I’m relaxing at home. It isn’t powerful enough to stand up to a big evening clubbing or a formal event but, hey, I don’t get that formal very often.
As far as longevity goes, its not bad. I’m at 5 hours right now and it is still very evident. This isn’t a sillage monster at any point so it hasn’t faded very much. In a perfect world, I would probably reapply it at the 6-7 hour mark. It definitely passes the ‘I keep sniffing myself’ test.
When it comes to gender in fragrance I am always reluctant to assign male or female to a scent because they shouldn’t have one. Wear what makes you happy. In traditional terms this is pretty unisex. If you want to smell super duper feminine, this probably isn’t the one for you. If you like something a bit more gender neutral then this might work for you. I think this would smell great on a man or a woman…..or anybody.
Moha – :
Very unisex fragrance. I wanted this one for a long time. It is spicy sweet as others have said. It is predominately amber. It lasts and lasts. I kept getting wafts of sweet cinnamon with a heady herbal edge, perhaps myrrh? Even the bottle looks like cologne for men. I will still keep it. There is something so autumnal and cozy about it. And I’m a sucker for amber.
loy – :
If I didn’t know what I was sampling, I would easily tell I’m smelling mens perfume.
This is so different to frags marketed towards ladies. It’s balsamic, musky underlined with nice sweety/piquant cinnamon – hey finally a prominent cinnamon note in a “female” perfume. I love that note, unfortunately most of time when it’s listed in female frags, I can barely pick that when sniffing.
Comforting for winter for both women and men. Warm, spicy, delicate.
It’s not love for me as I would wish there quite a different notes next to that great cinnamon, but nevermind. I still give it thumbs up for standing out of the crowd. It would be heaven if myrh and benzoin would step aside a bit and some delicate vanilla would be thrown in. Ummmm.
RAV – :
My daughter summed up this perfume thus:- Mum, you smell like cinnamon biscuits.
So…nice, cosy, comforting, smells like cinnamon biscuits. I like it, but I’m not wow-ed by it. I’m glad I blind-bought it though, it’s nice to wear on a cold winters day.
Peawbakecaw – :
I went out on a whim and wore this to work. Wasn’t sure about that. I still find it very manly…
I even put a couple squirts of Tendre Madeleine Laurence Dumont in between to smooth/feminine it out– thinking they’d be a good match with the cinnamon note in common.
I’m not sure the Tendre Mad added much (not much potency), but I LOVE Amber Gris today.
It’s an “above freezing temps” winter day, but still cold/wet… and I love the bubble of AG I’m in. It’s a dry spicy wood, but warm.
There is something salty and fatty in this…. the ambergis? It’s interesting.
louddyerusy – :
I pull a very masculine deodorant so try this on skin! I can see the beauty and creaminess, on the right chemistry though… !
Joker_krim – :
Ambre Gris is a soft, powdery scent. It was pretty linear on me with cinnamon and musk dominant. Very nice for cold nights!
skanarchey – :
This smells like guerlain shalimar to me. Its very oriental and dark. Perfect for night. I think guys will like this too its unisex.
master320 – :
This is thee most seductive scent I have ever come across. You will be noticed and appreciated while wearing this. It has no gender and as a man, it gets positive remarks from all who get the wiffs wafting around their nostrils. This is blended so wonderfully that it is ever changing throughout its life span, which is 6-8 hrs easily. The silage is well within an arms length.
Absolutely Gorgeous.
serg_srt – :
Very woody IMO, smells like the color brown/burgundy/gold.
Very unisex, and it does smell a bit like Pi.
I’m not sure if this will be too masculine for me (female here) but I do like it.
WARM and cozy (yet dry), spicy, amber wood.
Smells adorable up close… I get the salty/cinnamon spices. But it’s much more “generic” in terms of sillage (what other can smell around you)
This was a 1-spray tissue test.
I can’t wait to wear this proper, and see what it does in the cold. But I have a feeling this is just too masculine, and in that case, I’ll give it to my man…. who also has my bottle of Pi.
Proper Wear:
I find this similar to the unisex Gaultier 2. Whereas G2 is a thick syrup river of sweet/plastic amber, AG is thinner and dry, but warm and cozy/deep. AG does smell like a Xmas candle, so therefore it’s not really one gender or the other. I MYSELF find it a tad masculine, but it’s sooooo warm and cozy. I can see myself wearing this to bed, or eventually giving to my man.
It’s spicy and woody, so it’s not LIKE G2. But def the same type of scent. If G2 is that thick amber sticky river, AG is the crispy dry brown Fall forest right before winter.
