Ambre Gris Pierre Balmain for women

Still smells like the aftermath of slow lovemaking on a warm autumn day, as you stand to put on your partner's discarded flannel shirt, scented with his personal cinnamon tinged musk.
Beautiful
Beautiful
Beautiful.
It still boggles the mind that Balmain discontinued their perfumes, and makes me grateful that my immediate lust for more demanded I hoard a few bottles.

I’m lucky enough to get one of this masterpiece after it discontinued. Yes it not real ambergris but ambroxan, it synthetic and chemical, but in a kind of beautiful way. This fragrance is mixed of powdery, clean, sweet-salty vanilla and smooth fluffy musky. 100% unisex and performance close to skin, its kind of skin scent. Versatile enough for all seasons. I like it.

I will come back to this review when the weather warms up a bit. As for now - not at all what I was expecting from the notes and descriptions. Smells very much like a toned down version of Dali Laguna (which would be lovely if it wasn’t so overbearingly sweet). Ambre Gris comes out a tad too sweet also, lots of benzoin, but more
manageable and this seems like a very living scent so curious to see what other facets could come out in different weather (I am hoping for frangipani..)

I still hope they bring it back one day. One of the most exquisite scents I've ever smelled, I cherish my big bottle. Who was stupid enough to discontinue this gem...

Leather?, musk, pepper, very faint cinnamon?something smooth, maybe the ambergris? Nothing ambery, I don't get the benzoin or tonka, frangipani, incense or even the cedar. After a while there's an interesting salty, bare skin note, but it's still weirdly cold.
Dissapointing. Maybe it's better in hot weather?

TL;DR: if someone could bottle the joy and comfort of the holidays, this would be it.

Ambre Gris has been in my collection for a long time, closing in on ten years, and it's a scent I almost exclusively wear around Christmas time. Now that it's been discontinued, I'm going to treasure this bottle even more. I honestly couldn't imagine my collection without it.

Ambre Gris opens with a dry, spicy blast of cinnamon that's reminiscent of opening a tin of spiced tea. There's a hint of pink pepper (which I don't normally love, but do enjoy here) and a faint whiff of smoke. After the dry opening, it warms on the skin expanding with cozy resinous notes and the lovely sweet, smoky quality of incense. It's golden and comforting and reminds me of coming in from the cold to a house with a warm open fire and freshly baked cinnamon loaf. There's the barest hint of a floral lurking underneath, almost like you've been hugged by someone wearing a floral perfume and there's a whisper of it lingering on your sweater.

Over time Ambre Gris develops a slight creamy quality, while still retaining the rich warmth of the middle. I get hints of smoke, wood, rich vanilla and dark chocolate. It lingers on the skin and clothes for hours, and I love every stage of this magnificent perfume. It's such a shame that it's no longer available, so if you happen across a bottle or a sample I definitely recommend giving it a test.

When you first put this on you get a strong cinnamon spicy smell with pink pepper. On the initial dry down the cinnamon sticks around but the resins make up the foundation of the scent. The myrrh is prominent and you can smell the incense and benzoin. You get a whiff of a salty animalic scent from the ambergris but it's not overwhelming. It's been over 8 hours now and the main accords are still the resins and the cedar plus tonka bean. It's a rich oriental woodsy smell. I definitely enjoy it and will continue wearing it. Sadly it's discontinued, otherwise I'd buy a full bottle.

I have a tiny little decant with a drop or so.

---

Thick delicious resins, incense, spices and something vaguely reminiscent of human live bodies, that sort of volatile sharp note that isn't very deeply fragrant but lets you know that a warm living human is beside you? I do smell the tuberose, but here the resins take main stage, and I love it for that!

I wish I had it.

Subtly rich and hints of depth. The cinnamon is very soft and lightly sweet - sometimes I'm not even sure cinnamon is in here. Waivers between being a cuddly scent vs the salt tinged feeling of two bodies recently having had sex.

Shame it was disco'd.

I blind bought this for a ridiculously small sum many years ago and wasn't keen. At the time I disliked any trace of powder in perfumes and this has a spoonful or two. Over the past year I've 'trained' my nose to appreciate powder, so decided to come back to this. It's delicious. It goes on a bit like a spicy incense mallet to the face, but the dry down is a resinous, gently spiced, gently sweet delight. A bazaar on the spice trail. It has a touch of saltiness that mingles with my natural skin salts really nicely, but I don't get the aquatic metal of ambergris like the notes suggests. At all. I can't believe I didn't love it and nestle it amongst my favourite amber frags. I was going to sell it, knowing it's rare and sought after - not any more!

Every picture I have seen of this makes the juice look grayish. The bottle I have, the juice is an amberish color and the aroma is not strong at all, though I can smell almost all the notes listed. Curious if this is back in production with a new color juice.

mysteriously sexy 💋
love love love 😍
unisex imo
staying power is eternaaaal on me....
what an underrated gem!

It smells like pure sadness, I love it!

Very Beautiful!

If you're into the Resin-y ones, try to find it before it completely vanishes.

It's a Resiny, Spicy, Smoky and Herbal goodness. I wish I could single out the Tuberose, but I don't. Mildly sweet, so perfectly Unisex.

It stays close to the skin, doesn't really project much, but I'm not too upset as it really smells divine..

In my earlier review I stated I was either I'm anosmic to this or it was just incredibly weak. The answer came some months later - Covid19. I didn't get my sense of smell back for some months. A the time I bought it, 12 sprays and I could barely smell it and I described it as 'the far drydown of an amber fragrance'. Now, I can smell its real character as a soft, salty amber with a seaside air like bleached duckboards. I tend to wear this fragrance in spring and early summer, with Ambre Sultan kept for the cooler months.

ANYONE HAVE THIS FOR UK SWAP? :'(

The first and only time I tried this, I dabbed on my wrist, sniffed recklessly, screamed "darn!" and dropped the sample in utmost terror. It disappeared mysteriously and thankfully for good. I don't even want to recall how it smelled like. Thanks!

went on amber/vanilla but masculine; dries down warm and spicy a bit sweet incense; light and soft then down to a musky incense; really like it

This is heavenly! Lots of spicy cinnamon and benzoin on top, creamy tuberose in the middle, and smoky myrrh and salty ambergris in the base. It's crazy that this beauty has been discontinued. I love it!

I bought this during summer and I wasn't impressed at all but, oh my! When I tried later in October it was an undeniable love! It was like a huge cashmere shawl over me, so familiar and yet so sophisticated.
When giving a perfume review I think it's important to say something about you that might help in choosing wisely a fragrance so I would start: I'm brunette with a fair skin and brown eyes, over 50 y/o, I'm smoking about 5-6 cigarettes per day (which I would say influence whatever fragrance I wear), I'm not fond of sweet fragrances unless is something exquisite. For example, Twilly from Hermes does not match with me at all, makes me truly sick.
As for Balmain Ambre Gris: I do not detect tuberoses, but it's a balanced mixture of myhrr, benzoin, pepper and musk and a splash of cinnamon in an amazing combination!
I truly hope that others will find it as sophisticated and intriguing as I do.

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

Get it while you can. The prices are going up and the supply is getting smaller.

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.

SpiceyPickledGinger, thanks for the warning. It's a pity, another beautiful fragrance was discontinued for nothing. I just got myself another 75ml bottle.

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.

Ginger vixen, it's been discontinued. You may want to grab another bottle.

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.

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.

At the beginning is more resinous, but after a while become sweet, spicy and musky.
I tried to like it, but i don't, i can't.

This is a very good unisex scent with cinnamon, benzoin and myrrh in the first phase. 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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

I pull a very masculine deodorant so try this on skin! I can see the beauty and creaminess, on the right chemistry though... !

Ambre Gris is a soft, powdery scent. It was pretty linear on me with cinnamon and musk dominant. Very nice for cold nights!

This smells like guerlain shalimar to me. Its very oriental and dark. Perfect for night. I think guys will like this too its unisex.

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!

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

* Strong like (2nd bottle, but won't buy third)
* 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.

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.

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!

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".

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.

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

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!

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!

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!

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!

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

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.

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.

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.

A lovely fragrantican sent me a decant of this and I was super excited as I have been dying to try this one. Baby powder, amber and spice. The sweet amber slightly reminds me of fire&ice,but this one is so much better. Ambre Gris is a perfect holiday scent, I catch warm ambery spices even a bit of a nutmeg vibe even though it's not listed. My kids think it smells like cookies. The only bummer is that my skin just eats this up, I don't think that will stop me from buying a bottle though, the price is fairly low so I can justify having to reapply more often.

this fragrance had been recommended to me by several members here when I asked for help with a classic, warm, spicy fragrance. I love cinnamon fragrances but kept avoiding sampling this and I have no idea why! But I am glad I finally did. Wow. This is amazing. It is not the cinnamon/spice works that is Cinnabar. The cinnamon here is more in harmony with the myrrh and musk and just enough of a creamy, timeless fragrance. This is a "snuggle fragrance". Warm, elegant and just breathtaking. It very quickly moved to a "LOVE" for me. I truly don't get much in the way of florals here and from what I read from other reviewers, I am not alone in that. And I think it could easily be unisex.

Edit to add. It is also long lasting on me over 8+ hours and on clothes even longer. I can often smell it on my skin the next morning, very faintly! Projection is good, but not overwhelming. My coworkers can smell it if I walk by them or am standing next to them, but not in the next cubicle. I would say that it stays close, less than arm's length, but is not really a skin scent. And I am sooo not good with describing sillage!

If you think that Gucci's Envy for Men is a "masculine," this is the unisex version of that scent.

I have had a sample of Ambre Gris sitting in the back of my cupboard in an exiled samples box for over a year. When I first tried it I absolutely hated it, the saltiness made me feel queasy and I ended up scrubbing. But I didn't throw the sample away, I just put it with all the others I had been disappointed in.

Well fast forward to now and my quest to finish all my samples, and wow what a mistake I had made. It's a lovely amber musk, that is as comforting as your favorite jumper straight out of the tumble dryer - I think someone else already said this and I totally agree. The slight saltiness adds another dimension that I am perhaps not used to but I feel it just adds a bit more warmth, and certainly didn't make me queasy this time around.

The only thing that may prevent me from trying to track down a FB would be sillage (it stays close) and longevity (I got maybe 3-4hrs). Even still, I think I would be more than happy to add this to my collection.

