Ambrarem (Edition Rare) – Histoires De Parfums

Ambrarem starts with a blast of pepper, and a sweet, smoky syrup that reminds me slightly of a less bonfire-like version of CB I Hate Perfume’s Burning Leaves – that gorgeous maple leaf smell set on fire. The smoke here doesn’t come from a birch tar overload though, and is instead a big ole synthetic dose of oud. This oud fragrance is sweet enough to give you a cavity, with a nice dose of leathery castoreum to give Ambrarem a pungent-rot. The overall feeling of the opening is similar to the decayed white florals of fragrances such as Charogne - it’s bizarre. A lovely mineralic quality weaves in and out in the opening – and manages to trail through the heart of this fragrance – not quite as marine as in Petroleum, but similar…

The syrup never seems to truly take on an amber form, and instead mills around in a bit of a mish mash of vanilla, resinous notes and a dose of powder (a similar idea to how Lutens’ dissects florals in his fragrances). It makes Ambrarem multifaceted I suppose, but it’s too linear for me to consider it a shapeshifter. In fact, Ambrarem’s development is what lets it down for me… once the pepper burns off and you’ve wrapped your head around this “syrup accord” (which doesn’t take much longer than five minutes), that’s pretty much what you’re stuck with until the castoreum takes over..

The amber turns woody (surprise!), and the oud kind of sits in the background adding a little medicinal kick every now and again. A hint of saffron shows up, not doing very much. I like saffron, I think it’s interesting, but it’s subtlety here and uncreative use (paired with oud) makes it a bit so-so for me. But it’s there! The castoreum starts to dominate int he drydown, leading into a slightly sweeter Mona Di Orio Cuir finale. Castoreum overlaid with powder and syrup – a slightly smoky oud/leather combo that has been done with a lot more balls in other fragrances – but it’s nice enough What finishes Ambrarem a few hours later is a straightforward benzoin that leads until the fragrance vanishes.

Now I don’t mean to be all doom and gloom about Ambrarem, but here’s another thing I’m not too fond of… the texture is very translucent, light and almost too easy to manage. Fair enough, these could be challenging compositions if amped up, but as the are, the Edition Rare trio have rounded out anything difficult to be as smooth as can be. A good thing I suppose when you have a fragrance laden with castoreum, amber, oud and such… but for my taste, this just doesn’t quite give me the hit I need. It’s made to be too polite.
Honestly, I’d love to smell this on someone, it is a good smell, but not enough for me to want to wear that’s for sure. Still – I think this side of Histoires De Parfums is much more adventurous and fun to sniff than the majority of the standard lineup, but, I’m still not fully converted!

Ambrarem Edition Rare 60ml EDP Histoires De Parfums – 125 Euros http://www.histoiresdeparfums.com

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Petroleum (Edition Rare) – Histoires De Parfums

A huge hit of animalic, smoky leather and medicinal oud that brings to mind Oud Cuir D’Arabie – starts Petroleum. Along with a bizarre inclusion of heavy aldehydes that gives it this huge – futuristic light and lift. It makes the weight of the ingredients far lighter than expected but keeping the dense texture. The glue-y oud is lovely! In the same vein as the Montale’s, but slightly lighter and easier to digest.

Whether it’s an inclusion of rose oxide or not, there’s a delicate, but heavily metallic rose note in the heart – which combined with the leathery oud does bring to mind a kind of petrol-like accord, but still given light from the aldehyde remains. An underlying sweetness of amber becomes present quite quickly, but still – the bitterness of the leather keeps Petroleum dark, modern, and slightly morbid. The leather notes introduce an animalic civet which provides this rich depth and a slight sourness throughout Petroleum – and the contrast between sour/metallic/aldehydic and medicinal, is impressively combined into something that smells smooth, rounded, and appealing.

As Petroleum gains more clarity and re-arranges itself a little bit to become calmer on the skin, an unexpected, ozonic, almost marine type note comes in. The soiled sea water almost turns into driftwood – adding a whole new element to the already confusing mix. The marine/oud vibe is what stays throughout the heart of Petroleum, and it sounds like it completely doesn’t work but it’s so so good. The saltiness from the ozonic accord, continues to add some dirtiness rather than freshen up the fragrance, and it’s obvious that Petroleum was definitely not made to be “pretty”. It is however far more than that, it’s a beautiful perfume that is mysterious and unlike anything else I’ve tried.