I swear this made my chest/torso feel WARM. Haha. I applied this liberally to my skin/torso and let it melt into my body. Sillage and potency wasn’t that impressive, but it wasn’t awful. This smells so good warmed up on the body. Cinnamon woody musk cookie. Mmmmm. It feels like warmth, a chunky sweater, a fireplace… Mind you, I wore this when it was a whopping 10 degrees F with snow and wind. (Upper Michigan has snow on the ground for about 8 months)
I layered with some vintage Shalimar EDT, and that was fun, but the AG broke thru and the Shalimar lasted maybe 1 hour.
My tissue test drydown about 24 hours later smells AMAZING. A soft sweet cinnamon wood, with maybe a hint of graham cracker or chocolate/vanilla. Actually, this drydown is very similar to Axe Dark Temptation (and yes, still Pi)– which I love on my man. Oh geez, I guess I will have to give him this… haha!
Valera45 – :
Amber – musky – resinous
Color impression: red gold
Ambre Gris is a unique fragrance in term of sensuality. It displays luxurious sentimentalism perplexed with lewd sexuality, that makes me want to peep a femme fatal’s bedroom where on her vanity table her finest maquillage materials multiple in three-sided mirror.
It’s sheer, sweet resinous, comfortably warm, finely polished and soothing musky fragrance, synonym of La Perla’s silk underthings.
In term of quality it is plain and flat but acts 3D. It’s easy to wear, a formal evening fragrance with great skin-gilding longevity and mellow projection. All said, but I need to add this, although the title, the color of the glass and the cap suggest, is not about marine animality and ambergris. It’s an amber combo around cinnamon, benzoin, vanilla, myrrh and musk.
★★★★
l.lakiza – :
When I tested this at Neiman and Marcus I fell head over heels for this. Great cinnamony spice is what I got, and a creamy almost bitter chocoate-y base. (Did I really smell the same thing?!)
I’m glad I was able to get a decant to decide before buying this, because it certainly different from what I remember. For this one I get more of a very powdery, dry, warm skin, and soft spicy feel. I think you really get your bang for you buck with this one, it smells very luxurious.
However, I don’t think this is FBW for me, I am picky on my powders and something about this makes me feel stuffy and kind of claustrophobic-y.
A beautiful fragrance for the right person.
a-xwell – :
I detect a powderiness to this, and a wee touch of Oriental note. Both notes often get up in my nose in a bad way, but not with this. Both of those notes/accord that I pick up are light, the overall frag itself is pretty light to me. There is no overly heavy warmth either, which I also appreciate. Overly heavy warm notes do not sit well on my skin or with my nose. Gee, I sound picky, don’t I? LOL. Actually I love many fragrances of all accords, I just generally can’t have anything too overpowering with a dominating single note or accord overpowering everything else. I need something blended well, and this is blended well. Yes, some of the specific notes can be detected if sniffing hard, but all in all, no note is loud and proud here. They are all playing nicely together. Much softer than I expected. Lastly, I appreciate that this is not a sugar-bomb. In fact, I really do not pick up any sweetness at all with this. Somewhat of a cozy grown up woman’s scent for a relaxing laid-back day. Or whenever you want, really. But I think in particular this is great for Fall and Winter; day or night. It is different and rather unique imo, but not TOO different that it will end up finding it’s way to the back of my closet. I was not expecting to like this one so well.. Quite nice!!
kenny45rus – :
I ordered a blind buy based on the beautiful notes and a classy bottle. I remember smelling it for the first time in summer time and turning my nose away. Yack!
Well, I am a big believer in second chances and here I was trying it on in early September. Oh my! This is soooo beautiful. Very different and layered, cinammon-y and sweet, yet also close, warm and cosy. Very elegant and subtle, not a loud out-there fragrance, but very nicely blend. Can’t stop sniffing my wrist.
I mostly get cinnamon, myrrh, benzoin and immortelle. Very beautiful fragrance and a total winner for autumn days.
krecden – :
A gorgeous, multifaceted amber that easily competes with some of the higher end ones. Unisex and easy to wear, doesn’t get too powdery or too sweet, has some interesting twists and turns before it settles down to a very classy skin scent.
Love.
alucard-1982 – :
Ambre Gris is an oriental; balsamic and spicy, but also a bit sweet. What makes it stand out from other scents, is the salty note from the immortelle and ambergris. It blends so nicely with the creamy cinnamon infused warmth, like a fresh sea breeze in the background.
There is also a fizzy soft drink effect, I read in reviews of other fragrances that this is the myrrh.