If PI by Givenchy were about synthetic, denatured ambergris rather than synthetic, denatured vanilla, it'd be Balmain's Ambre Gris. Still, this is lovely, lovely stuff and as a man I get lots of complements when wearing it. It's smooth, warm, lasts forever, but never screams and shouts. It's not impossible to over spray, but it can be done.

Glad I'm not the only one that thinks this is a tad similar to Pi Givenchy. I find them quite alike in almost everyway but one, a very important one: longevity. Pi lasts forever, Ambre Gris, however, doesn't last a whole morning.

This turns into a skinscent - a nice one, I have to point out. Like it, but it is a bit annoying sometimes...

Very warm and comforting skin scent without smelling too much like a traditional "musk" scent. I definitely get the woods, and I agree with Madrona that there is a hint of pencil shavings (which sounds weird, but it SO works here!). Longevity could be better, but I also notice that many of my samples from Perfumed Court (which come with dabbers instead of sprays) don't last as long as people here say they do, so my issue with longevity could be easily rectified with an atomizer. I think this would be very comforting in winter, but I also wore it today (80 degrees) and didn't find it inappropriate at all. I do get a very slight hint of tuberose, but I wouldn't describe this scent as floral. I think the tuberose just lightens up the wood note, blending it beautifully with the musk. I don't smell cinnamon at all, and the pepper is very faint to my nose.

Oh, how did I wait sooooo long to buy this ?? !!
I love this scent. Aromatic,yes, touch of myrrh, yes, peppery, yes....and the ambre gris..YES !!
I do not really get any tuberose....???...but I will survive, even tho I like tuberose. This is a classic scent....unisex, for sure. Ir starts off pink peppery, then...myrrh/amber vibe....then aromatic muskiness.
Again....like I always say...you have to be patient and explore this fragrance...let it transform and develope.
I find it goes threw a few stages when I wear it.
I find it "different" than anything I currently own.
A true gem !!!! Projection/sillage are decent.

The bottle is perfect. This is a very gray fragrance. Not a dull, ashy gray, but a shiny gray. I put my nose to my wrist and I smell pencil shavings, the scribble of graphite against paper, footsteps on a stone floor echoing through empty halls, running your palm over the backs of endless books on endless wooden shelves, the soft swish of a robe just about kissing the floor as you walk. I guess it is the scent of the Great Library in the Tower of the Arcane in some fantasy novel. I love a scent that inspires me. This inspires me.

For me this is one of Balmain's best fragrances!A true classic but very modern at the same time.It's sweet, creamy slightly aromatic and very warm.
This does not smell right in the heat it's best for fall and winter it smells amazing in cold weather.
Sillage and longevity the best you can get.
Very feminine with a unisex vibe.

This is absolutely THE BEST cheap amber fragrance out there! Definitely ahead of Prada's signature amber. It's warm, slightly aromatic, floral, and even salty without feeling sweaty; very complex and niche-like compared to most other commercial ambers!

I swear my father wore something like this in the 70's .. We lived by the ocean so perhaps there is an association there .. I recall the 70's were very animalistic .. I would prefer on a man.

Pierre Balmain and the olfactory adventures as usual. I admire the House for these follies represented in olfactory pyramids of their fragrances in the case, Ambre Gris is an aromatic mutation which still can not define it, and maybe I will die and never get such a feat, however, if I ever reach excellence set it with my poor nose, for me it is a great achievement in the world of perfumery. It is a scent that hides in you of its opening to his farewell, but at the same time hiding it reveals a remarkable lasting power, is a joint Cinnamon and sequinha wood with resinosidade Myrrh and Benzoin of spicy and hot apaixonantemente divine form; here is the "cat leap" this fragrance, so I get it the fragrance containing notes aromatize the resin content, they behave intimate and explosive form on the skin, alternating between these two phases to volatizarem altogether, and Ambre Gris that is quite evident! Soon he becomes a floral burly with tuberous, but here are a bit artificial do not know if because of the intervention of most resins, however, is cool, because the sweetness he brings is tolerable transmitting refinement and elegance. In the end, he becomes a woody, but without losing femininity because of the musk that sensualizes stop and it gets a spectacular amber colored, and resins continue the fund, sweetening and making the dense fragrance, is an amalgamation of endnotes and sometimes the notes means they are making their farewell track a mess a la Pierre Balmain, you know, such a beautiful blurring that makes us need to use more than 50 times to know it will because like it or no! I see him as a perfumão for milder days and more reserved occasions, it is more or less around!

Word of the day: confusion... (day 82)

Me gusta mucho la salida, tiene tanta mirra como esperaba, que es por lo que compré este perfume. A los pocos minutos la siempreviva se suma a la canela, el benjuí, la pimienta y el almizcle durante varias horas. Por detrás hay un fondo amaderado salpicado de notas marinas ligeramente saladas, supongo que el ámbar gris, que son difíciles de aprehender y te hacen llevar la muñeca a la nariz una y otra vez en el intento de conseguirlo.

El sillage es moderado y la longevidad aún no lo sé, de momento siete horas. El frasco sobrio y elegante.

Sin que se parezcan en nada más, el toque marino sí que me recuerda a Dune.

- Hazy warmth -

This was love at first smell. When I tried Ambre Gris for the first time the world around me slowed down and a strong sense of euphoria raced trough me.. "Finally..." I thought to myself.

To me this isn't really signature worthy because it doesn't really smell like "me", but it's truly a scent that works up my emotions. AG reminds me of my early childhood and the hazy imagination world where one lives as a young child - the moments spent waiting for cookies to bake or the occasional hugs you get from your mother. It's a touch of innocent love and unending curiosity.

As far as the notes are concerned I get lots of salty and dry immortelle, sweet cinnamon and powdery musk. AG is somewhat "dusty" that gives it a vintage feel - think of an old attic. Linear and unisex more towards feminine. Great longevity!

Indescribably beautiful.

Soundtrack: Chihei Hatakeyama - Ferrum

Dream team trio: Ambre Gris. Huge, fluffy, cosy cashmere pullover. Luxurious, sweet, sparkling champagne.

Ambre gris is a very warm, balsamic and sweet scent. Extremely pleasing! It's great in winter. It's also very easy to wear but different then what the majority is wearing. This is a great option for those who want a warm and oriental fragrance without reaching for something that has a lot of vanilla.

It stays close to you but lasts quite a while.

I will be spraying a lot of ambre gris this winter. Will be a good one for layering also!

Extreme comfort in a bottle. I had this a few years ago and swapped it. I just had the desire to try it again and purchased a new bottle. WHAT WAS I THINKING NOT KEEPING IT? It's gorgeous I mean drop dead gorgeous. The Amber, that stout bottle with the awesome gold golf ball cap. This fragrance is just incredibly stunning. So much in fact I am going to pack up most of my winter scents and stick with this one exclusively. If you enjoy amber with a touch of cinnamon and live in a cooler place where you are experiencing winter this one is ideal. Lasting power is fantastic!

Resinous, still slightly savoury. Not gourmand at all. Feminine instead. A fluffy cloud of grey. Comforting, classy, warm, clever, elegant.

Christmas in a bottle! My favorite sweet deep balmy cinnamon scent!! Comfortable winter scent :)

My first blind buy. Eeeeesh
Something and nothing. Don't like the something.
Deeply dislike this in the same way I dislike Christian Dior Gris Montaigne. Salty watery, airy, a bit foetid.
Not getting anything: no more blind buys for me!

Nice airy light amber. Not heavy at all. It has a popcorn vibe in the middle phase. So far it is very nice, even great. But the drydown I am sorry to say, I dont like at all. I find it very artificial, and potent at that. Drydown is really annoying me and therefore it goes to the dislike shelf. Before you buy be sure to wear it through, is my advice.

For those who like it, but find it too masculine: Try Immortelle Marilyn from Nez a Nez instead. It's the sweet version of Ambre Gris, if you ask me.

this smells like a mens cologne....... not bad just not what i expected. will probably regift or use for work as it isnt particularly strong.

I really like this and hope to get my own bottle soon. I wish I was good at describing notes, but to me it smells fresh, like you just got out of the shower and used a very nice soap. A tiny bit masculine could be unisex? It just smells fresh and clean to me.

Initial strong blast of myhrr, benzoin and pepper for 30 minutes, going a little sweet musky and light flowery for an hour or so, drying down to light sweet cinammon and some wood and smth. really soft like amber (gris?). I don't know what immortelle should smell like, I suppose it is that what I get in the middle notes and maybe a hint of tuberose too. Not gourmand sweet, really fine and elegant scent, wearable without offense to anyone. For autumn, winter warm and cozy. Good sillage for 2 hours, longevity about 5 hours already. I am happy with it. My beautiful 75ml bottle stays with me - right next to Ivoire.

Try this on skin, not paper. I didn't really like it and I certainly would not have purchased it if I just tested it on paper. On paper, it is just pure spice central and that never dies down. On skin, it's spicy then it becomes a very comforting cuddly thing of warmth. It's definitely a sweater kind of scent! The bottle is also so sophisticated. I don't know what world ppl live in where golf balls look like this lol It will make any vanity look gorgeous! Plus, you can have this for pennies at the discounters.

First of all, the bottle is absolutely gorgeous. The sparkly cap, the understated glass flacon, everything just screams luxury.

Now, the scent: The top notes have a "sweaty" - dirty thing going on. And the salt is noticeable, not just as the absence of sweetness, but as a salty aura per se. At this point, I'd call it interesting, or challenging.

The heart and drydown are sweet (not cloying - just more-ish) and spicy. Not aggressively spicy, but sweetly spicy, with cinnamon being very prominent. I can also detect something vanillic, in a boozy way. It actually reminds me of vintage Dior Addict, only lighter and airier.

This is not the masterpiece I was expecting after falling head over heels in love with Ivoire, but it's still nice. I just wish the scent rivalled the beauty of the bottle.

At last zoka have changed amber on ambergris in Ambre Gris and Kenzo Indigo, yay! Coz in every topic "Recommend Me An Amber Fragrance" first of all people would suggest Ambre Gris as such. But it does NOT have an amber note. It was very misleading. Amber is in Ambre Sultan for example, Ambre Fetiche of Goutal

Ambergris is now synthetic of course, its ambroxan, yet it so recognisable in every fragrance, it has salty-sweet and musky aroma, lingering and calling to your inner-self smell. Smell of natural instincts due to chemical molecule I would say:p Kind of aphrodisiacy as it's hard to forget fragrances with "ambergris" note and if it appeals to you - you will wear it till the last drop.

