Cuir Amethyste

IOh boy, this one I want, but it's so expensive! It's $210 for 100mL! But I've had a think about it, and decided it's worth it. I have never smelled anything like this before. It is a masterpiece. Utterly fantastic and deserving of the award it won! Christine Nagel is one of my favourite noses, and she has not lowered her standards with this addition to the Armani Prive line. Cuir Amethyste... or "Amethyst Leather". I was told it was meant to smell like the little tin boxes the trench-soldiers had in World War II. I was also told that it's meant to smell a lot like birch bark, which I can't properly identify (I live in Australia; we don't have birch). This is a strange, wonderful fragrance. Nothing comes near it in terms of originality, olfactory structure or overall idea. I tried to think of perfumes that are similar, but its nearest cousins were miles away. The closest I got was the Tom Ford range - but I was only seeing similarities in terms of originality and "darkness", not any particular perfume. This is mysterious and dark to say the least. It has a good dose of "I'm smelling something in here, which I can't tell what it is". It is not sweet at all. What I can say is that it starts out classic and dry, and progressively becomes richer, deeper and more "purple". I know this is an unusual way of describing a scent, but I hope I'm appealing to the people who have experienced this type of colour identification before. I can actually "smell" the amethyst increasing throughout the drydown. I "feel" the purple. (I'm sorry, but I have to defend myself from the people who claim assigning a colour to a perfume is ridiculous. I'm not crazy. Synesthesia does exist: it's the mixing of different senses, which has been well documented in the scientific literature.) But I can't figure out what the purple note is... I don't think it's just the violet on its own. It is too complex and sophisticated. It's just magical! You start to smell more woods later, which I love. My advice is, if you appreciate complex, sophisticated, mature scents - then try this! But if you like the sweet, fruity, or even the floral scents they're flogging on the market all the time - keep away! I don't consider myself a perfume snob (because I recognize everyone's entitled to like what they like, based on personality and age) but I would only expect people who enjoy complex, subtle perfumes to like it as much as I do. UPDATE: the only leather scent I will ever want or need. Stuff the $258!!

Another from this line that is actually worth every bit of hype it gets. Cuir Amethyste is fantastic. I blind bought this and I regret absolutely nothing. While this combination of notes might feel familiar to women (if the “smells like” table is any indicator), Cuir Amethyste is certainly unique among any men’s/unisex scents I’ve smelled before. Admittedly, this one leans a little feminine, as the underlying vanilla might hew a bit toward sweetness, but the birch and leather work so well to balance it out that I think a lot of men could (and should) pull this off. The longevity of Cuir Amethyste is world class: 4 sprays tend to last me 24 hours. The sillage, on the other hand, isn’t terribly high. I’d venture that 4-6 sprays equate to about an arm’s length, but that suits me well. If I could liken Cuir Amethyste to a picture, or a moment, it would be best described by a comfortable walk among snowy birch trees. Maybe in late spring, when the flowers are just starting to poke through the snow. It’s comforting, it’s relaxing, but it’s also very cold, which is kind of odd for a vanilla scent in my experience. The violet, patchouli, and coriander manage to combine with the other notes for a cooling effect that keeps this fragrance kind of classy. To my mind, this is a mysterious and slightly sexy office scent or a sophisticated night out for an under-45 crowd. In the colder months, it could also be suitable for certain casual weekend activities. I didn’t think I would like this one nearly as much as I do, but Cuir Amethyste has quickly become one of my favorites among the Armani Privé line. I can’t recommend it enough.

Just when you think you've experienced the entire range of violet combinations you're hit with this. I think it's safe to say I'm a big fan of violets and this is a new accord to me, understated, powdery yet wearable and utterly enjoyable. Armani have hit the spot yet again with this juice I'd say it gives me the feeling of a Violet centric juice that really doesn't have a 'usual' (whatever that is?) violet feel. What I mean is that it will intrigue violet fans like me but is different enough to appeal to people who don't traditionally like the smell of violets. It could be the combination with rose which maybe changes the character some...you definitely get the rose as it dries down. Smoothing this out is patchouli and vanilla with the darker touch of birch which does create a kind of leathery effect. I wouldn't agree that it is a smokey leather more of a smooth suede and birch has a woody undertone which makes this smell really good on me but would be equally at home on a woman and possibly better suited. A classy Violet then which I will recommend to my friend who would love this fragrance. I wouldn't wear it though, I get my violet hit from Hommage L'Homme and Fahrenheit stuff like that.

This is an absolutely amazing and fantasticly thick fragrance that focuses on a beautiful violet and a really nice dark and smoky birch that reminds of leather. Behind that there is also a dark patchouli and some roses. Immediately when I spray it on there is a big cloud puffing up. A cloud filled with this thick mix of violet and birch. It feels like the entire apartment has transformed so the walls are made of leather, that there are big birch trees growing up from the floor and that violets, patchouli leaves and a few roses are raining down from the ceiling. Later the dark and smoky part of the birch settles down and it gets alot softer. At this point the roses gets a little bit more prominent together with a soft and very, very light, warming hint of benzoin, labdanum and vanilla. But it still is the violet and the leathery birch that has the leading role in this incredibly beautiful creation that stays on my skin all day long. Cuir Améthyste is the first fragrance I've tried from Armanis exclusive line Armani/Privē and it immediately took a place in the top together with my all time favourite fragrances. I love it!

The reviews here are very mixed, but here's what I get from my official sample vial from Neiman Marcus. This opens with a strong note of candied violets. Sweet, beautiful violets. Sometimes it smells like violet flavoured lollies, sometimes grape medicine. Within a few seconds, I start to smell an undertone of birch and what smells almost like leather. So now it's a leather-wood base, sprinkled with candied violets. As it starts to dry down, the sweetness calms down a little and the base notes come together to give you a very unique mix of woods, smoke, leather, and sweet violets. I'd even say this is almost on the same level of opulence of regality as MFK's Oud Satin Mood, though not as smooth because the notes in this don't blend too well, you can smell each one individually. I feel like if I took Feminite Du Bois and layered it with Insolence, I'd get a similar effect to this. Beautiful fragrance. I agree with the reviewer that said it smells like a baroque painting of a queen in black velvet.