Amber Absolutely

Im not the biggest amber lover, but this stuff is magical. Its high quality and quite unique. However, it reminds me a bit of Plum Japonaise by TF and Gran Soir by MFK. I love the plum note in this. It makes the composition a bit playful in contrast to the more dead serious boring classical ambers. If I am going to critique something, its the name. First of all, the red thread of creative mysterious cool names (such as «Bojnokopff’s purple hat», «Confessions of a garden gnome» etc) are broken with «Amber Absolutely». Secondly, the name seems to lack describing a concept. Thirdly, it sounds like something Parfume Vintage or Dua (such as their «Invasion of barbers») could have called a clone of Amber Absolute. When there already exist a classic called Amber Absolute, I do not understand why fort & manle name it almost the same (many reviewers question the names amber absolute vs amber absolutely in their videoes. Is it a clone? Is it inspired by TF? What is the relationship?) luckily its not close to amber absolute, then it really has been understood as a clone. Very confusing. The name seems very uninspired compared to the rest of the line where you really feel buying a story. Thats the cool thing about the brand- all the symbols and wonder. I guess some would think im a bit too critical, but at this level, fragrance is art, and concept and naming is a part of the whole in my opinion. It also influence the perception and the feeling of owning a bottle. When wearing confession of a garden gnome, im living the adventure. I get image in my head of the gnome, I can both see and understand his perspective through the scent. Sometimes I see him at night, sometime I see him at a bright summer day. Its just not a smell, its a trip! Its fragrance as art. The boarder between internal and external world become fuzzy, and the wearer can take part in another universe by fort and manley’s creation. But «amber absoluely» does not throw any spells, but nevertheless- you will smell good, I mean great! Despite im not a fan of the name and the lack of a clear concept, I love the juice. Probably the best amber in history?

My first try from my sample set of the house of Fort & Manle out of Melbourne, Amber Absolutely's name certainly reminds me of Tom Ford Amber Absolute, a two-sided coin of a comparison and that elicits fond thoughts of one of my favorite fragrances but perhaps in doing so sets an unrealistic standard. That said, the comparisons to TFAA should end with their common amber dominance, as the fragrances are quite different. Amber Absolutely is loaded with amber but also a collection of bright, sweet, interesting notes that I love: specifically, honey, benzoin, plum, and rose, to name the most prominent. The result is a bright a fruity take on amber that is comparable to Parfum d'Empire Ambre Russe, but without the certain animalic vibe of Ambre Russe. Amber Absolutely, by contrast, remains primarily fruity with hints of floral and woody accords, with the woody acords coming out more in the dry down. Performance is very strong in terms of both projection and longevity, and this is arguably a more cold-weather-leaning option (though certainly not as heavy as some amber-dominant greats like TFAA or Profumum Ambra Aurea) but still plausible wearible on warm weather evenings, and not particularly masculine or feminine based on traditional norms. A 50ml bottle, the only size, is priced for 230 AUD (roughly 178 USD) through the house site, and I don't believe this is available anywhere else. It's not cheap, but it's really superb stuff, love at first sniff, and I'll be seeking out a bottle at some point. 9 out of 10

This being the older version of the perfume, I remember hearing that this needed to be reformulated or reverse-engineered? Maybe the formula/recipe was lost? I can't remember, and in many ways, it's not important. I ended up getting an 'advance' version of the re-made AA before it was officially released, quite possibly from someone who got it early and wasn't meant to pass it on to me (!), and if memory serves correctly, I LEGIT couldn't spot many differences. Well, no difference that needs to be taken seriously, given perfumes CAN and DO perform differently on the same skin on different days. That's just how it is... Anyway, today, the scent is mostly rose, plum and amber -- I would go as far as saying that the amber is THIRD in line for detectible elements -- it's mostly rose today, then plum, then the amber. This is a wonderful scent I remember being intrigued by the first time I smelt it -- I remember early 2018, I'd bought the sample set and had it sent to my parents' place as I was living in HK at the time and was coming for a summer visit during CNY. It was one of the 2 or 3 I really liked. I tried the crap out of this one, and when I returned to Melbs (the following year) I snapped up an original version AA from an FB group. It's so charmingly sweet and pleasant on the nose -- nothing is jarring, nothing is pushing your patience and NOTHING is too much. I just love this scent. It's stunning...

Amber Absolutely is my favourite of the Fort n Manle creations I have sniffed so far and in my humble opinion is the shining star of the bunch. A fruity Amber done right. Starts off dark and fruity, a combination of the rich plum and dark blackcurrant, a very realistic fruity note that manages to capture the sweet essence of the fruits as well as the bitterness of the peel.The heart is all rose like the notes say but it's not a rose frag, rather the rose note just adds a floral dimension to the plum. It then segues into the ambery heart with musk and labdanum which turns the dry down Balsamic to my nose. One frag it kinda reminds me of is the long discontinued Escada Magnetism, the ambery grape soda vibe of that is somewhat akin to the Plum and Amber notes here. They veer off in different directions but they have that vibe in common. If you loved Magnetism like I do, this one should definitely be on your list. This does not project much and longevity is around the 6 hour range on my skin, not great but better than the others I have tested so far. It is the middle of a hot summer out here with 40 C heat so could be the wrong season for testing these out as well. To conclude, this one is a job well done and definitely full bottle worthy if I can find a good deal on one. So far, it's the only one of the Fort n Manle's I am inclined to do so and this is a "Love".

Amber Absolutely unfolds on my skin with an over abundance of mouthwatering plum, the richness of the introductory fruity accord is almost boozy to a certain extend. Honestly speaking, delicious is an understatement to describe this introduction. With in about 20 seconds I begin to experiment what I perceive as the infusion of plum into a veil of smoky amber, with honeyed resins elevating the richness of this opulent blend in the heart to another level. The long lasting base features a beautiful cedarwood that ties everything together to form what I will dare to proclaim as the most powerful offering in the impressive Fort & Manle perfume catalog. The layout of this blend showcases all of the beautiful aspects of what the perfect amber fragrance should be, Fort & Manle delivered an amber accord of the highest quality, rich, opulent but somewhat playful, projecting warmth and seduction simultaneously. I’ve tried so many amber perfumes throughout my fragrance journey, but very few have succeeded to impress me as much as Amber Absolutely. This is an easy 5 out of 5 in my books.