This has been a constant in my wardrobe for many years.Unique, softly elegant & very feminine.It puts me in mind of a confident, stylish woman who doesn't need to broadcast her arrival.It's also one that benefits from warmth, so for bedtime...but beware!

Blind buy that does not seem to reflect the favourable reviews here. Opens in a chemical way, and it's very industrial smelling to me, not natural so it's like any department store fragrance and lacks uniqueness. I am not certain it is even distinguishable as a scent. Tried to kill it with blasts of Not A Perfume which usually softens any fragrance's rough edge, to no avail. A litigator could wear it to court and possibly cause everyone in a three foot radius to leave the room, so it may have some unusual practical uses.

The top notes of this scent are intoxicating and yet slightly medicinal. After the first ten minutes or so, what comes through more and more is tonka bean, which the bottle of Ambre Gris I picked up to test in Selfridges listed as one of the heart notes although I see it isn't mentioned on this site. For me, the tonka bean overwhelmed the benzoin and insense. They are there, but almost drowned by the shouty tonka bean. What I don't get much of is amber.

Pleasant but thats about it. Very mildly ambery, spicey, slightly sweet and musky marine salty skin scent on me. It seems very feminine and definitely not a fragrance for my fella. No where near as strong as SL Ambre Sultan or similar to SL Gris Clair of which I have both and love. The longevity is good. I love the bottle.

It sounds a bit strange, but it’s hard to part with winter. I’m used to wearing warm, cosy mittens and scarves, walking in the parks, listening to snow crunch under my feet, and then drinking hot tea with lemon or milk and cardamon and eating medovik (Russian honey layer cake with cream).
For me, Ambre Gris Balmain is a symbol of winter, friendly gatherings, warmth and homeliness. Ambre Gris smells like strong-tasting black tea with sugar, honey cake and oriental spices. It’s beautiful and elegant.

I shouldn't like this, really. I've been ordering perfume samples like mad lately and had just about decided that I don't care for amber nor do I care for cinnamon in a fragrance (though I love it separate from my skin). And then along comes this gorgeous thing which I ordered only because I wanted to try a fragrance with ambergris as a note and quite frankly I could not find that many.

It starts out really sweet on me - not candy sweet though, more of a dreamy marshmallow cloud sweet. Hmm, I thought. Not too shabby but not remarkably different from any other mature sweet fragrance. I wasn't getting ambergris but then again, I really didn't know what exactly I should be smelling...and then it hit me after about an hour: little soft wisps of mellow salty air; a beautiful counterbalance to the amber. I love it! It grew on me and I think of a Selkie sitting on a rocky shore, eating divinity left as a gift for her by a suitor. Just as he approaches to try and steal her seal skin while she's not looking, she slips it back on and disappears into the sea, splashing saltwater on the crumbs of her dessert as she goes.

A delightful surprise among the many samples I've ordered, and a strong contender for next full bottle purchase.

First of all, the longevity is amazing!

Ambre gris is a real steal. You can get it for two songs and the quality is great. The bottle is beautifully made with heavy glass and a cap that stays on.

So, to the most important part: The smell! This "genre" of perfume is not my favorite, so I shouldn´t be to enthusiatic. But I am! I feel mysterious and bold when I wear this, because it definently radiates and makes a statement in a oriental-sexy-unsual type of way. The slight sweetness in the drydown makes it very wearable.

This is my second Balmain (Ivoire is my other), and I like them both even though they are so different.

This was a blind buy, based on reviews here. I must admit that I was quite surprised by this fragrance. On first sniff it was all frankincense (although this isn't listed as a note), and it was very strong. I didn't recognise any of the notes, although in all fairness I'm not great at picking out notes anyway.

It really wasn't what I was expecting at all. It's also quite masculine, but there is a hint of sweetness. It reminds me of a man's aftershave,

BUT!

It's totally gorgeous, spicy, inscensy, rich, moreish. It drys down to a really exquisite scent that I just love.

Shalimar is next on my 'try' list, but in the meantime I'll be loving wearing this.

I feel honored to have a large bottle of this beauty on my shelf... by the way, how gorgeous is the bottle? Could not more perfectly represent the magic it holds inside.
A perfume with an immortelle note is not easy to find, and I love the herbal, vaguely salty, slightly hay-like aroma of it. Immortelle is a fine co-star in this production, with the star of the show being ambergris, as the name implies... although it is not listed as a note, I believe the combination of musk and amber in this one give that animalic impression of ambergris... two of my very favorite notes, ambergris and immortelle, in one perfume!
First blast is a bit unisex, leaning toward masculine, for me, with a zing of what I would sense to be bergamot... not at all unpleasant, but not what I want this fragrance to be about, either. Happily, the "zing" graciously exits moments in, and I am left to loll about in the velvety blanket that is Ambre Gris...
I applied heavily last night, and, upon the drydown, decided that the scent reminds me of a cat napping on a carpet in a shaft of filtered sunlight through a curtain. The musk in this is so perfect as to give the idea of warm cat's fur... that velvety patch right behind the ear.
The sillage is modest, but this is kind of something I want to keep between myself and a person very close to me.
As I mentioned, I sprayed heavily last night, and Ambre Gris was still going strong when I woke this morning... such a lovely reminder, that I was compelled to go back for more.
Yes, this has earned its place in the top 5. :)

Just received my bottle and i am sooo happy, i have just spreyed my arm and i just cannot stop smelling it... very unusuall scent but soo familiar and warm at the same time.... i will check the drydown and i'll be back..

The house of Balmain produces yet another heavenly fragrance in a wonderful art deco bottle. I love wearing Ambre Gris all the time. It's just silky smooth perfection and I love how there is nothing jarring in this composition for me. A very comforting, calming and well-blended perfume.

This very sensual and sophisticated fragrance smells so good on me that it is like wearing a second skin. At times it's a tiny bit spicy, a tiny bit sweet or a tiny bit salty, which I think adds to an alluring and mysterious aura.

On my skin, Ambre Gris begins warm and creamy at first, which is mostly the warm amber and sweet tuberose peppered with an occasional salty accord, before it settles into the most beautiful resinous scent that's utterly addicting... Sillage is soft (it's very much a skin scent); and longevity is at least 8-9 hours.

UPDATE: Repeat wearings has revealed something plasticky about the composition. I don't know what it is, but it started to bother me, and I haven't worn it a lot since. I still adore the scent, though. I would only purchase this if I could find a bottle pre-reformulation.

This is simply heaven in a bottle. Truely a Masterpeice.

I can not stop wearing, Balmain's Ambre Gris, and I have been wearing it for around 6 months now.

If you are searching for something rare and different, and you still want a modern fragrance with an old world, classic feel, this might be just perfect.

It lasts easily on me for over 8 hours.

No soap or leather, just pure creamy, powdery divinity.

I bought this and when it arrived, I wasn't sure if I was going to like it - thought maybe it was too sweet for me? It smelled okay on paper, but sometimes perfumes can smell great on paper and then when you wear them, things change - and not for the better!

I wore it today and I have to say, I adore it. I am surprised. Looking for a second bottle. It is winter when I am writing this - cold outside. I don't think it's over powering, but I think it has a pretty good longevity because it's been about 7-8 hours and I can still smell it (at least on my sweater I can).

It's not at the tippy-top of my list, but it's a good one for sure. I'm looking for a back up bottle!

:)

This one is actually weird. But I've been using it so often lately, that it almost feels like having a signature fragrance. Two years of hunting "the one" and concluding there is no "the one" for me, and so unexpectedly founding myself liking this weirdness a lot.

I actually disliked it when testing two years ago. I wrote a polite review saying it is ok, but thinking i don't really like it at all. I thought it smelled musky, sweet, pink, lazy Sunday and so not me at all.

I forgot then about it for a while then again found myself wondering whether this one might be re-test worthy. I actually had no sample to test. I had a gift card in a perfume store, and surprised founding this one here. Tested also many others, but found this one so different and bought a bottle, thinking this would be least redundant fragrance in my collection. well, it really is.

The bottle is a story by itself. It is beautiful. Simple, elegant, chic, art-deco. It is even much better looking in reality than in pictures here. That grey glass is beautifully transparent, the shape is perfect with strong angles, you may think of it as a bit masculine, well it is, but the cap gives again a chic feminine touch with that golden glitter and round form. This is beautiful representation of the scent itself – weird masculinity with a touch of chic femininity.

I don’t know how to describe the scent, many others have done here better that I can. It reminds me of marine air, walking close to the ocean, with salty waves reaching into your face and that saly air coming into your nose. It smells so salty and spicy to me. This spiciness has a masculine vibe to me, almost too masculine. i am not a fan of spicies in general, and here myhrr is too much for me.

I was afraid to wear it on its own for the first two weeks and wore only at home or layered with some vanillas..i am still reluctant to wear it around my boyfriend, because i find it a bit too masculine. And I still don’t know why I like it. This saltiness, I guess, is my favorite part. It is so unusual. No sweetness here at all – I love that too. It is also musky. I don’t smell any flowers here, and this is a good thing, flowers are not my thing, anyway, I have learned lately. I am not a fan of the opening, it is sharp and spicy and I hate spices. But then it mellows down to a creamy goodness and I am sold.

i still don't see it as a sexy scent, as so many says here, but maybe i will cahnge my mind about that, too. for me it is more like "leave me alone i am fine" kind of scent. but also slightly comforting at the same time.

I found out that it layers well with many of my other fragrances, softens others hard edges and prolongs their longevity.

Longevity is pretty good, about 4 hours, sillage is a bit too much for me, especially in the opening, since I prefer my scents close to my skin.

EDIT: It really is too spicy for me. I am considering swaping away.

Just got this one today 75ml, its not for me. Bought blind as I was looking for something creamier, in my skin smells incense! Swap in Canada, Anyone?!

An elegant gray cloud of musky powder, this is a good one. Soft and evasive but there is no mistaking you've entered the room with something interesting going on.
Its hard to describe, but I understand the comments about Ambre Gris being like a second skin. Its blends in really well when applied and immediately adapts, this is one well made formula. It is a mature scent all the way, nothing frilly or overly attention grabbing. This is quiet, refined and confident, old school but in the best kind of way.
Some will disagree but I get a little of the original Oscar with a touch of Tiffany for Men in it, but not on sweet side of either of those. I also get some may feel it's masculine, but overall its a women's scent, or unisex at the very least. Def one of the better fragrances that has come about in the past several years. If you can get it at a bargain, I say go for it, you wont be sorry. But then again it also owns a well deserved shelf space at Neiman Marcus where I saw it recently. Overall, a big thumbs up.