The fragrance gets lighter and lighter and as the base comes in a little more, the oud becomes light and almost translucent, the leather more of a thin, vinyl-like sheen with the animalic civet lightening slightly into a soiled white musk. The marine notes calm down also, but never fully let-go of the bilgey, iodine-like association. The rose practically vanishes from sight, leaving behind the only remains of anything remotely “perfumey” in here. But as I said earlier, everything is smooth, clear, and surprisingly easy to wear. The wonderful petrol note is just a splattering of oil on the skin now – and whilst the textures aren’t challenging, the unsettling aroma is still hard on the nose (and stomach).

All in all, I love this, and it will definitely go on my “must buy” list (I was close to blind-buying this a few months back and I should’ve gone for it!). Without a doubt, the best in the Histoires De Parfums line. Recommended.

Edition Rare Petroleum 60ml EDP Histoires De Parfums – 125 Euros www.histoiresdeparfums.com

1828 – Histoires De Parfums

1828 for me opens like a relatively generic but perfectly nice cologne. A tart bergamot and grapefruit with a hint of nutmeg to add spice. There’s some cool mentholated eucalyptus up top, refreshing and herbal. It is undoubtably blended to perfection though with good quality materials, I hate to throw about the term “generic”, what I mean is it brings nothing new… but it is nicely done. The nutmeg warms the citrus which persists for a little longer than expected – just as the cool effect of the eucalyptus disappears all too soon.

A dry cedar wood comes into the quiet remains of the opening along with a dose of clean pine. A peppery incense adds only a delicate smoke, the dry woods and pine quietening into something smooth, tame and plain.
Any power of the opening, and any juicy fresh quality is lost, and instead of their being something exciting underneath, I quickly realise that’s the best I’m going to get.

The citrus opening is gone entirely within a couple of minutes; the smooth, common, pepper/wood/incense base sits on the skin for a few hours, never cracking a smile or calling you for a sniff. If I breathe deeply on it, a whiff of the good stuff up top manages to claw its way to the surface for a moment or two which smells better the second time around.
A lovely patchouli in the base isn’t loud enough to get noticed unless my nose is squished up to my hand – I wish this part was louder. The incense loses it’s smoke and becomes more resinous, giving the base of 1828 a green, amber-ish feel. It’s easy enough to break down and spread out the contents of this fragrance to try and convince myeslf it’s better than it is, but in its entirity I wouldn’t give it a second thought if I sniffed it out a department store bottle.
Clean, balanced and non-distracting, an ideal work scent for those who desire no motivation from their daily fragrance.

1828 60ml EDP Histoires De Parfums – 87 Euros histoiresdeparfums.com

1969 Parfum De Revolte – Histoires De Parfums

1969 Parfum De Revolte opens with the best peach note I’ve encountered. It’s soft, furry, and counterbalanced in sweetness by a bitter almost powdery chocolate. A delicate rose comes in pretty quickly and the fragrance instantly brings to mind S-Perfume’s brilliant 100% Love.
Something that would usually spoil this opening but manages to remain tame enough for me to enjoy is a warm clove note. The clove simply spices the chocolate, the peach and rose still dominating. A little dusting of iris underneath gives 1969 a lovely powdery texture.

Within minutes the patchouli from the base comes in, along with a smidge of oakmoss and adds a bitter green edge which makes the chocolate peach a little more savoury – not that it was particularly sweet to begin with anyway. There is also a prominent coffee note, one of the most literal I’ve smelt, blended with the patchouli but almost disguised by the cocoa. Basically the base is dark – patchouli, oakmoss, coffee and cocoa (which drags all the way through the fragrance from the heart). The light-hearted peach up top and light tea-rose manage to hold their ground and stay on the skin for a little longer than expected.

