L’Eau d’Ambre Extrême – ambery and spicy and seductive

Photo: courtesy of L'Artisan Parfumeur

I confess that I have a weakness for L'Artisan fragrances. Long before there was a niche perfume market, there was L’Artisan Parfumeur. Launched in 1976 by Jean Laporte, soon developed a reputation for attracting perfumers looking to work on exciting creative projects using exceptionally high-quality ingredients.

From my first whiff of Passage d’Enfer, my first L'Artisan fragrance, to the scent of L’Eau d’Ambre Extrême rising from my skin right now. L'Artisan has become one of the fragrance houses that epitomizes French perfume to me and there isn't one I wouldn't wear. Today, that's L’Eau d’Ambre Extrême.

L’Eau d’Ambre Extrême is a deeper concentration of L'Eau d'Ambre another beloved amber fragrance of mine. At first I worried that L’Eau d’Ambre Extrême would replace L'Eau d'Ambre in my heart, but as it turns out L’Eau d’Ambre Extrême didn’t force L'Eau d'Ambre out of rotation, it just added another amber fragrance to it.

L’Eau d’Ambre Extrême opens with spices – fiery pepper, cozy cinnamon and nutmeg and sweet, resinous cardamom. It’s the cardamom that lingers on me the longest calling forth the most sheer, seductive amber accord I know - resinous, balsamy, smoky and sweet. Warm skin animates L’Eau d’Ambre Extrême, turning it into a seductive siren. When I’m not smelling my wrist, I want to. At the base, creamy vanilla intertwines with the amber so perfectly it tugs at my heart. It gets a little powdery too but sandalwood gives it dry, woody dimension that keeps the powderiness in check so that it wears well on men and women.

The drydown is a refined and beautiful amber. L’Eau d’Ambre Extrême is fairly minimalist and straightforward. It’s not as complex or heavy or challenging as some of the other ambers I love. And in a way, that’s what I like most about it – how it’s quiet, amber intensity creates pure olfactory pleasure.

Check out L’Eau d’Ambre Extrême in our Shop.