Parfum d’Empire Fougere Bengale Eau de Parfum is a real romp from opening to drydown with an interplay of notes that start as black licorice before quickly morphing to ginger tea, hay, and maple syrup in the opening moments. It gets more honeyed, less gingery and spiced, over time but maintains a syrupy quality for sometime before drying down to softly-spiced honey.

• top notes: tea, ginger, lavender
• heart notes: hay, tobacco
• base notes: tonka bean, oakmoss, patchouli, vanilla

The opening was strong and intense, assertive with almost spicy black licorice. It grew warmer with strong, more herbal, ginger tea that was incredibly aromatic and drier with hay. Then it was like someone drizzled light maple syrup over everything and let it pour down the sides. The tea quality ensured that there was something that lightened the gingery, maple syrup.

Fougere Bengale drifted into a more honeyed stage, thicker and more golden, with ginger as an undertone, coupled with sweet tobacco in front of an earthy backdrop. It became drier, almost dusty, at times as hay and oakmoss intertwined, and sometimes, the whole thing smelled faintly curry-like, but to my nose, it was more ginger-maple through a bale of hay and nowhere near savory enough to suggest real curry.

The fragrance sweetened as it headed to its drydown; more honeyed, less spiced, and even the hay began to recede until it was a whisper of softly-spiced honey.

Application

For testing, I used half 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. 

Longevity

It lasted for six hours until it was a skin-scent and about 10 hours before it was quite difficult to detect on my skin. The sillage and projection were moderate with the sillage dropping faster than the projection within three hours of wear.

Personal Thoughts

Though it’s not a note I’ve sought out in the past, but I have noticed that fragrances that have detectable tea notes often appeal to me. I really liked how the tea worked against the more honeyed sweetness, as I don’t find I am as enamored with honeyed sweetness as I feel like I should be! I don’t mind it, but it’s not my top choice. It’s a sample I’ll be keeping to re-wear later on but not something I’m dashing out to buy yet!

Available Sizes

• 50ml for $115
• 0.7ml sample for $4

Where to Buy

• LuckyScent

Parfum d'Empire Fougere Bengale Perfume Review

Parfum d'Empire Fougere Bengale Perfume Review

Parfum d’Empire Ambre Russe Eau de Parfum has a biting, vodka on the rocks kind of opening that might catch one off-guard initially, but it’s soon overtaken by hot, warm spices, slight earthiness, and amber. I detected a note of sweet tea through the opening and middle phases, which was initially complemented by rich amber and spiced smoke. The leather emerged when the tea subsided, which was nearer to the drydown, when Ambre Russe was warm, very spicy amber and incense (though I think the incense generated more “spice” than smokiness overall).

Ambre Russe Notes

• top notes: vodka, champagne
• heart notes: tea, cinnamon, coriander, birch, juniper tar, leather
• base notes: amber, incense, musk

What does Ambre Russe Smell Like?

The opening was white vodka poured over ice with a splash of spiced amber–it had that bite of alcohol in the first minute–that was subsumed by boozy sweetness laced with cinnamon and coriander and had a touch of earthiness. The incense quickly followed, swirled around the rich amber and heady mix of spice in a well-blended haze where the notes seamlessly blended into each other.

There was a hint of sweet tea spilled over the spiced, resinous amber infused with incense that became more pronounced after 10 minutes of wear. The tea note amplified over the next half hour, while the amber became less treacly and more smoked and spiced, joined by the intensity of the incense. At the end of the first hour, the ruggedness of leather soaked up the black tea, which seemed to amplify the incense and smothered the amber somewhat. It ended up being one of the spicier, more cinnamon-ladened ambers I’ve tried.

Longevity

It lasted for five hours until it was a skin-scent and about 10 hours before it was quite difficult to detect on my skin. The sillage and projection were moderate with the sillage dropping faster than the projection after two hours of wear.

Personal Notes

This was another scent recommended to me by a friend when I wanted to explore amber as a note. I enjoyed thoroughly, but Profumum’s Ambra Aurea still appealed to me more (every time I wear it, I’m constantly sniffing my wrists to inhale and indulge the fragrance) between the two, but Ambre Russe would work for someone who wants less golden amber and more spiced amber.

Testing Methodology

For testing, I used half 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

Ambre Russe is available for $115 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.

Ambre Russe 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
• Jovoy Paris

Parfum d'Empire Ambre Russe Perfume Review

Parfum d'Empire Ambre Russe Perfume Review