Still, the bright, juiciness of the opening disappears all too soon and it falls a little flat within 10/15 minutes. The fragrance is harmoniously blended, and when I say it falls flat – it still remains interesting, but nowhere near as moorish and exciting. Just as it all settles I notice the musk, which I really like. It’s a touch dirty and yet again, brings to mind that infamous “feet note” in 100% Love. Because of this musk and patchouli, 1969 manages to stay away from gourmand territory. Whilst it is almost mouthwatering at the beginning, the delicate florals, the green bitterness and the dirty musk give it an almost “off” quality that is compelling, but unappetizing. You wouldn’t want to eat this thing!

The clove is gone almost before I notice it, but there is still a delicate spice underneath. It almost smells like cumin, and adds to the musk’s raunchy quality to give it that slightly soiled smell that us perfumistas crave!
I really like 1969, whether I prefer it to 100% Love – well – I haven’t quite decided yet. Much more sampling of these two is needed because I will definitely end up with a bottle of one of them. I think it will be the S-Perfume, and my Histoires De Parfums first buy will be Tubereuse 3 Animale. But still, a lovely, unique perfume that whilst doesn’t keep its complicated personality throughout it’s life – it is still completely recognizable and thoroughly enjoyable. Highly recommended.

Histoires De Parfums 60ml 1969 Parfum De Revolte – 87 Euros – histoiresdeparfums.com

Tubereuse 3 Animale – Histoires De Parfums

Tubereuse 3 Animale opens super sweet and hugely floral, it brings to mind the dated, cheapie classics like Lou Lou by Cacharel, with its intense, high-pitched powder. It takes a good minute or so before it manages to rearrange itself, where a sugar-coated cinnamon spice and a big juicy tuberose come together.

At this point up top, the tuberose is clearly the lead, slightly lactonic, just hinting at towards its tropical side, fleshy and mouth-watering. The cinnamon spice begins to transform into a syrupy immortelle, far more on the maple syrup side of the scale than the curry. Dripped over the tuberose, it makes the big white floral smell honey drenched – indolic as ever and now with a whole new texture.

Tubereuse 3 Animale may sound like it’s all sugar and flowers, the great thing about it is what’s underneath – a big waft of pipe tobacco. It’s got that fruity, wine like aroma, with a dry hit of smoke. It adds to that honeyed texture of the immortelle and smells as though it would be sticky – mmm!
Drying it out a little bit is that subtle waft of hay (similar to Chergui) that I guess comes from a huge blob of musky coumarin. When this starts to come in, the tuberose settles in intensity and brings in a jasmine (I think), it kind of acts like a support – the tuberose has obviously been handled with a light hand so as not to drown out the quieter hay and tobacco, the jasmine keeps the juicy white floral accord glowing. The jasmine has been tamed into a bubblegum sweetness, similar to it’s use in Heeley’s Bubblegum Chic. But, where BC’s accord is paired with an overload of white musk to make something cheaply playful, Tubereuse 3 Animale has a solid, slightly dirty edge – tobacco, spicy immortelle, and rich red fruits, allowing the fragrance to be taken a lot more serious.

The drydown brings on a resinous amber, still smoked by the honeyed tobacco. The immortelle’s spice that disappeared at the start, seems to come back just a little bit as its rich syrup dries out. The tuberose/jasmine just about hangs around until the end, and the fragrance from start to finish feels like something classical and classy. Whilst completely different in smell, the first fragrance Tubereuse 3 Animale brought to mind was Parfumerie Generale’s beautiful Intrigant Patchouli – they both have that “this smells like a classic” feel (relating to the big powerhouses of the yesteryears).
The composition is tight, well thought out, and very wearable! For a fragrance containing immortelle, tuberose and bubblegum jasmine – I wouldn’t be surprised if the words alone sent some people running. It is not as loud as it sounds, and each note is tamed so that all ugliness (which some of us love) has been cut out – leaving all the juicy goodness inside this golden syrup A brilliant tuberose, easily unisex, and maybe even a perfect introduction to the big white flower… Thomas I hope you’ve smelt this!!

Tubereuse 3 Animale 60ml EDP Histoires De Parfums – 87 Euros histoiresdeparfums.com