Dark Amber & Ginger Lily

Dark Amber and Ginger Lily was one of my first scent leaning towards dark and much more sensual scents. The Cologne Intense range compared to Jo Malone London's regular line is inspired by ritual, deeply sensual scents and rich with precious ingredients. Dark Amber and Ginger Lily puts a highlight on Kyara Incense; a incense prized for its rarity and richness central to Kohdo Ceremony in Japan most appropriately used for both relaxation and meditation. Priced competitively at £112.00 per 3.4 oz bottle, and £74 for the 1 oz bottle. This scent was initially launched as a limited edition which is the Kohdo Wood Collection in 2008 together with Lotus Blossom and Water Lily. Created perfectly for relaxation as day turns to night; it has a blend of sensuality that encourages tranquility. Then was relaunched as a part of the Cologne Intense line. The scent opens with a warm and spicy note of Black Cardamom together with Ginger and Pink Pepper lending an air of unmistakable clean vibe then comes Black Orchid, Night Blooming Jasmine and Water Lily creating a bouquet with a dark and sensual nature. At the base is Kyara Incense, rich with Black Amber and Sandalwood that mingles together for that warmth, highly distinct yet calm character. It comes beautifully with a Home Candle, a luxurious Body Creme and A Dry Body Oil. While already beautiful worn alone, what sets Jo Malone London from others brands is the beauty that is Fragrance Combining. While they weren't the first to do so, they are I believe the best is doing it so effortlessly. Personally, I combine it with Lime Basil and Mandarin for an added zest, herbaceous twist; Grapefruit for a clash of appealingly sensual yet bright citrus and a background of lush moss and smoky woods; Wood Sage and Sea Salt for a more spirited, sea salt enriched warmth and/or Mimosa & Cardamom for a little spicy smoke effect with touches of spice and honeyed , golden mimosa number. Longevity can be an issue to some so best to sample it at your nearest Jo Malone store, it's still dependent on your body chemisty; try layering it with the Body Creme if you usually spray it on your skin. Not a blind buy advocate but if you're into the smoky, deep woody scents with hints of spice then it might just be the one. -Bertrand II

I was in Bergen, Norway in late February, 2009. I was gift shopping at the Bryggen, just a short walk from my hotel, when I encountered the faint, fleeting, ephemeral sillage of this enchanting, provocative, delightfully dark & mysterious feminine scent. It was the come-hither call of the sirens; it exuded feminine sexuality. It was only a whiff. My mind instantly formed an image of Elizabeth Hurley wearing wire-rim glasses, hair up, in professional business attire and heels. I was captivated. WHAT is that scent?? I had to find the person wearing it. The only other feminine scent I've encountered that came remotely close to this effect on me years ago was Guerlain Shalimar. Then I did something I had never done before: I tracked (read that as hunted) her. I started casually wandering the shop. Everything else was forgotten. I was a man on a mission. There it was again. Lost it. Got it. She's over there. No. Where did she go? There it is again. Yes. This way. I quickly homed in on an attractive, dark haired, well-dressed woman in, what I presumed, her late twenties/early thirties. I surreptitiously closed in on her. Yes. That's her. I put on my best ingratiating smile. "Excuse me, I couldn't help but notice your perfume. It's exquisite. Would you please tell me what you're wearing?" Jo Malone London Dark Amber and Ginger Lily. I confessed I followed her scent trail halfway across the store. We exchanged pleasantries for a couple moments then I thanked her, excused myself, and left the store. I bought a (then black) bottle of DAGL for my wife. She doesn't like it, but it's catnip to me. I've even entertained the thought a time or two of wearing it myself. Ladies, take this from an older man - if you want the attention of mature men and want to make them turn their heads so fast they'll be wearing neck braces after you walk past/behind them, wear this. You'll certainly get MY attention.