It took me a while to fully appreciate it, but now it's pure LOVE. This is an amazing & addictive fragrance! 1 of my favorites.

What. Has. Happened?

I clearly remember this smelling dirty and a bit "ugly" on me. I wasn't convinced at all, since I felt there was something really off in the fragrance. Something... that smelt an awful lot like... well.. like a crotch. Ehurm.

But... now?

Now I'm convinced that there has been a reformulation, OR, more likely, that the tester bottle I sampled from had turned bad.

Because now, now it's like the most amazing thing on earth.

Me and my colleague started to discuss perfumes (as always) at work one day, and she mentioned "Ambre Gris" and that she was about to purchase a 100 ml bottle.

I was suprised, and started do discuss my experiences about this and that I did not care for it much.

Well, she couldn't have that, of course, so she actually brought the bottle to work a couple of days later and spritzed me down.

Oh boy. No more crotch. It was a lovely, salty, flowery, powdery, musky fog of amazigness. Cozy and warm. Like a sweater. A sexy sweater. It has a way of tricking the mind of thinking that this is the smell of YOU. Your skin. Your smell of sexy.

Instant buy.

Sniffing it on me now makes me wanna wrap my self in grease, doing an enfleurage on my self, Jean Baptiste Grenuille style, haha... Haa... ha. Just kidding.

No I'm not.

This is the most bizarrely beautiful creamy musky skin scent I've ever smelled. It really is like wearing a second skin, as odd as that sounds. Great longevity. This is also the only perfume I own that smells best on skin and not clothes.
That about sums it up.

Bought this as a blind buy due to my newly discovered love for Balmain perfumes. To me they're some of the most unique scents I have, and this baby is no different.

I'm actually a little torn about it - when I smell it up close I'm not really a fan, but if I smell it from just a tiny distance it's absolutely gorgeous. I can relate to the reviewer saying that it sort of smells 'natural', because it has this musky twang to it that's sort of undefinable.

The spicyness definetely has a masculine side to it, though I wouldn't say that this is unisex in any way. This scent is mystery in a bottle - and I'm sure it will invoke ambivalence in most people. I am, however, pretty sure I love it. :)

If'n you're lookin' ta git laid...

Wow, wow, wow! I absolutely love this....the initial smell is a strong amber and then it settles into a warm, sensual scent which makes me feel sexy and confident. Please Balmain - DON'T DISCONTINUE!!!!!!

I had to come back for this, as my initial review was based on merely the notes and less on what this frag evokes in me.This is one of the most alluring scents I had the fortune to possess! There is a depth to it, a balsamic intensity which comes from the combo of resins with the woody cinnamon, the musk is there present enough but not overpowering, enough to lend its carnal allure mixed with immortelle, making the wearer feel sexy. The depth from resins create a powerfull femme fatale, sophisticated and daring. This scent is a masterpiece!

For me a blind buy, based on some descriptions and reviews which guaranteed I'd fall in love, and it was at a bargain price for this quality, though I have to admit I normally don't spend a lot, I find and make very good deals.

I have several oriental scents and I love them a lot. Spice, sweetness, balsam, resins... this one has it all, but so many other orientals have it all too. What sets this one apart enough that it was worth to buy? What makes Ambre Gris so special?

Well, spray it on, wait for it... and you will feel it for yourself. The spicy warm brilliant powerful opening would be wonderful enough but it just serves as the bait for the heavenly buttery creamy drydown, embracing you into a balmy cloud. First you get the sweetness and the spices and later on a little buttery-salty accord, most part are so good you want to eat them!

Do yourself a favour and apply it to different areas on your body, hair and clothes so you can keep wafts of it for long hours. The otherwordly heavenly balmy scent it leaves on the clothes the next day, that is pure beauty. The whole perfume is amazing, but there are other creations, especially orientals which have similar qualities, but I'd never met a scent which would transform so magnificently. Like most great scents, works well on both genders. This stuff exudes class.

I didn't like this perfume initially... even wanted to give it away... Today (after having it for more than a year) sprayed just once and now can't stop snifing my wrists... :) How silly I was and thanks God I still have this precious gem. Guys, always give it another try before getting rid of some frags you think you don't like...

Oh,I love this. The opening blasts in full of spicy myrrh, tempered by amber with a slight smoke to it, and mellows down to soft benzoin,a touch of immortelle and guaiac wood,plenty of it.
This is a very unusual scent but very alluring and special, a unisex scent but not unfeminine. This scent has a soft sweetness to it but not cloying, it comes from the combo of myrrh and amber.
For all amber fans,as my self, this is a true gem!

It took me a while to decide, but I have tipped from bemusement into deep, deep, deep love. This scent is such a lovely journey, from the marine, almost masculine opening to the warm cinnamon and benzoin dry down (with the immortelle meandering through beautifully). It's got insane longevity on me, and modest sillage with 3-4 sprays -- enough for me to know it's there without having to bury my nose in my wrist, but not enough to get dirty looks at work. It's a very versatile scent with regard to venue: unique and sexy, but also tasteful and discreet. It's probably a bit heavy for summer wear, so thank God I live in a place where summer barely happens!

Warm, sophisticated, spicy scent with well-blended notes.
I bought it last Autumn as a comforter. In my opinion it doesn't smell as aphrodisiac, "naughty" kind of perfume at all. Pink pepper and immortele notes are quite loud. My first impression was "Ugh, so aldehydic and masculine". In the middle notes, however, it turns to pleasant, office-safe fragrance with spicy vanilla playing peek-a-boo. It stays close to your skin.

Unfortunately it didn't last on my skin long enough to be "the one". Passed this one on to my mum, who loves it and on her Ambre Gris reminds me of softer version of Samsara.

Definitely worth a try if you're into oriental fragrances, but wouldn't recommend as blind buy.

Just received this today and LOVE it! Very sensual and comforting at the same time. It reminds me of a lighter version of Gaultier 2? Even my husband loves it, so I would definitely say this could be unisex. One of my best blind buys for sure.

As much as I wanted to love this, it's not very sophisticated for me. I get the sensual ambery zing, and it is strong and long lasting on my skin, but too generic for a Balmain perfume, and not matching that wonderul bottle!

This has to be the best perfume value out there. My first blind buy, I think I paid less than $20 for a new 100 ml tester. Which wouldn't matter except that this smells pretty darn fantastic, plush, salty and cinnamon with a bit of powder. Mmmm. My only complaint is that I am a bit chemically sensitive and this is definitely one that causes symptoms. If you don't have such problems and want a great perfume for next to nothing, you can't do better.
Edit: It does smell very much like my adored Samsara.

Oh, my. Was I ever in for a surprise.The best kind that you don't expect.
I bought this the minute I saw it available as I do love the perfume house.
Back in the 1970's, you could find Ambergris oil that smelt like heaven.
Then, you could not. This is just a truly sensual scent - the tuberose melts into the incense myrrh & cinnamon - the note I can't identify must be the "immortal flower" which is instant research this minute!
Everytime I wear it, I see the beach at sunset with all the sensuality inherent.
...now to take a walk outside and watch the sun fall into the ocean, wearing a cloak invisible.

Love at first sniff! The reviews here are superb, and I don't think I could add much to them except to say that I think this has just enough masculinity in it to actually make this a unisex fragrance (it seems to be categorized here as for women). I think Ambre Gris would lovingly embrace anyone who wants to wear it. Warm, cozy and comforting, yet light enough to wear it on a hot humid day. I am not skilled enough yet to pick out what I smell, but it is ambery with a tiny saltiness to it and a soft muskiness that makes it light and snuggly. I didn't smell the other notes. It is very comforting for me, it reminds me of how your young child smells after having a bath and she snuggles next to you waiting for you to read her a bedtime story; it has that touch of realness and beauty to it. I don't care how "synthetic" this is (I ordered it from Amazon for only $35 USD), this is gorgeous! I think if I were to smell a man wearing this, my knees would buckle! I have been hoping to find a fragrance like this (warm, quiet, amber, sweet, cozy). I agree, please be careful when applying this, do not overspray! Beautiful! Thank you all for your reviews, this one is a gem!

Wearing this today, such a great complex light sweet and lasting perfume. Great for summer especially. So inexpensive, but smells very high end. Highly recommended.

When my task would be to describe Ambre Gris to a person who knows nothing about scents I would say: airy, not too sweet narcissus with waxy baby powder. Somehow it remembers me on glass (if glass would have a smell) - fragile and pure, airy. So easy, still so complex and smelling more expensive than it is. Unisex.

This is one of the few fragrances that a sales associate successfully recommended for me. She looked at me and said, "This is what I'd imagine you to smell like". And it clicked! I went back next paycheck to grab it.

This fragrance is something I'd consider more on the masculine side, for a female. There are no floral notes, no sweetness, nothing remotely gourmand about it - it's just a very neutral, comforting, subtle gorgeous scent that clings pretty close to the skin (most days. In certain weather, BABOOM!), and lasts for a very long time.

The initial blast is reminiscent of an expensive spicy men's aftershave, and the heart and dry-down on the fragrance smell like "static cling" from clean clothes in the dryer. There is no other way for me to describe the scent of this - It's simple, pleasant, and though it sounds unexciting, I've never smelled a fragrance like this before! Other words that spring to mind are "silky, warm, cozy, snuggly, billowy, rich, feather-like, and alluring".

This has actually replaced and became my signature scent - it's become "my smell". I feel it can suit any day, any weather, any event, any mood. It makes me feel safe, and comforted, and calm. In love with this fragrance.

I tried to like it, but this is not happening for me. I don't smell any ambergris. Or any other notes. It's pure synthetic amber/powdery/sweet smell. Hubby does not object to it (hmm, as in, he actually thinks it is sexy), but I find it on the verge of repulsive. Certainly, this is the first time there is a perfume he likes that I do not care for at all. So be warned, male and females may disagree on this one.

The bottle may have a fancy gold cap,but I find this to be weak cinnamon water. There doesn't seem to be anything else going on. It's flat,and has no warmth at all. I don't smell the amber or myrrh. It's as if the other notes don't even exist. It kind of smells like something somebody sneezed out. This just doesn't seem to work on me.

