Spanish Amber

Take the gentle, resinous and smoky dry down of a '80s/'90s spicy oriental fragrance 12 hours later and just make that the only aspect of a perfume, and leave it completely linear, with an intimate 'skin scent' projection. As someone who loves heavier and spicier fragrances but feels frustration at not being able to use them in warmer months or during casual days, this actually has a lot of utility to me. It's a more toned down "morning after" version of your classic resinous spicy amber. I actually love the frankincense "church" vibe and find myself attracted to a lot of perfumes with these notes, only for them to be not appropriate for all but the most dramatic occasions. Every note in here has its place and serves a purpose. I was ready to buy this cheapie until... I realized this is not remotely a cheapie anymore and it's going for $100-150 for a 30mL bottle on eBay now. Jeez, no thanks. It doesn't smell THAT expensive. I'll stick to Hermes or Serge Lutens for that price. What a bum out, I was so ready to make this part of my collection. If anyone has a bottle or solid perfume to sell at a more reasonable price, please PM me!

Spanish Amber is one of my favorite scents. I have some fragrances that I only wear when I'm in a certain mood but Spanish Amber is a great anytime scent for me. It is rather dry with the resin, sandalwood, and amber being the majority of the scent. I never got any of the citrus. Its also pretty linear. There's a bit of an opening but it settles pretty quickly into its dry woody/amber base notes and stays there. For me the scent is cozy rather than invigorating, comforting rather than sexy. The lack of floral notes probably makes it read masculine for most people but, really, its a smell it doesn't have a gender. I suppose it does have a bit of a hippie vibe to it, I don't think I would choose to wear it with really posh evening clothes. I have both the spray and the solid tin. I'm currently wearing the solid so that's what this review is focused on. I wear the solid more because I think the fragrance is deeper and lasts longer but you still need to reapply every 3-4 hours luckily it isn't expensive so that isn't a problem.

This begins very bitterly sour with a hearty blast of fir and bergamot. But don't let that scare you away, because about five minutes into it those notes fade and it becomes warm, sensual, and resinous. It smells of spicy smoky woods and incenses. There is a bit of a saltiness here that is almost edible. I just want to breathe and breathe it in to the point of tasting. Warm, dry, exotic, and intoxicating aroma. So raw yet somehow sophisticated all at once. I imagine myself to be somewhere far off while wearing this. It works really well as a unisex scent. I love it on myself, but I'd also love to smell it on man. It's intriguing. I really adore this scent. Although the sillage and longevity are respectable, I'd prefer a little more power in both areas. But it is natural, inexpensive, and very much an individual. It is excellent in the spray and the solid form(although in solid form the geranium is very prevalent).

I wore this one as my go-to fragrance for a couple of years. To me, not really knowing the notes, it was a delicate incense scent, really loved it. When my bottle started getting low I made sure to get another so I wouldn't risk running out, especially in case Pacifica discontinued it as they had some others. Note: personally I prefer the spray over the solid. More recently I've gotten into fragrance as a hobby, trying many others, and Spanish Amber moved to the side. Going back to it today I was struck at first by how much dryer than a lot of my other amber fragrances, and than a lot of my fragrances in general, it is, especially at first. More hours in now and to me more sweetness has emerged. Some incense inspired fragrances lean too sour for me, but this is just right. Spanish Amber lasts well on me, and I enjoy that I can smell it on myself. I'll still count it as a "love".

An earthy scent-garden of dried herbs, resin and spices. Makes me imagine centuries of travelling nomads and tents in the desert... This is a dry and extremely earthy amber, NOT sweet, but quite green, like a sage smudge stick. When I think warm, I think sweet, and this does not convey warmth to me in the same way as L'Occitane or Yves Rocher, which I suppose are much more targeted for women. It is not smoky in a burning incense way, but fresh incense. This is perfect for a men's frag, or a woman who likes a "fresh" sort of amber. Once into the drydown, it has layers to it, it's not a uniform fragrance, although not in a poorly blended way. You can pick the distinct notes out of it, but side-by-side, evenly-matched, not in a greater-to-less type of ratio. A couple of hours in, I get a sharp, just slightly bitter soapiness. Very natural-smelling, lasts well. Really good buy.