There is no huge developement apart from the cinnamon and sea note vanishing a tad as more warmth and sweetness come through, but the scent in itself is complex enough to make up for this. It’s also strong and long lasting.
To me this is a beautiful gourmand, but not a very girly or sugary one. I think I would enjoy it in autumn especially.
If I find this somewhere cheap I will get it… I think I saw it at TKmaxx a while ago, hope this chance pops up again now that I know the scent.
I understand why it gets compared to L de Lolita Lempicka, they both have immortelle and cinnamon, but Ambre Gris is less sweet and vanillic.
Hulk – :
Love it.
Ambre Gris is a little shape shifting wonder:
It goes from spicy, turns to floral (remaining miles away from mainstream florals), flirts with salty while being balsamic-powdery, and all the time it is also woody.
The opening is spicy.
I mostly sense the myrth and benzoin, and at first they suggest that there is something thick and strong to be developed from this opening – but no.
A twist, the first one: balsamic-flowery.
Immortelle.
Ambre Gris relaxes in about 10 minutes, showing its floral face: slightly spicy and quite balmy benzoin stays, but immortelle takes a leading role, and tuberose definitely features suporting role (i don’t sense it every time).
Immortelle is present right from when spices relax, and almost to the end.
To those who wrote that they could not smell any flowers at all: I had bushes of immortelle in front of the house where I lived before: it has bitter-sharpish-sweet, slightly citrusy, more aromatic than flowery smell. Immortelle’s scent changes a lot while flowers go from blooming-fresh to oily-dry. This in Ambre Gris is semi-dry, saturated immortelle, almost like the one used in oils, more spicy-aromatic than flowery, and I think that’s why so many reviewers didn’t recognize it as flower.
Immortelle in Ambre Gris is this kinda citrusy-spicy, vibrant and fresh thing that peeks out right after initial spicy opening relaxes. Immortelle is what keeps the woody, spicey and balsamic side of fragrance up and light and fresh almost all the way.
This kind of flower treatment, when combined with woods or balsams is more likely to be found in niches: though the scents are not the same – in SL’s Ambre Sultan similar mediteranian spicy herbs (oregano, bay leaf) keeps amber and woods fresh and light, in Casbah the contrast to the heavy and dark notes is Angelica, in ETRO’s Greene Street there is distinct basil to contrast powdery ambergris… So, if you tried any of those, I hope you’ll get the point.
Then again – next twist:
Ambergris.
Salty, velvety, musky.
While immortelle borrows freshness from the background, ambergris takes a central stage. It is just a bit salty and powdery, and soon to be joined with musk and woods.
Now, if you’re familiar with the base notes of CK’s Reveal: Balmain’s ambregris-woods-musk combination is fuller, better, more refined and mature kind of the similar scent: a little salty, a little powdery, a little musky – feels like skin. Warm, naturaly salty skin. Tender salty warmth, to the point erotic. In this phase, I can’t help but wonder if CK has taken just this little salty-musky-woody-powdery fragment of this multilayerd Balmain’s beauty, replaced not so common immortelle with more familiar iris, and streched that into a whole perfume.
Then – a twist, again. The last:
Woods and musk.
In the very end, musk and woods take over, turning the fluffy balsamic-musky scent into more serious, trully unisex bracing, velvety woody.
This Balmain is great.
Tender, round, but with the spine that the men could appreciate and the woman could enjoy on themselves.
Not too demanding, somehow unpretentious, but stil very serious shapeshifting wonder from Balmain.
This is great fragrance for suprisingly little money.
If it was bottled under a different name and house, as some niche, for egzample, Ambre Gris could easily go for about 100 $.
Or higher.
Highly recommended for all cross-genre lovers and all woody-oriental-spicy lovers.
* LOVE (2nd bottle)
* silage: moderate (arms lenght, but persistent)
* longevity: long lasting (8+ hours)
* weather/time: moderate to cold. I wear it from mid-autumn until early spring. Day. Night. Casual to semi-formal.
zhe-vet – :
Smells like a high end niche. A hard to describe powdery, lightly sweet, and lightly salty perfume. This is a great “all weather/seasons” scent, but I find it extra special on those murky days..
When its rainy and humid, this stuff is just unreal. I have never smelled anything like it, but the salty aspect is similar to that of Hermes eau des merveilles, just toned down.
Ambre Gris also has a strange alluring air of refinement to it. I highly recommend giving this fragrance a shot if its been on your radar, I don’t think you can go wrong..
Gallev – :
Wonderful musky earthiness, definitely able to be worn by either gender.