For what it's worth I was curious about this fragrance and so I applied some on fragrance -free skin at the Nieman Marcus store. I browsed a while and stopped at the Tom Ford counter. "What is that gorgeous fragrance.?" asked the gentleman there. I had to think back. He was surprised. With his training he identified the saltiness of it and said he was impressed by its unique character.

A well constructed fragrance that I am pleased to have sampled.

On the second testing, I finally realized that Ambre Gris was actually going sour on my skin..... a not uncommon occurence. So I am basing my enthusiastic opinion on the first few moments, before my skin killed this otherwise wonderful scent!

The bottle is worth mention. I don't normally purchase fragrances based on the appearance of a bottle, but Ambre Gris would be a sore temptation. This is a seriously attractive, hefty bottle with more dignity and good breeding than most recent releases. If you want something for display that simply radiates quality, look no further. Impressive.

There is no doubt in my mind that Ambre Gris will make a fine addition to many a collection. For women AND men. Good job, Balmain!

There is so much hot debate as to what notes are included or discluded in Amber Gris. I think this is possibly one of the most frustratingly incorrect and misleading notes pages on Fragrantica.

Straight from Balmain's website:
Top notes: Pink BERRIES, sage
Heart notes: Tuberose, frangipani, myrrh essence, incense
Base notes: Grey amber infusion [so yes, AMBERGRIS, NOT AMBER], benzoin, tonka beans, cedarwood

On me, Amber Gris is indeed very sweet and creamy and smoothly animalic. I'd never know there was benzoin if I didn't read the notes list, usually benzoin has at least something of a "texture" to it. I'd like it to project a bit father, but it lasts easily 6 to 7 hours on me. The berries, frangipani, and tuberose all play off each other so perfectly, the sage gives the sweetness an interesting herbal balance, and the myrrh brings with it a balmy brightness which plays up the marine flavors of the ambergris.

ambra più benzoino, cannella, un tocco di pepe rosa e qualche leggero accento floreale. un orientale leggero e caldo ECCELLENTE!

This is a new favorite. I usually gravitate toward big sexy spicy orientals, but I don't feel like they're always appropriate for work and other everyday events, so Ambre Gris is a perfect solution. It's elegant, sexy, and feminine, but not overpowering or brash. It's understated enough to wear to the office but doesn't make me feel boring, stuffy, or unfeminine. I do wish it had more throw and longevity on me--or that it came in other forms so that I could layer it--but every time I catch a whiff of it I feel happy. It's a classic beauty and my new go-to.

Okay, lets do this!

*spritz*

Let it simmer a bit.. Let it dry down yes...

*sniff* - Ooh... nooo...
*sniff* - No.
*sniff* - Defenetly not. Too dirty.
*sniff* - Or... actually! ... No.
*sniff* - WAIT! ... No... no...
*sniff* - OH YES! YES!.... No....
*sniff* - Oh why is it so hard to.. THERE IT IS! No..
*sniff* - Goddamit.
*sniff* - Hey, now it's pretty goo...ooh.. No.
*sniff* - Ok no. Or? Maybe? Maybe just a little? Ok.
*sniff* - Ok definitly not a no. But not a yes either.
*sniff* - Back to no.
*sniff* - Back to maybe.


Repeat until infinity.

You ladies whose body chemistry doesn't agree with this, I can only say."I am so,so sorry." This stuff is straight up ambrosia. It lures you in with that sweet vanilla nectar, then strokes you with that cinnamon and pepper, like a lover. Then that amber comes in an lays you to rest and you have been conquered. Yeah, ladies, it is that good. I am ordering another bottle. This is a gorgeous perfume. Oooooooh, give me some more.

I liked the sweetness I was hit with in the first 10 minutes, but after that, it turned on me and became cheap and buttery, smelling like hundreds of other very common fragrances. I'm not sure which of the components was the culprit, but whatever it was did not like my skin chemistry at all.

On me this is at first nothing but heavy and musty, with a gritty, dirty animalic undertone. But then... oh I'm warming up to it, little by little. Here comes lots of warm spices and sweet/warm pink pepper. LOTS of it. That sweetness + vanilla/spice + SALT is something I can't decide if I'm grossed out by or want more of. It's like a trainwreck, and I'm morbidly enthralled. Actually it's more like just like a lot of salt and I can't decide whether it's sexy as hell (think: real hard workout sweat) or outright briny.

Drama aside this scent is hard to pin down for me just yet. At times I sniff nearer my wrist and it almost smells (wonderfully) like Dr. Pepper. At other times it's alllll salt & vanilla resins & spice and I flee again from it, only to be drawn back by an enticing waft some minutes later...


UPDATE: Have swapped for a bottle of my own. What can I say? I found myself craving its weird dirty-warm enticement again. Oh well *shrug*, if you can't beat em.... Also you really must give this one time to warm up/wear in before sniffing. In fact, sniffing up close really isn't necessary. It's very strong and long lasting.

A decent amount of time into wearing (an hour or so), it does, in fact, remind me of Dr. Pepper. Lol... and I love that smell!

I'm very interested to hear a non-perfumist's first impression of this one.

I tried Ambre Gris on my wrist this weekend because I've been curious about this "sensual" scent lately. It was awful on me :( I made my friend smell my wrist and she totally agreed - it's horrid. Guess I don't have the right chemistry for it. Just wanted to warn you if you're considering a blind buy for this one. Please have a sniff of it first before buying it (if possible) or else you might wind up disappointed!

Very oriental fragrance, warm and comforting, but not overwhelming as many orient ones.
At first it was quite sharp, I could not bear it, but this sensation lasted only few minutes. After that short period of time, fragrance softened on my skin and became really interesting. Strong, but not too heavy or tiring. I would say, there is a lot of harmony in this fragrance. For oriental perfume lovers, I think it is 'a must have'.
And look at the cap! In reality, it is even more beautiful.

This one is special. I predict that it becomes a modern classic. It's easy to wear, casual, inexpensive, unoffensive, warm and cozy. Amber Gris is a perfect winter signature.

On my skin Ambre Gris starts spicy and slowly turns down to a soft scent with an airy sweetnes around me. Beautiful. I love the amber, cinnamon, musk, benzoin, myrrh, pinkpepper, tuberouse-mix. A scent for a grown-up girl. Longlasting om my skin. Worth trying and worth the cost, I think. After using Ambre Gris a few days it turns a bit male'ish on me.

På min hud startar Ambre Gris lite kryddigt som sakta mjuknar till en superfin doft men en lätt luftig sötma. Superfin. Jag älskar amber, kanel, musk, benzoin, myrra, peppar och tuberose-mixen. En doft för den fullvuxna tjejen. Håller länge på min hud. Värd att prova och värd priset, tycker jag.
Efter att ha använt Ambre Gris några dagar så märker jag att den drar åt det manliga hållet på min hud, tyvärr..

Very very beautiful.... And very anonymous.

It's not forgettable, but for some reason, when I stop wearing it for a little while, I really can't remember what it smelled like. When I do put it on again, I get a "oh... that's right, you're beautiful... but who are you??", but without the intrigue or mystery.

It leaves me with a strong impression of how it made me feel, and how much I enjoyed it, but don't remember the specifics, much like a dream keeps slipping away the more you try to remember it. So I don't crave it, and eventually forget about it. Until I chance upon it on my shelves again.

As all the reviewers said, it is slightly sweet, slightly spicy, cozy, comforting, comfortable, beautiful even... And I love it... But it doesn't speak to me.

I received this as a sample when I purchased TF Noir de Noir. Came to Fragrantica to check the notes and based on what I read and generally being a fan of orientals I tried it. Well definitely not for me.

I agree with orchid 84-all I get from this is soap and not a pleasant soapy smell but one I want to immedietly wash off. I get a cloying sweetness and I honestly cant tell which note I find burning my nostrils. I love benzoin, tuberose, immortelle and ambergris. Maybe the myrrh is offending me? Surprised by so many positive reviews about a fragrance whose notes are all generally well liked by me but this composition is completely not for me at all and my skin chemistry.

Adding: 2 hours later this scent has transformed. I did not wash it off and now I am smelling the warm, sensual ambergris, tuberose, immortelle that I know and love. It must the the sage in the top notes that I find so offensive. Not worth disliking the 1st 2 hours though but the drydown is lovely

Thanks for helping me with the blind buy, Fragrantica! I adore this scent and the staying power is really decent. I won't attempt the sophistication other reviewers well-versed in well, how ambergris should smell. It's definitely a skin scent, a little sexy but too subtle to raise any eyebrows in an office setting. Just what I was looking for. There's something of a tang to it as well, not exactly sour or like perspiration, just something I can't put my finger on. It comes off your body in waves like finely-milled soap. This is the fragrance I've tried and instantly known I wouldn't feel "dressed" without it. It's like my No. 5.

A rather dry-ish, very lightly spicy/peppery opening. As this develops, a powdery note becomes more prominent, and eventually (has excellent longevity) the spice is gone, the powder remains. It is a comfortable and comforting fragrance, with light silage despite it's lasting power. There is a gourmand-caramel note, slight but detectable, but it remains more of a spicy-dry-powder than anything, and, while feminine, could certain be worn by a man.

I love this; liked it instantly, though that was to a great extent because it seemed so familiar. I thought I'd managed to narrow the possibilities down to Samsara and/or Basi Femme, but now I think it might be the eponymous Boucheron. You work with what you've got.

The thing I love the most about it is that despite the for me cosy, sweet, somewhat posh feel of this, the final evocation is for me that of a remote south [next stop, Antarctica] coast, somewhere in the rocky, bepooled littoral zone, tide far out, with that tough, grapey brown seaweed extending as far as the eye can see. On a strangely still, sunny day to dry the driftwood. Solitude, space, wild ocean.

One day I'll go back and try it again without Flowerbomb's fruitier [as Theorema is fruity, like dried cloved oranges] contrast further up the same arm.

It doesn't seem very complicated. Woody, salty, not too soft. Just great.

I am yearning for that dream southern ocean coast in a bottle. Got chills reading a review further down that explains all the imagery that was evoked, right down to sun-dried driftwood. Must get, and also try those that others say are similar but 'bigger'.

