Les Indemodables Ambre Supreme was fresh, light, and like a veil of brined jasmine with a brighter, spiced opening, sweeter, orange blossom heart, and smoky, earthy base. It was a skin scent almost from the beginning and had a salty, cool feel throughout.

• top notes: aldehydes, clary sage, cardamom, pink pepper
• heart notes: neroli, Moroccan jasmine, patchouli
• base notes: immortelle, ambergris

The opening was full of aldehydes and fresh-blooming jasmine in spring’s early light with a peppery tickle at the end of an inhale. There was a saltiness of the ambergris combined with the aldehydes made it seem aquatic. Soft neroli diffused through the jasmine, blending the two together and adding a touch of sweetness.

15 minutes into the development, Ambre Supreme turns darker with an earthy, herbaceous green twist with the jasmine dominating the neroli. There remained a saltiness throughout the next two hours, but it was primarily jasmine with patchouli underneath and a smoky, barely-there honey depth from the immortelle.

The scent seemed especially airy, almost like a gossamer veil of brine and jasmine with a little dirty patchouli whispering in the background. It weakened significantly after four hours of wear, and the drydown was slightly smoky, earthy, and salty–all quite subtle given how hard it was to detect the scent at that point.

Application

For testing, I used three sprays (they seemed… unusually minimal) of a 3ml sample vial applied to the underside and topside of my wrist area on my left arm. I used an unscented moisturizer prior to applying the scent as this is also my swatching arm (aka, incredibly parched at any given moment) as I found scent did not hold well here otherwise. 

Longevity

It lasted for three hours until it was a skin-scent and about eight hours before it was quite difficult to detect on my skin. The sillage and projection were light to begin with and weakened shortly after applying.

Personal Thoughts

Ambergris is typically replicated by synthetics in perfumery these days, as it is an incredibly rare and expensive ingredient to obtain in its natural form, but this fragrance says it has a 10% dosage of “specially sourced and tinctured using [their] proprietary ultrasound extraction.” This was actually what convinced me to try a sample of it!

I expected greater shifts in the journey, and I definitely didn’t anticipate the jasmine coming through as strongly as it did. I’m still working my way into white florals, so this one is not on my list to buy just given how strong the jasmine was!

Available Sizes

• 100ml for $275
• 18ml for $93 (harder to find size in the US)
• 0.7ml sample for $6

Where to Buy

• Jovoy Paris
• LuckyScent

Les Indemodables Ambre Supreme Perfume Review

Les Indemodables Ambre Supreme Perfume Review

Les Indemodables Vanille Havane Eau de Parfum is about the celebration of vanilla as an ingredient, but it’s less sugary vanilla and more the vanilla bean. It is a heavier, headier, and darker fragrance with lots of body and little airiness. In many ways, I felt like I didn’t get “vanilla” as I know it but the facets of how vanilla can play a role in perfume.

Vanille Havane Notes

The brand’s website had some interesting details about what was used; they listed house extracts that were used: Vanilla ‘Mauvais’ Comoros infusion Grand Cru at 9.1%, Cocoa Columbia ultrasound extract Grand Cru at 3.1%, and Jasmine Egypt concrete distillat Grand Cru at 0.2%. Retailers list the notes as: rum, cocoa, dried fruits, tobacco, floral notes, clove, cinnamon, cardamom, woods, and leather.

What does Vanille Havane Smell Like?

It opened with rich, spiced rum; incredibly decadent and boozy in its first minute before the clove and cinnamon override the alcoholic quality and then merge with candied fruits and cocoa powder, giving the rum depth and sweetness. It only took a few more minutes for tobacco blew in with cardamom underneath it, slightly peppery and lemony. The cinnamon and clove intensified, adding even more warmth to the fragrance, but I found that the cinnamon wafted in–and left more clove present between the two–and out against the sweet tobacco.

Vanille Havane grew smoother and smelled of spiced woods, sweet tobacco, and and the beginnings of vanilla sweetness wrapped around dried fruits. The vanilla sweetness moved more and more to the forefront with sweet tobacco and spiced woods filled the background. After an hour, it was spicy-sweet vanilla, sweet tobacco, and woodsy with the underpinnings of fruit just barely soaked in rum. It softened and became more muffled over the next few hours until it became sweet, spiced vanilla and tobacco.

Longevity

It lasted for six hours until it was a skin-scent and about nine hours before it was quite difficult to detect on my skin. The sillage was light to moderate and dropped within an hour of wear, while the projection was more firmly moderate and dropped significantly after two and a half hours of wear.

Personal Notes

I enjoyed this one quite a bit, though it’s expensive enough that not something I’m giving much consideration at this time. One aspect that really stood out to me was how it retained a lot of booziness on my skin for longer than I anticipated. I’ll be keeping the remaining sample I have and revisiting later on down the road.

Testing Methodology

For testing, I used 1/3 of a 0.7ml sample vial dabbed to the underside and topside of my wrist area on my left arm. I used an unscented moisturizer prior to applying the scent as this is also my swatching arm (aka, incredibly parched at any given moment) as I found scent did not hold well here otherwise. 

Availability

Vanille Havane is available for $260 for 50ml.

If possible, I highly recommend trying a fragrance before purchasing a full bottle because fragrance can wear differently just because of skin chemistry. Skin chemistry can effect not just the longevity of a fragrance but also what notes are prominent or hidden.

Vanille Havane Samples

We recommend the following retailers for purchasing decanted samples (typically 0.7ml to 2ml in size). This is a fuller list, so individual availability may depend on inventory.

• Jovoy Paris
• LuckyScent
• Scent Split
• Twisted Lily

Where to Buy

• LuckyScent

Les Indemodables Vanille Havane Perfume Review

Les Indemodables Vanille Havane Perfume Review