I love this, if you’re considering purchasing this, do it – you will be very surprised at the depth and longevity of this little classic.
vitoriusss – :
Mmmm, smells heavenly and delicious and almost a tad too sweet but I went ahead and bought a full bottle anyway. I couldn’t resist because it’s wintery, Christmasy, woodsy and amber. It’s a perfect combo and you can’t beat the price-wow!
sergej2009 – :
Useless to say, I’m lining up with all the praising for PB Ambre Gris, adding my tribute here. It’s such a x-masy, winter family & friends reunion and all the jazz. Although the bottle is austere – and I LOOOVE IT- you can’t guess the festive perfume inside. It’s not necessarily cheerful, but it’s an intense yet soft oriental. Totally unisex and not a gourmand, ambergris prevent it for turning into a sweet oriental and gourmandize fume. This is how I guess the amber-gris is there, otherwise, there’s no saltiness here. Although it’s a quite modern and minimalist fragrance, I cannot help not associating it with winter traditions, cooking home-made gingerbread with my family and friends, drinking hot wine with spices. Ambre Gris is intimate and warm. A last minute “come over my place and let’s spend Xmas together, no preparations required, we’ll just cook something together, have some wine, enjoying ourselves”.
hds028Unlogrere – :
MASTERPIECE! THIS IS MORE A NICHE FRAGRANCE! VERY INTENSE,VERY ATTRACTIVE,CREAMY, BALSAMIC, SOPHISTICATED. Must be weared definitely in a special ocassion with some very elegant clothes.
denor – :
completely unisex and wonderful. Very nice spice that mellows out as the day goes on leaving this wonderful scent trail that everyone loves. I’m a manly guy that would totally rock this and do.
9/10
klays – :
This is a very unique fragrance…at least it’s like nothing I’ve ever smelled. It makes me think of moist cinnamon Christmas cake. The baker accidentally added salt instead of sugar and then corrected with some Domino for balance. I like it. I wouldn’t eat it, but the salted dessert smells delicious. Up close, I smell the myrrh and we’re not really gellin, but it doesn’t matter because from far away, it’s cake! It’s abstract cake though, so don’t just go out and buy it if you’re a gourmand fiend because this is not a safe blind buy.
Thank you Unearthly Apothecary for the decant!
alexandrma2011 – :
Fragrance Review For Ambre Gris
Balmain
Top Notes
Pink Pepper Benzoin Cinnamon Myrrh
Middle Notes
Tuberose Immortelle
Base Notes
Benzoin Guaiacum Wood Musk Ambergris
Wonderfully warm winter musk!
This is my most recent online purchase and it’s going to have to stay in my wardrobe for some time since it’s so clearly a winter perfume. Alas it’s spring/summer and I can’t wear this. Ambre Gris (ambergris) is a warm and spicy lush Oriental with deep notes that wrap you up in a coat of smoke. The first impression I had straight off the bottle and when I tested it on my wrists is that this is a unisex fragrance. Why do they keep putting labels on fragrances “women” “men” when there are more unisex fragrances being made and sold without the general public knowing what they are! Everything about this is a unisex even more masculine form of Oriental musk. This is not sweet, not fruity, powdery, soapy, not floral and nothing like most women’s fragrances. It is more like a Middle Eastern Arabic fragrance with an expensive designer label. Think higher end Al Rehab. This is all about the spices, the musk, the ambergris, the woods and incense. Oh yes incense in the form of benzoin (two notes of benzoin) and a very distinctive myrrh. If you like myrrh and incense Oriental Arabic perfumery this is for you.
The notes caress and embrace rather than attack. The first smell I got as it opened was a spicy note of cinnamon. This is still not a gourmand type of cinnamon as it quickly develops into that smoky incense. A benzoin and myrrh are at the heart of this perfume, releasing a very warm, resinous smoky myrrh and wood. The woodsy note comes from the guaiacum wood which is harder to find in today’s perfumery. As it wear son your skin you feel warmer and cozier like sitting in front of a fireplace. The cinnamon stands out to me and never really fades. The dry notes are mainly that musk and ambergris from the title. It is an old fashioned type of incense. It conjures up images of mosques and exotic places like Morocco Casablanca and Istanbul Turkey. As it is warm and woodsy and smoky this is very much a unisex and males can rock it too. This is a great mysterious scent or alluring scent to wear at a nightclub or fancy dinner. Very formal and dressy. A warm musk finalizes the performance but it is not terribly animalic.
