Amber Noir

Blind bought from a box retailer. Upon glaring through the display, what stood out to me was the initial pull of the design; I was immediately drawn to the attention to detail on the bottle. It is heavy and beautifully crafted -- the feel alone is extremely premium in relation to the cost. Next, I saw the ingredient profile and immediately thought Santal 33 (S33). S33 is one of my favorite sandalwood profiles and a polarizing scent in the community. This scent must have been the default air of socialite NYC when it gained its prominence. So having a cheapie of S33 sounded good to me. I have to be honest: This is thrice as good as Santal 33. Sorry for whoever disagrees. There is this level of amber, and a stronger sandalwood present that rounds the profile out into a smoother character. My bottle has matured to have a dark, creamy, balanced depth that exceeds S33 for a FRACTION of the price. It can easily become -- like S33 -- a signature scent. The profile is not invasive if sprayed properly (and by that I mean conservatively) and gets a lot of attention. I have a hoodie that smells like this stuff from a spray I did two weeks ago. Sillage and projection beat out S33, bottle design is beautiful, and the price point is accessible. I highly recommend this frag if you enjoy S33 and its derivatives. Mixes extremely well with shea and cocoa butter moisturizers.

It’s strange to me with all the comparisons to Santal 33 that I don’t pick up the dill scent. I even get it with LV lovers, but not this. I get a beautiful dark woody and resinous vibe and the fig definitely hits, but it’s super dry and I would have found it hard to detect if I hadn’t been playing around in the fig space for the last couple of months. I do get a rush of pure alcohol at first but it dries down quickly and settles in to what I think is a fantastic fragrance (especially considering its price point) for those that enjoy a break from all the fruity nonsense that has been shoved down our throats for the last year or so. I’d give it a solid 8.1. The price, for me, is what tipped the scales into the 8’s. Reminds me of being in a large study at an old mansion with dark wooden book shelves from wall-to-wall and filled from end to end with old leather bound books. The only break in the shelves is to accommodate an oversized mahogany leather chair in the corner sitting next to a large antique lamp and a giant globe that contains crystal decanters of the finest scotch and two crystal glasses.

This is basically Santal 33 done right. I'd even compare to the very old batches of Santal 33 which were darker. I still have my 50mL bottle from almost 10 years ago that i bought in the west village, and this Amber Noir smells basically smells like a carbon copy. The slight differences with Noir is in the late drydown. Santal 33 goes for a more sandalwood, leathery dry down, whereas Amber Noir ever so slightly amps up the florals mixed with sandalwood. It's genuinely lovely. No dill pickle smell here. This is Santal 33 that's a bit more wearable, and I love it. Picture a home library with leather covered books, with a cup of whiskey on top of a freshly crafted night table that's sitting next to a leather ottoman. This is what Amber Noir smells like. It's masculine, performs like a monster, and will be a staple in my collection despite owning its purported OG. I'd even dare to say that I like this BETTER than Santal 33.

I definitely get the Santal 33 comparison BUT I do feel like this is a darker, warmer take on that scent DNA. While Santal 33 comes off a bit fresher and lighter, Amber Noir really feels almost like the nighttime version. The carrot in this is definitely pronounced and to my nose, layers well with the sandalwood and fig. I also find that Amber Noir is friendlier to layer with other fragrances compared to Santal 33 (which I ALWAYS have a hard time partnering with any other fragrance and feel it is no longer unique enough to wear solo). Given the price point, this is a no brainer.

I tried this fragrance today, tested it on my wrist but vendor just made a little spritz and was not accurate. More than 50% of the spritz went to the air. With that little amount of fragrance on my wrist it performed very well. I could feel the sandalwood while shopping and seeing clothes at the mall, I can imagine how will this perform if were more than one little spritz and also on clothes. The price goes around $68 and $85 for market edition. I havent smelled santal 33 yet but this defines so good the name sandalwood. Very pleasant fragrance.