Ambre Éternel
Guerlain (2016)

Solemn, mature treatment of the amber fragrance note by Guerlain.

Starts out with a bright, spicy hit from the coriandor sprinkled with dusty cinnamon bark, with a prompt cue for the waxy earthy sweet ambergris to appear. Ylang's jasmine-banana note couples with lemony neroli and tart peach, filling out the heart of this interesting scent and then held in place by drier touches of leather-wood and amber proper.

Sensual, contemplative, a laid-back amber scent that suits men or women equally, IMO. Full of character, Ambre Éternel is a very wearable, expressive potion.

At the start I get a fresh ambergris and incense that quickly becomes spicy. At this stage the scent smells medicinal like you are in a hospital waiting for the doctor. Underneath this there is something foody trying to peak out under the medicinal spicy ambergris.

After a while I can smell the leather and woods but over that there is this warm sweetness mixing in with the ambergris. It smells like some sweet desert that is cooking and just slightly becoming burnt. So if you can imagine a sweet leathery salty ambergris that is spicy and medicinal, and imagine that concoction been heated then that is this fragrance.

I have to say it's quite exotic but just not my cup of tea.

This is an all amber fragrance that glows and warms you from within. The amber is prominent up front and smells aged and deep with a full leather base that flows seamlessly from opening to the end. My initial impression was, "this is the best amber fragrance I've ever smelled." After a full wearing I do think that it is one of the finest amber fragrances available. There is depth and richness. As it wears on you smell a peach/neroli mid note which becomes prominent too. For me the peach aroma removes the masculine nature or darkness and adds a sense of fashion and a feminine touch that gives an impression of a fur coat, lipstick, make-up powder dryness, cutting through cold winter air.

Seeing as Shalimar spawned practically the whole amber family – like some great olfactory Queen Victoria – Guerlain has a lot of gall sticking the name “Ambre” on this bottle.

Ambre Eternel opens with a dry iris burst taken from the defunct Parfum Initial. Guerlain adds a slug of sharp woody-leathery synthetics. Then they extend the accord with a bone dry white musk. Oh, and (after five days on the smelling strip) you get a smidgen of vanillin. No sumptuous vanilla bean, tonka, resins or other amber materials. There is no ambergris. There is no "ambre." And the only thing "eternel" about this scent is its longevity.

This smells like a Guerlain perfume with all of the heart (and expense) extracted. I am sure it is aimed at a certain kind of consumer, one who should know better but nevertheless lets brand status dictate purchases. (The charming Yemeni sales assistant assured me it was becoming a best seller.)

If you want amber, stick with Shalimar, or Cuir Beluga, or any of the other true ambers that Guerlain used to do so well. And if you're still curious, you can smell this fragrance done right over at Chanel: No. 19 Iris Poudre.