Lastly I want to talk about how much I love the bottle. This is such a gorgeous looking bottle; an ornament on my perfume dresser table vanity perfume collection. This is a Balmain which is one of my favorite designer brands and I can see how it matches up with some of their fashions but it smells very much like a warm musky coat on a rich Arabic lady. This is all about the Oriental notes. Tuberose and immortelle? Not for me. I don’t get any floral notes in it as it’s mostly spices (cinnamon) incense (myrrh benzoin) and woods courtesy of guaiac wood. Truly a fascinating perfume and it has super sillage and longevity.
Gorge!
oxc225Bessinepome – :
Back in the ye olde 90’s, my mother developed an obsession…with the classic formulation of obsession for men. It’s a potent perfume, and she sprayed herself up and down with it. She sprayed the vents in the car. She sprayed it everywhere. I was traumatized.
If there is any one thing I seek in perfuming myself, it’s to avoid all things remotely obsession, which in theory should be easy. Not that long ago, I bought creed’s sublime vanille. I enjoyed it, but at some point I noticed a very distant whisper of obsession just like that stupid Kate Moss commercial.
Fast forward to now, I received ambre gris today. I can’t believe it, but here I am with another slice of the olfactive pie that comes together to create the vintage obsession I am trying to avoid. I looked up the formulation to make sure it wasn’t just irrational residual shell shock. Ambre Gris shares many of the most dominant notes in obsession: amber and cinnamon. It makes this perfume unwearable for me.
That said, the supporting cast of Ambre Gris makes it far more palatable than obsession. It’s sweeter and more feminine with an oceanic note. Potent amber. Whomever vibes with would wear it fantastically. It’s very well blended, balanced, and chic. The spice & amber makes it tend toward cooler months. The picture it paints in my imagination: looking out at the ocean on a cool overcast beach in Maine with a lot of driftwood, wearing a cashmere sweater. It’s grown up, but not too old or young. It has strength, but it’s not overbearing. I may come back to it someday.
Edit: “Someday” is sooner rather than later. I had my BF smell it when he got home from work. LOVED IT. ¯_(ツ)_/¯ Help, I’m stuck in the obsession vortex!
softdir – :
This is such a wonderfully warm comfort scent for me. I don’t detect any pepper thank the Lord. On me it’s a sweet amber balsamic powder bomb in the same vein as Prada Amber and Shalimar. I could swim in this stuff! I think I’ll have to get a backup bottle. Definitely in my top 5!
Sillage is good, longevity moderate and price excellent!
Definitely unisex.
If you love balsamic ambers please do not miss out on this one!
Hamik – :
I don’t know what to think about this beauty. I really like it in the opening, but way down it becomes very buttery, a bit salty and a wee bit animalic. I like it a lot, but I think I prefer my ambers little more fresh and flowery
Mashuta_SkR – :
This Balmain is a funny little creature. I’ve owned a bottle for about a year. It is its own thing, doesn’t smell like anything else I have, which I appreciate. I offered it to my husband to try one day, and low and behold, I don’t even recognize it on him. It’s definitively masculine, bright, strong, a bit sour in a satisfying way. On me? Safely unisex and I thought even somewhat feminine, at times. Doesn’t smell creamy on him in the least bit. I smell no cinnamon. Sense no sweetness. Crazy. But he smells great, so now we both love it for different reasons.
lugovoy-v – :
Today I am wearing it again and still amazed how special it is. I learned that I love balsamic scents, actually if I read about a fragrance that it is balsamic I know now automatically that I am going to find it beautiful and captivating.
This has the perfect balance between a little sweet and a little salty, so well blended and buttery that none of these qualities are pronounced. I don’t find it heavy at all, but it is by no means light either, it has a very rich texture in its creaminess.
Attractive and elegant at the same time. Warm embrace with many spices, but not dry or hot. Absolutely refined and smooth, and I could never get enough of its smell. I love how it stays until the next day, and still gives surprises of beauty when I accidentally catch a whiff. Works perfectly on both genders but of course not for everybody.
The bottle is also a piece of art.
I hope they will never discontinue or badly reformulate it.
kashtan – :
This has to rank up there with the most blind buys for any perfume, either for the bottle alone or word of mouth. There were the initial orders for it because they assumed (or wished) it would be some gross version of ambergris that would be unique but totally unwearable, then the word of mouth that this was a heavenly unisex amber scent, and now it’s still whispered about in some groups among friends and perfume enthusiasts. I heard someone describe it as incredibly sexy and like a warm cashmere sweater, and I was sold. Another blind buy. I’m on a winning streak.
Lyncnaine – :
A lovely fragrantican sent me a decant of this