Next day;
I have just read on another site someone's perception that Laguna is a variant of Ambre Gris. That means that in this reviewer's perception the converse must apply. Anyway for me it's a case of Bingo! or Eureka! or some other triumphantly joyful term. Because Laguna is my fave of all time. I can't see the similarity apart from the ocean evocations which I don't think is particular enough to have been that reviewer's perceived common ground. But it may well be there, because I fell for Ambre Gris very fast, and I think it will be a lasting thing.

Sexiest perfume out there. Dark and yummy. Cozy. I am obsessed with this. I don't get as many compliments as I should but it's okay. For me, it's perfect.

Is Balmain Ambre Gris an amber or ambergris fragrance? Maybe a little of both?
Ambre Gris is sweetly resinous but also slightly salty and oily. The sweetness may very well be coming from a combination of immortelle (maple syrup) and benzoin (vanilla), but I'm not going to tax myself too much trying to figure it out. In the end this is a fragrance amber lovers will enjoy.
A warm, spicy Oriental that is fairly easy to wear and could be considered a unisex.

Very beautiful floral with powdery drydown, with just a touch of sweetness, light and lasting, classic, must have.
Very easy to ware, not offending to complaining coworkers)))

I want to thank you all for the reviews as it prompted me to purchase this. What a great lovely scent for the upcoming cold weather. Let me first start by saying my initial impression before the spray hit my skin was oh God I made a big mistake. But no sooner then it hit my wrist and as I sit here and it continues to transform I am loving it. I think most of the reviews are accurate. It is a warm, spicey lovely scent. No florals here so if your a flower person don't get this one. If you enjoy warm cozy scents this is for you. I could see this one being unisex but it is not masculine. The bottle is very fitting for the lovely juice within.

I wanted to UPDATE approx. 7 hours later that I can still strongly smell this lovely scent on me. The lasting power is absolutely better then ANYTHING in my current collection. This stuff is just really good and long lasting. The hubby loves it too. For the mere price r $30 I don't think there is anything else out there that can out do this in lasting power.

I really like this fragrance. I was gifted a lovely sample from a generous fragrant fairy godmother. I had no idea what it would smell like, but it is a damp fall morning and I have a spice colored soft suede jacket on, and it just seemed like an amber scent would be a good choice. It definitely was. It's not as loud as I thought it might be, but just nice,warm,cuddly, slightly sexy and perfect, even in an office environment. I may have to find a larger decant of this, I like it so much.

A bit medicinal at first but then it's a warm, balmy amber scent with a touch of the other resins. It's not too sweet so you could wear it in professional situations, but it's definitely sweet enough to be cozy. Lasted all work day on me. Very classic smelling, just a bit spicy.

Oh.. This is beautiful. Subtle... I didn't know what to expect reading all the different reviews and descriptions. I love the woody aspect of it... It's not sweet to me. Ambery balmy woody. Do have carbone that my husband loves to wear... The woody note in it reminds me of it... But instead of incense it's amber. It's a really free description because I'm not good at verbalizing notes... I just smell. :) this is going to be a nice comfortable smell for autumn.

Reminds me of the smell Massimo Dutti shop.

Ambre Gris is a very close to the skin scent with a super mellow amber aura. It is a little sweet but barely so, a little spicy but only a brief encounter, and the musk is only a subtle undercurrent. The drydown doesn't change a lot for me, only getting more and more mysterious and becoming a filmy veil on the skin. I think this is truly a unisex perfume, if not on the masculine side. I know "comparisons are odious" but I do get a feeling of Tocca Colette. Also, I generally avoid using the word, but Ambre Gris is s.e.x.y.

Ambre Gris is not a center-of-attention perfume. It doesn't run into a room shouting "Hey, everyone, look at me, love me adore me." Ambre Gris is the wallflower scent that lingers in the memory long after the loud center-of-attention perfume is found drunk under a table with her lipstick smeared across her cheek, and her attention-grabbing top notes have long dissipated.

And the name is a play on words. There's no ambergris in this. It's two words (in french): amber and gray, as if to describe a toned down amber. Not ambergris (as in whale vomit).

It is an ok one. I expected to like it, but that didn’t happen. No hard feelings this time.
It started much sweeter than I would expect from a grey bottle and from a fragrance by so many described as unisex. It smells kind of pale pink to me and on my skin it is not unisex at all. Don’t take me wrong, it is not so sweet as most of the fragrances on market, but it is still too sweet for my taste. Being said that, I understand why so many like it. It is quite an interesting fragrance and not a generic one. I would say it may be very wearable and may be easy to like fragrance. Very non-offensive and not loud. Perfect for office, weekends, lunch with friends or just lazy days at home. Very cozy. May be a good alternative on those days when you don’t know what to wear.
For some time I thought, oh, I quite like it, it smells quite good on me. Then it hit me: it would be so wrong, it smells like some other woman spritzed her fragrance on me. I may consider giving it another chance someday, but I believe the musk here is the wrong one for me.

EDIT: a year later i changed my mind about this one. i actually bought a full bottle and have been using it a lot. read my new review about how i find it weird and like it alot.

I have been curious on Ambre Gris for a while, in my mind it was a long lasting sweet woody amber scent so I ordered a rather big and expensive sample from The perfumed Court. I was ready to order te perfume in blind reading the Reviews, am I glad I didnt.

I have using this one for 5-6 days and I have cheaper perfumes that last longer on me than this do, for example 21 from Costume National.

The dry down is poor and after 1-2 hours I cant smell anything on me and neither can others. There is no pepper, no cinnamon and no amber, just a little bit of Woody scent that dissapears quickly.

Closest to Laguna Maravilla ,just this one in summer version ,more fresh herbalike drydown Ambre Gris dryes down to warm salty amber Delicious...Own both of them and love

Quite possibly the most boring perfume in existance.

To me, this smells almost identical to Prada Amber Pour Homme. Not as lively as the Prada, but it has that bubble gum amber sweetness.

Thank goodness it was dirt cheap. It has a very nice bottle, and great longevity. Better than Prada thats for sure.

Come on, people, where do you get the immortelle, cinnamon or amber from??? The brand site does not mention any of these notes!!! Nor can I detect even a hint of them myself, however hard I've tried.
I do smell sage, though. Bitter, tart sage. Sure enough, it is "officially" there, according to the manufacturer. Also, I wonder how ambergris can be mistaken for amber. Where the hell is the cozy sweetness of this composition everyone is raving about? To me, it's salty grey amber all round, with just a tiny bit of sweet undertone (probably the benzoin) in the dry-down.

Just posted a review as a guest here right under.
Let me correct the typos and repost it.
Apart from unfair comparisons to louder fragrances, let me just concentrate on fragrance itself.
I think, Balmain Ambre Gris could be a very nice choice for those who do not like citruses (too sharp), do not like chypre (too sharp), do not like green grass fragrances (too synthetic), do not like overpowering florals, too much wood and patchouli.

Also it's a choice for those who prefer good quality, more natural smelling fragrances.

Hard to categorize Ambre Gris: to call it oriental floral would be a stretch, to call it pseudo-amber fragrance would be...
When in state of euphemism, I think that the nose behind this fragrance tried to create the feeling(smell) of Ambre Gris without ever using one.
And this is where his(her) sense of humor shines.
It was interesting and clever choice to work around the immortelle flower note.
Jam sweet and slightly smoky in a peculiar way, warm and generous, aromatic and even heady floral facet:
immortelle is a rich ingredient, it's a fragrance on it's own, just like amber. All other ingredients in Ambre Gris seem to enhance facets of Immortelle.
Myrth, cinnamon and pepper enhance immortelle's smokiness, tuberose enhance green and creamy floral facets, tuberose and cinnamon easily add to innocent dirtiness of immortelle and together mimicking (teasing) the dirty facet of ambre gris. Guaiac wood, perhaps adds to butteriness, nuttiness and longevity of the fragrance.
Add some bensoin and musk:
voila, Ambre Gris, in a jovial sense.
My skin test: applied on a clean arm right after shower before going to bed. It's mostly softly about immortelle, sexed up with the tuberose. The behavior on skin is very similar to Houbigants:Orangers en Fleurs original or Quelques Fleurs Royale, very close to skin and to distinguish it's beauty and to know what it's about you need to really smell and re-smell your skin. I am not saying, that smell of houbigants is similar to Ambre Gris, but the behavior is. The only regret, that next morning after I applied Ambre Gris, slightly dirty musk was all that left on my arm and I do not really like musk or cinnamon on skin.
So, I do like the beginning and development, do not care about the ending of this fragrance on my skin.
Of all fragrances it smells similar to Chanel #5 Eau Premiere and Diptyque Volutes EDP on the drydown, although there is more musk in Ambre Gris and it is almost impossible to discern separate notes.
I think, Ambre Gris is rather unique and the best medium to apply it and to observe the development is something layered, fibrous, such as clothes.
On clothes there is certain note(can not describe it, but cinnamon is involved) separates from the creamy base, that note seems unique and nice, keeps it interesting.

Otherwise, somewhat like.

If I would test the Balmain’s Ambre Gris alone I would be praising it highly as polite, tasteful, not loud, not chemical smelling, well harmonized, not complex and not complicated to wear, nice and rich in amber, soft.
But I had freshly sprayed cards with 6 Nasomatto fragrances and 4 Boadicea de Victorious fragrances on the same counter and re-smelled these cards in duration of 3 days at least.
Even after re-spraying Ambre Gris, I just could not notice this “understated” fragrance among Nasomattos and Boadiceas, puffing at me unapologetically with amber, patchouli, pepper, incense and what not.
It’s like comparing me and Angelina Jolie. Hello! Politically correct little grey mouse and the girl of “osez moi” type, who bathes in the lime light. In this respect Gris(grey) is very much appropriate for Ambre Gris. Perhaps, it’s unfair to Ambre Gris, since I would not be happy at side to side comparison with Angelina either.
I would expect the name Ambre Gris would imply that the full amber (including it’s fecal aspect) is used here. Ironically, the Alluring from Boadicea smelled so much more compelling and so much more what I would expect Ambre Gris(as raw material) to smell. In fact , most of fragrances that I have with amber just simply very pale in comparison with Nasomattos and Boadiceas.
On the other hand, there is nothing that repels me in little Ambre Gris. It’s full of virtues of it’s own and if someone decides to gift me with it, I will probably, use it more often than some of the Nasomattos and definitely, most of Boadicea’s, to stay unnoticeable and ”politically correct “ as always.

