Ambre Russe – What a trip! (October 18, 2010 New Fragrance Listing)

Last week I met a good friend for lunch. She loves amber jewellery and she has many great pieces. At lunch she flashed her latest acquisition in front of me and said, “Isn’t it to die for?” Actually, it was gorgeous, and I told her so.  But truth be told, I don’t get the whole amber jewellery thing. It’s old sap (NOTE: technically, it’s a resin not sap, but I remain unswayed) with bits of dead bugs and plants in it. No, for me the best way to appreciate amber is in scent and the best one out there is Ambre Russe by Parfum d`Empire.
 
Parfum d`Empire is an interesting French niche line. Established by nose Marc-Antoine Corticchiato, each of their fragrances was inspired by an event in history. For example, Fougère Bengale, which I wrote about a while back, was inspired by tiger hunts back in the day. Ambre Russe was inspired by the Russian Empire - one of the largest empires in history and at one time, largest country in the world. (NOTE: in 1866, the Russian Empire reached from eastern Europe to North America spanning across Asia).
 
Highly valued as a symbol of divinity, amber from the Baltic Sea has been traded for thousands of years. And Ambre Russe is amber’s journey across the Russian Empire at its height, starting with the vodka/champagne note, which represents eastern Europe, to the spices and incense that represent its ties to the far east. (NOTE: fossilized amber on its own has no scent. The "amber" note in perfumes was actually ambergris from sperm whales, used as a fixative and for its sweet musky scent. In recent years, labdanum has replaced ambergris).
 
The fragrance opens with a shot of vodka – cold, sharp and alcoholic followed quickly with a note of champagne, which gives the opening a lovely effervescence. Vodka with a champagne chaser - nice start.
 
As it moves into the middle it warms up and gets softly spicy from notes of cumin, coriander and cinnamon. Black tea adds a smoky quality that corrals the spices, and enhances the exotic mix. At the drydown a deep gorgeous leather note appears, along with a note of honey that epitomizes rich, earthy amber.
 
Incense adds woodiness, while a gentle note of vanilla sweetens the leather and incense and keeps them from dominating. This is a sumptuous scent, beautifully crafted to be smooth, rich and opulent but never dark, heavy or loud.
 
Next time I see my friend, I’ll show off MY amber. (NOTE: Ambre Russe is the perfect autumn scent.)
 
Ambre Russe is listed in our Decant Store. Decants are $5.00 for 1 ml.