A few key words: warm, smooth, comforting This stuff surprised me with how non-alcohol-y it smelled on first spray. There is no coconut listed in the notes, but it was almost like I just put on some kind of tanning oil with coconut in it. I'm not even a fan of coconut usually but there is a big difference between artificial (yuck) and fresh and this is definitely more on the fresh coconut side. Except it isn't exactly coconut, because the more you smell it and try to decide for certain that yes this is coconut, it changes/reveals more underneath. I actually searched for our unused thing of coconut oil to compare because I was convinced that this is what it smelled like, but it must have been my imagination trying to predict what something I've barely experienced would be like because it actually smelled like nothing. Maybe I was remembering what fresh coconut meat/flesh/whatever you call it was like. It must be so well blended that all the listed notes add up to this. And now I've written coconut so many times that it has lost all meaning and looks wrong. After a few minutes it is less strong and more like if someone made a body moisturizer with a hybrid coconut/oat milk. Like you used this moisturizer recently after a warm bath. It's got that nice smooth smell. I don't know what you'd say 'skin' smells like but that is in there too. Ok ok so here's the final analogy: the smell itself is like just hydrated skin with this scented moisturizer. It is a smell that is not (too) sweet, bitter or powdery. It is just... oat...y. Smooth. Like... butter? I don't know how to describe it!!! I can't even tell whether this should be a signature scent or a specific time or occasion scent, but I do know that it's one of the first perfumes that I could see myself wearing regularly and not get tired of smelling it. It is just so interesting and good like what the heck I gotta go huff it again--

Much like the rest of the Cologne Intense line, Dark Amber & Ginger Lily is deeper, more complex, and more intense than the regular simple and airy Jo Malone fragrance range. I appreciate and even love most of the simple and airy Jo Malone scents, but the intense line appeals to me a bit more overall due to...its intensity! :P And after sampling the full cologne intense range, I was most drawn to this one. Sandalwood is one of my favorite notes ever and Dark Amber and Ginger Lily quickly turns into a spicy sandalwood on me, so of course I love it! Of course, that also means the name isn't entirely accurate, but I can forgive that because the dark amber is definitely present from top to bottom as well, granting the scent a mysterious salty quality. What starts off as a blast of spicy ginger quickly turns into a beautiful spicy floral sandalwood tinged with salt. I also definitely detect a hint of incense in the background. After many hours (about 6-8 hours), I get whispers of the loveliest clean patchouli. I typically despise patchouli, but the tiny bit of it present in Dark Amber & Ginger Lily is very pleasant and clean. Creamy even! I love it! I especially love it when a note I'm predisposed to dislike surprises me! This is a warm and yet fresh fragrance. There is no sweetness to speak of, which I LOVE! It's special and it's interesting but not so interesting that the interest is obtrusive; this is not a spectacle, but an interesting and respectable fragrance that is very wearable by both sexes (why on earth is it listed as feminine here!?) and has at most moderate projection after the first 30 minutes or so, so it makes for a safe office fragrance. Wearable any time of year, this spicy beauty has cemented her place in my collection forever.

I first became acquainted by this perfume about 6 weeks ago whilst in a bookshop in St Pancras station, London. I walked into an aisle and was hit by this glorious scent. Sniff sniff. What WAS that scent? Oriental?- yes. Spicy?- yes. Is there wood there too? Yes, I think so, ...It smelt expensive, most certainly but who made it? Was it a Serge Lutens? Perhaps, but it wasn't dense enough. This perfume although strong, was also light and airy. I looked around and tried to find the person wearing it. I HAD to know! People around me must have thought I was quite strange, sidling up to them and sniffing but I didnt care. Hey, I'd be back in Australia in two days. Who cares if I embarrass myself! I was wafting through the bookstore carried by this glorious perfumed silage, just like pepe le pew. On the other side of the store a woman was browsing through some books on a trestle. She was very chic and stylishly dressed. Yes, she was the one. I nonchalantly browsed the books beside her and plucked the courage to ask what perfume she was wearing. "Jo Malone Dark Amber and Ginger Lily." she said. " It's the Intense." I committed it to memory and then replied " iIt's really lovely and works well on you" then she gave me a strange look. Oh god! I hope she didn't think this was a come on!! I hastily found my husband and hot footed it out of the store. I bought a bottle this week and just love it. It's very hot here in Australia (33 degrees C) and it stands up well in the heat. I didn't get the Intense, so I'm finding I need to reapply, but it is so glorious I don't mind! If the woman in the bookstore is a fragrantican, I just wanted to say thanks :)