Despite the many glowing reviews this fragrance receives, Ambre Gris is unfortunately a dud on my skin. As a major amber enthusiast who also loves cinnamon and immortelle, I truly expected I would enjoy this. Having tried it several times now, I am quite sure that it's not for me.

Surprisingly, I don’t smell amber, benzoin, myrrh, immortelle or cinnamon at all. What I do smell is a lot of soap…that’s it, from top to bottom. I would have had no idea this was an amber fragrance if not for the name and notes. It’s not an especially synthetic or cloying soap smell, but it’s still soap…which is not how I like my fragrances to smell. It is reasonably pleasant - I’ll give it that - but overall Ambre Gris comes out cold, clinical, and one-dimensional on my skin. It’s a definite pass for me.

I see this has been voted as similar to L'Occitane Amber and Yves Rocher Voile d'Ambre, two fragrances I absolutely adore. I find nothing about those two scents to be even remotely similar to the way that PB Ambre Gris smells on my skin.

Truly gorgeous!!! This is one of my favorites and one of the strong holy grail contenders in my collection. Ambre Gris is an absolute treasure. This is a must have for those who love amber, myrrh and cinnamon, but also tuberose lovers as well. With Ambre Gris you're treated to a delicious oriental; a sophisticated and regal fragrance. Semi-sweet, semi-spicy, salty and luxurious. It's reminiscent of a cashmere blanket; cozy, sensual and rich. I have a 3.3 oz bottle and I also have a backup bottle. It's that serious. lol When I put my nose to my wrist I instantly think of gold and the wealth is symbolizes... that's Ambre Gris.

I bought this blind based on the reviews and am thrilled to say it did not dissapoint! I couldn't be happier! This is indeed a treasure! First, I just need to say that the bottle is very opulent looking and the sprayer is the best I've ever had! The juice is phenomenal! I envisioned it being a bit warmer based on the notes, but the pink pepper opening is light and almost fresh! It does remind me of something I can't put my finger on. The warmth of the spices and slight sweetness round out the fragrance leaving only a smooth complex and changing fragrant journey that is very pleasant from start to finish.

I get a fair bit of musk and creaminess that reminds me very much of Jaipur Saphir ( which I used to wear the crap out of, I loved it so much!)in the drydown. I think this is far more refined and well calibrated though. It stays close to the body, but I kept catching whiffs of the sillage in various stages of the development. It lasts easily 12 hours+ on my skin.
All in all, a very comforting, cashmere wrapped type of scent, great for cooler weather, this is one I will be wearing a LOT of in the fall/winter! Great value for a very expensive smelling, high quality fragrance.

Interesting. Quite a few reviews for this fragrance. If you ask me, I think the abundance of reviews rides a thin line between product accessibility and quality. I don't find this to be super duper special. I agree with Joliecat. This is definitely a oriental for beginners. This is your typical amber with all of the department store bells and whistles. Certainly not versatile enough to be a blind buy. On the other hand, this is more unisex than what most people think. What's the definition of soft? When I think soft, something like Santal Blush or Chantecaille Kalimantan comes to mind definitely not Amber Gris. If you take the emotion out of it and add some perspective, you will discover the mediocrity. On another note: This easily surpassed the 10+ hour mark.

Amber Gris is a nice, not too sweet, very soft, very lightly spicy scent. Suitable in any climate, year round. Great for the office, or anywhere, as it is non offensive, with moderate silage.

Great oriental for beginners, since it's not too complex or heavy. Perfectly unisex, long lasting.

Amber Gris is VERY different from most ambers. Unlike warm, sweet brown ambers, Amber Gris is dry, very lightly gently sweetened, and quite salty.

Is it beachy ? Yes, salty, but no fishy smell at all. Is it sexy ? Yes, like a mermaid is sexy...aloof, unreachable, enticing, unique, exotic, a siren.
Amber Gris is only slightly warm, like an ocean breeze, early on a summer morning.

Amber Gris is very classy, smells like a unique high end expensive fragrance, but sells for a wonderfully low affordable price.

Unobtrusive, Amber Gris is also great for layering, to tone down sweetness in other fragrances and make them last longer. I LOVE Amber Gris !

I absolutely love this fragrance. Because of it, I understand why people have a signature scent. For me, it provides a feeling of safeness and security. It's as if nothing can be amiss while enveloped in its warm and protective embrace. If something were to dare go awry, the creamy benzoin and sacred myrrh act like a balm to soothe the slight.

I feel like I emanate both strength and peace while wearing this. Yet there is an invitation of sensuality in its sweet and salty undercurrents. The amber acts as an underwriter of acceptance. If I were Ambre Gris, I'd make the sea my shrine, the hearth my home and pleasure would be my intimate familiar.

I can't get enough of it - anytime, anyplace, any season. I'd become it if I could. Needless to say, it is a presiding and permanent resident in my perfume pantry.

Thanks everyone for your comments on this fabulous fragrance, as they inspired me to search for Ambre Gris, despite i'm not into oriental perfumes. It was worth searching.

Oriental fragrances usually appear to be too heavy for ash blondes' pale skin. But this well-balanced and long-lasting fragrance is smooth and light, while each phase of its developing is well-articulated and intensive.

As many commentators have already noted, Ambre Gris is comfortable, warm, lightly spicy and lightly sweet. It's good both for socializing and for a private aromatherapy :) And it comes in a well-crafted bottle. A delightful acquisition to the fragrance collection.

p.s. I agree with Jht4060 that Ambre Gris could become a smooth male fragrance too - if the sweet note in it will interact well with the skin.

Advabart, that's very interesting. Still I'm surprised that there is no gaiac wood in the "official" notes, since I can smell it very clearly.

Not once did I wonder where fragrantica gets its lists of notes. This is not the first time I've found discrepancies between the listed notes on top of the page, and those stated by the official brand site.

Here is the pyramid of notes, as they appear on Balmain website:

Head notes
Pink Berries, Sage

Heart notes
Tuberose, Frangipani, Myrrh Essence, Incense

Base notes
Grey Amber Infusion, Benzoin, Tonka Beans, Cedarwood

So, where does the truth lie?

There is something subtly seductive about Balmain Ambre Gris. I think it must be the ambergris (or rather its synthetic reconstruction), which is one of the few individual odorants that I don't own, so I can't be sure I am picking it out correctly. Well, if fine authentic ambergris smells like this but better, then I finally understand what all the talk is about. It is a fairly subtle skin scent, with the following associations to me, in order of prominence: cool amber, salt, skin, sandalwood, sex, earth, sweet. Surely some of the fascination with ambergris stems from the preposterous fact that it is sperm whale bile secretions used to coat giant squid beaks and passed in their feces (probably not in vomit, as is often stated) that has floated in the ocean for 20 years and looks like a rock, but it would appear that some of the fascination is indeed the scent.

To my nose Balmain Ambre Gris is completely unisex; in fact I increasingly wonder how many male-appropriate scents lurk in the vast and confusing arena of women's perfumes. Since the women's perfume market is so much larger than the men's, I suspect that a lot of perfumes are labeled feminine without much thought (payback for the bad old days when cars were marketed only to men, vanity mirrors on the passenger side only please!). All I can rule out for now (for my preferences, mind you) are those that are mostly rose or overwhelmingly bright floral.

I often like my scents bigger than this, but Ambre Gris has captivated me - I am ready to do your bidding mistress. Tell me where to lie.

I love to spray this on before I go to bed. It is such a relaxing, sensual perfume. I adore the bottle design!

My perfect amber fall scent. Soft, comfty, smooth... That feeling you get when you wrap yourself with a very soft, luxury cashmere blanket on a gray, chilly November evening.

While there is a beauty to this scent,I love amber scents,I would most certainly describe it as a skin scent.Perhaps it is my chemistry,but it has no silage whatsoever...sadly I have to sniff my wrists quite hard to get anything which disappointed me.
Some people say it has a masculine edge, while I don't find that, I think that the metallic edge it has causes it to be very neutral, it has no sweetness yet it is warm.Somewhat of a flat perfume, it doesnt take me anywhere in its development,,in truth, this was a blind buy that did not excite me,Top marks for the Art Deco bottle though.

Caldo, bellissima, accogliente e il profumo del bel tempo caduta poco prima che il freddo si regola dentro Pensate caldo autunno d'oro e foglie terrose, con un tocco di tristezza nell'aria.

I did'n know that two perfumes could be so similar like Balmain's Ambre Gris and Jill Sander's Sensations. Ten years ago i bought Sensations and it has been my signature scent for a very long time. Today, after a blind order (which I made because of the beautiful notes listed here), Ambre Gris has come, and I almost couldn't believe how similar those two are. I don't regret because I love them both.

I am a newbie to the fragrantica world...and the perfume world! I've always just stuck with what I know, but I've begun a quest for a new scent. I don't know much about notes...when I smell fragrances, my mind tells stories.
For Ambre Gris, it is a crisp fall day and I'm wearing a warm snuggly orange sweater, taking my dog for a walk by the lake. All feels right with the world and I feel very content. Smiles at random strangers and a nod at the cute guy with the friendly lab caps off this walk. Then, it's off to home for a classic novel and glass of wine in front of the fire.
I've seen others describe this fragrance as "snuggly". It's an apt word for this lovely perfume. I will be stashing this away to wear when I need some snuggly-ness :)

This scent is autumn in a bottle. It is warm, creamy and absolutely beautiful. The amber, tuberose and myrrh blend together so well that it will take you back to a beautiful fall afternoon. Warm, gorgeous, cozy and the smell of the beautiful fall weather just before the chill sets in. Think warm golden fall and earthy leaves with a touch of sadness in the air. Beautiful and well done!

Delicious, warm, abstract...a fine piece of art you can wear on your skin. First of all, I am a pepper lover and it loves my skin so I am very pleased. There is just a certain "heat" emanating from this perfume. Almost like an EXPENSIVE incense lit and smoldering soft and slow. This is just another offering from Balmain that is top notch. 100% class.

Happy Perfuming! ♥

Warm, subtle, puts me in mind of a thick, camel-coloured cotton coverlet. While wearing this scent, I feel cared-for and enveloped in a "don't you worry about anything" kind of love. The myrrh is what I notice most adding to this feeling, there's not so much floral which is a good thing with this particular scent. It is grown-up but without the strict responsiblities of being a little older, a little wiser. Soft and very agreeable for both day and night. I was pleasantly surprised because I was wondering how the unisex ability would end up on my female skin, but it works nicely.

