Ingredient Guide
In ordinary usage, amber means the gemstone formed from hardened tree resin. In perfumery, however, it refers to an “amber note” created to evoke amber’s golden color and radiance. Rather than actual fossilized resin, it is a sweet, warm composition made mainly from resins such as labdanum and benzoin, together with vanillin or natural vanilla.
It is also completely different from ambergris and unrelated to it, so care is needed because the two are often confused. Some perfumes nevertheless use ambergris and amber almost interchangeably in their fragrance pyramids. Ambergris does not, in fact, smell like an amber accord.
Using synthetic ingredients freed perfumers from the constraints of “nature.” New horizons of creativity opened up. Amber, for example, is one of perfumery’s bases, yet it is a substance with no connection either to yellow amber, which is fossilized resin, or to ambergris, a concretion from the sperm whale’s intestine. It was the first abstract scent, born from the invention of vanillin at the end of the nineteenth century.
Jean-Claude Ellena
What Does It Smell Like in Perfume?
In perfume, “amber” is not the name of a single raw material. It is an accord that layers resins and sweet materials to create warm depth. Natural labdanum resinoid gives a dry, lingering scent reminiscent of amber, wood, and leather, while Siam benzoin adds a vanilla-like balsamic character and powdery softness. Commercial materials such as AMBRANUM, which combines labdanum and olibanum, are also available. Emphasizing the resinous side makes the effect drier; emphasizing the sweetness of benzoin and similar materials makes it softer and more enveloping.
How to Choose Amber Fragrances
Amber’s warmth can come from vanilla sweetness or the depth of resins such as labdanum. A love of sweet perfumes does not always mean a taste for the darker, drier side of resin. Knowing which of these appeals to you helps narrow the choice.
Comparing Amber Fragrances
Grand Soir Eau de Parfum (Maison Francis Kurkdjian)
The warm sweetness of amber and vanilla has a benzoin-like character. The fragrance also includes an accord of labdanum, lavandin and cinnamon leaf.
Ambre Sultan (Serge Lutens)
An amber built from labdanum and vanilla, with resin at its center. It shares vanilla sweetness with Grand Soir, but labdanum stands out here.
Find Your Next Fragrance
To explore more perfumes, open our Fragrance Finder. Choose “Favorite fragrances & notes” on the home screen, then search in the “Favorite notes” field. Select a note you like from the results and press “Next” to continue. You can start with notes even if you do not yet have a favorite perfume.