This fragrance is indescribably beautiful, and I would liken it to the most creamy, elegant silk that has ever rested against my hide. There is a sweetness to this, and the resinous beauty of amber, but there is no fruity wallop to render this into a cloying, attention-whore mess. This scent is to me like a swirl of the finest perfumes I smell at the opera, as everyone settles into their seats. The overture is beginning and the diva is behind the curtain, ready to dazzle us. Wait until you see her encore!

If you like a womanly, elegant fragrance of distinction, I'd be comfortable to recommend this as a blind buy. This is high on my MUST buy list.

Wow, okay this frag is, well, interesting. One thing I can say for sure is the longevity is out of this world. I only put on two sprays, and 9 hours later I still feel like I am choking on the fumes b/c of how strong it is. I was considering washing it off but I decided to stick it out. I think even with one spray this would be just too much for me to handle. It's so overwhelming, and almost headache inducing. The scent was fine for the first hour, and actually the first few minutes really reminded me of Addict and were nice, but then the sweet, musky, balmy, powdery amber just completely overwhelmed me. This frag is not for the faint of heart. I don't think I could make it through this fragrance again. NOT a good choice for a blind buy, IMO.

That’s a nice, smooth composition. All of Ambre Gris’ ingredients mingle so well that I am finding it hard to identify them, which is actually good.

While some of amber frags get too sweet or too salty, this one manages to maintain a good balance between sweetness and saltiness. It’s rather on the light side and doesn’t get oily thick, which can easily happen with amber. You get best of both worlds with this one, as it counterweights amber's heaviness with lightness of musk. And even though I am not a big fan of mixing these two notes, I am finding this scent pretty nice.

Having said that, I won’t be purchasing it, as it lacks sillage, longevity and character. That’s a pity, because it’d be great to have this elegant bottle among others in my collection. Its color together with the name reflect the character of the frag quite well, as it does smell.. greyish.

This is the prettiest fragrance I have smelled in a long time...well since two days ago when I re-tested L' Heure Bleu.

I have always loved tuberose in fragrance but this one has a very light, sophisticated presence. Rich and creamy, AG suits me well, it lasts all day and surrounds me with a buttery sweet tuberose that cuts through the amber sparingly enough that they both get to share center stage.

I really want this on my have list, AG is too lovely to be left sitting on a shelf. What a perfect balance of notes that not only work well together, but compliment each other effortlessly.

This fell flat on my skin after a test yesterday. It is a straightforward amber. A perfume lacking in personality. I hate drama and big sillage in perfume but in the same token, I do not like perfumes without any character. This one falls under the latter category. Boring.

On my skin, the dry down is exactly like Jessica Simpson Fancy Nights. Really sweet dry jammy . I do smell the flowers in it, vaguely, which is unexpected in something mostly dry and ambery. Not bad, not offensive, not too different either. For me the bottle is the best part of this frag. I think I prefer Fancy Nights, though similar, on my skin the Balmain has a bit of a playdoh vein running through it on me. Not sure if it is worth my shelf space as there would be many others I will wear before this.

Soft, subtle, sophisticated --- this scent is the opposite of most current fragrances for women. The bottle is also exquisite, a big heavy Art Deco-like piece. Lovely!

This scent makes me imagine I am a black top model or Halle Berry, or even Iman …I find it very, very, elegant & exotic.

Glad I bought the full size EDP bottle :)) I love amber and this is a nice clean powdery one. Musky blend of sweet resin and a slight tuberose. Drys down powdery, soft and sexy on the skin.

All I can do is stupidly repeat "wonderful". It melts with my skin and it is as if my body gives this warm ambery very subtle scent.

I've got a small sample. When I tried it for the first time, I didn't like it much. I though it was salty, masculine and weird! As it dried a bit, it became sweeter and warmer and I took my lesson. Be patient! Wait. It seems as if it has two stages. The sour salty at the beginning and the warm trully ambery at its heart and base. The second time I tried it, I was already in love and I enjoyed even its first stage. Now, I'm sure that I want it. It is amazing warm, elegant, sexy, extremely long lasting. It unfolds a veil of a summer breeze under the warm afternoon sun. Imagine you are sitting on the sand gazing at the purple sunset over the sea, and your unwashed salted body is hydrated with a sweet ambery-vanilla body lotion. Take a breathe and enjoy all the smells that surrounds you....Wake up now...cause this is a perfume for Fall!

I just got my bottle of Ambre Gris today thanks to a wonderful swap with a lovely fragrantica member. Wow, I love this juice. Warm amber,benzoin, cinnamon and myrrh with those lovely flowers in the background and the woodiness in the drydown. What's not to love? This is amazing. Mmmm, Mmmm,Mmmnh! And when you first spray it on it smells salty somehow, like the ocean and actual ambergris. This is one of the best ambers ever. Sorry, Lutens and Sheldrake, but I like this better than Ambre Sultan. So positively delicious! And it has a vintage feel without that "I'm from another era" and I don't belong here smell. Ambre Gris smells like a confident, sexy woman, not a girl.

On my skin this juice has good lasting power, much better than the expensive Lubin, which I tried earlier today. Part of the difference in duration of scent that I experienced may have to do with the fact that I spray my perfumes on the backs of my hands (as well as the more traditional pulse points). I find that my scents last better that way, especially since I moisturize the heck out of my hands, they hold scents very well.

To my nose and my brain, this gorgeous fragrance is right up there with some of the classics like L'heure Bleue, my all-time favorite Orienal scent. This is also great layered with Hermessence Epice Marine!

Longevity is not so good, on me! BUT!!!, BIG BUT.... This fragrance is unisexually amazing! It is balmy and ambery but I get a lot of the benzoin/musk as solid notes. It just works... It's wonderfully seasonal for fall and for those "in between" moments... I
This scent identifies the person who wears it.... The only problem IMO, you have to have a bottle handy to reapply to experience the "wow" factor that comes with the first application.... It lingers on clothing better, fyi...
Bottom line... great buy for those who are attracted to the notes listed... I blind bought, with some members' assistance; very satisfied!!

this perfume is beautiful and is very much similar to prada l"eau ambree...it has no sillage ...its beautiful in warm weather...i wish it stayed longer or maybe thats the beauty of it that u never get enough of it...thanku dina for your suggestion to smell this beauty

This smells like Yves Rocher Voile Ambre, mixed with buttery salty popcorn. I can almost smell something kind of soapy in there too. Oh, and it`s very peppery.

Good sillage and longevity on clothes at least.

Very nice.

I`m not so sure about the look of the bottle though. I mean - what`s the deal with the golf ball...?

The cinnamon/immortelle combination reminds me a bit of L de Lolita Lempicka, but the amber, benzoin and myrrh add warmth and body to the fragrance where I find L sometimes falls flat. It's a cozy, comfortable scent, but still sexy. It's hard for me to picture anyone being offended by this. This is the fourth fragrance I ever bought blind at full price, and I'm so glad I did, as I understand it is now d/c. Shame, it's so lovely.

I love you ambre gris,
you're such a warm, soft, sexy embrace!
I'm sure this baby works for the gents too.

But, all I frankly need to say in this review is:
"Makes me horny."

When it first hit my skin, Ambre Gris reminded me of Arab fumes, woods, oud, myrrh, without being sharp or cloying. Gradually, it turned smoky releasing beautiful tobacco notes.

I would classify Ambre Gris as a soft woody/soft spicy fragrance, and I would absolutely recommend it to men as well... I find it a perfect unisex fragrance.

Though I find it very unique, I wouldn't buy it right away... maybe once I finish my Crystal Noir bottle which falls into the same category IMO, without implying any similarity...

Update:
Couldn't resist and had to have it... Enjoying this beauty for the 2nd day today :)

oh this is so elgant wonderful amazing smell ,today i tested in åhlens and wooow say what????warm,cinnamon,amber soft lyx smell!!!10/10

have had this sitting in the bathroom for a while and thought, give it a go today, see if this lifts my mood. it did.
initial base notes of amber gris and cinnamon are awesome for that bit of kick .
The longevity from what i remember was about 6 hours and still giving off occasional whiffs.
a bit more feminine than masc. in my opinion for a unisex smell. But think it works great on a cloudy summer day.
though there was a strong vanilla base there, but not sure.

Oh, this is beautiful! I've had my decant for a while, but didn't give it an all-day wearing until now.
Ambre Gris has it all. Warm and inviting, soft and elegant, attractive and sophisticated. It's light enough for daytime casual wear, but I wouldn't think twice to wear it special occasions too. I will need a big bottle of this gem.
I had a sample of it a while ago, and I remember I was thinking "Well, nice, very nice - but nothing special". must have been anosmic that day.
Sillage and longevity are amazing! I put it on at 6am and when I got home at 4pm, it was still going strong with occasional whiffs. 10 hour longevity is really good - but 10 hour sillage is fantastic!

Very unique, seductive, sweet, but classy (not pink). Complex, but not heavy. I absolutely love it. It also stay long on the skin. Will highly recommend it.
The other once that I love are: Clive Christian #1 and "C". "Winsor" by Creed. "Winsor", btw is an unbelievable perfume!

Gorgeous smell.... Reminds me something mediteranian, a plant that has baby-pink flowers, like a little bunch of hair.... Aroma is pleasant and soft, mellow....well, these are my connotations with the AG.

Package is excellent, very impressive, solid, beautiful bottle design, indeed, and could make a fantastic present if it is meant to impress, but.....

I do not know why nobody mentioned that- sillage and staying power is ZERO. I mean that.You smell it just out of the bottle, once it is just sprayed, 5 min - that's it. And i do not lessen it at all. I put this perfume into the list of after-shower mists or smth light -springy/summery, like really-really light that you would go to bed with. I have 100ml bottle and for the price i paid (30 euro)- it needs to be quartered at least to be true to it's value....

I am very surprised with this one, as it is sold as EDP concentration and i would say it is a splash.


But saying that, - i still like the light aroma of AG,- ah, well - it is not the only 'shower mist' that i owe ( Hermes Un Jardin Apres La Mousson is the other one) !!! But i have found the way out to use it more properly- i layer it with John Varvatos!!!!
The concoction seems to be very charming, as they are both in the similar category of smells (for me at least).

Do not buy it if you are after 'killer'-type perfume sillage-wise.