L'Ombre Fauve 8.1

This is from the Private Collection of PG. Here is the description (or "scoop" as they call it) from LuckyScent: Sensual, feline and ever so slightly bestial, L'Ombre Fauve is an unapologetically sumptuous blend, which contains a high level of natural ingredients. It smells brooding and luscious; its amber is fantastically opulent, a complex, mesmerizing note which possess balsamic, sweet and incense-like facets. Precious woods, the presence of which is apparent from the very start, smell dry and a little spicy. The musk is warm and sensual, and patchouli, which is our most favorite part of this gorgeous scent, adds to the blend an earthy, nocturnal, downright erotic quality. L'Ombre Fauve is exotic and refined, a satisfyingly rich perfume with a beguiling trail. There is something about this sensual scent that makes our knees a little weak... I couldn't have said it better myself! ;-) Notes: amber, musk, woods, incense resin and patchouli As far as its "gender" goes (if you buy into that whole idea, as perfume is gender neutral to me) this is a very balanced unisex scent. Similar to YR Voile d'Ambre (from their Secrets of Essences line) along with Le Labo Labdanum 18 and ELdO Putain des Palaces (which I find much sweeter and more floral). Sillage: good Longevity: excellent Overall: 4.5/5 Parfumerie Generale scents, for the most part, are excellently crafted and worth their prices...

Revelation of the year! I was looking for a new scent, something that I can't smell on anyone but still represent who I am. While being in a niche store smelling a bunch of perfumes, this one got me like this little dress that you haven't worn yet, but you know it's the one. I literally fell in love with l'Ombre Fauve. The combination of Musc Ravageur and Shalimar, 2 fragrances I personally like but missed something. L'Ombre Fauve fills up what I was missing in those. Musc Ravageur reminds me of days I go grab a drink on a terrace with my boyfriend and Shalimar reminds me of the old days when I was 5 playing dolls with my aunt. The feeling of a well-known novelty. An incredible olfactive experience. What's more, Pierre Guillaume pays attention to the quality of its notes, ingredients, and bottle designs... 100% French, l'élégance à la Française. The marriage of scents: amber, musk, animalic, patchouli, labdanum, and vanilla-benzoin don't necessarily appeal to me individually but altogether bring up an incredible feeling. The performance and sillage are PERFECT. This perfume is so far the most satisfying one according to my memories, preferences, and my personality which I understand not everyone must love it. But personally, one spray gives me an elegant, warm, sexy, nostalgic, and confident experience.

Admittedly, I've held off on writing a review for this intiriguing perfume, because, well, I don't really know how to describe it. It's way too complex for my novice descriptions and am afraid I simply won't do it justice. I can however, feel it. There is something about this fragrance that reminds me of a temple, peaceful and calming. It's warm, seductive, exotic and yet holy. Yes, I know we shouldn't mix these adjectives, but I did and it works for me. The amber is the main note. It is sweet and even a bit incensy, and dirtied by an animal (though not so obvious as to put one off), the fur of an animal to be exact. It's not a wild dog though, but a well groomed fluffy variety that you'd like to bury your face in and snuggle. This is definitley the most animalic perfume I own(But like i said, thats only if you're really pondering it like I do), and i love every second of it. It feeds some weird desire in me to smell a little off, a little dirty, yet still mysterious, earthy and beautiful with a dash of high end. Mostly, when I put it on, I immediatley get asked what I'm wearing or told I smell amazing, and that's really what matters at the end of the day for me. To sum it up in a few words: Sweet-ambery, exotic, incense, temple, balmy animal. Genius.

Feral but not ferocious, L'Ombre Fauve ("The Tawny Shadow") straddles between the cuddliness of furry blanket musks and old-book cozy vanillic amber. Yes, its animalic, but with the aldehydes that open Pierre Guillaume's creation, this tomcat is fresh from the groomers and knows his way around a litter box. No filthy paws here! Perhaps some slightly dirty drawers though. Laundry day has been postponed until tomorrow! In an alternate universe, there is an ocelot reading Edith Wharton in the quiet corner of a library, a corner with "tawny shadows." His name is Edgar, and I'd love to be friends with this ocelot and have a good chat over a Sazerac or two. Anyhow, L'Ombre Fauve, ahem, settles into a warm cup on patchouli musk and labdanum kitten licks. This is what I hoped Musc Ravageur would do for me, but I suppose I missed the boat with its earlier formulations. L'Ombre Fauve will do quite nicely: it's the cat's pajamas.

L’Ombre Fauve is perfect on me today. There’s 14 inches of snow on the ground, a frigid chill in the wind, and I’ve just come inside from shoveling my driveway. Exhausted, I give my wrists a spritz, then retreat to the comfort of my bed, layered under the softest of blankets, surrounded by my three cats (one on each side, one at my feet), my chihuahua burrowed into the warmth. Some have likened L’Ombre Fauve to the scent of fur from a kitten or other small mammal. I don’t detect that literal interpretation. Rather, the fragrance evokes the comfort and warmth that my pets offer as I lie in bed during the depths of winter. The smell itself? Coromandel sans the chocolate, sans the resins. A vanilla-tinged, amber-shaded patchouli to insulate your bones long through the night.

The opening is an explosion of patchouli and amber(gris?). Within 10 seconds the tingling pachoulli settles down and the amber gets enormous. There must be civet in it, I can almost taste it. It makes me a little dizzy yet very alert, this is not a compromising perfume, it demands attention. And it has my full attention in this stage. The scent then quickly changes, it doesn't need much time to blend all the notes to a well balanced warm and spicy scent with a dry earth/powdery feeling and a very mild sweetness in the background. It's heavy but welcoming, like a hunter who lures it's prey to come closer. Therefor defenitly not a daytime scent, unless you'd spend it in a cave, deep down, on a hot day, hiding, waiting...

When first applied, a hit of leather, then a rubber note peeks out from behind the curtain for a few sniffs. Then that’s gone, and the scent becomes a leather/amber/musk combination which dries down to vanilla-sweet and powdery-musk. The leathery civet owes a little to Shalimar, and that peek of rubber is delightful, because it doesn’t hang around. I find PG scents often do this - an odd start, showing you different things along the way, and the dry-down is exquisite, always. Exceptional craft here and ingredients. Lasts well, although it doesn’t project massively. If you like a lot of Lutens scents you’ll probably like this; a good musk base, amber-sweet and rich, gets better hour by hour. Love it. 10/10 :)

I reeaaally wanted to like this on the premise that it smells like a kitten's belly. I want to smell like a kitten's belly...! alas, it's not meant to be :( I can smell only dill. albeit a somewhat warm, fuzzy dill. it's the color chartreuse. Edit: after two years of snubbing this, I finally pulled my sample out of storage. Thank goodness the nose matures. I have been wearing it on and off since, mostly when I am alone and nude. It smells like a low purr, a woman's lush forearm, a soft panting exhale. The softness and aroma of hair silky with the day's sweat right before a shower. Makes me want to prowl low to the ground until my belly brushes the carpet. Not skanky but definitely a little untamed.

I just sprayed this on for the first time a short while ago, and L'Ombre Fauve is making me happy in my pants. It's like the town harlot and the church incense got together and had one holy skank of a baby. YEE HAW! This smell is pegging my olfactory thrill-meter with some very unctuous amber resins and a clean patchouli and incense with a general atmosphere of musky funk loitering about. If I don't stop this, I'll probably grow a webbing between my nose and my wrist, but this smells SO GOOD. You know that scene in Silence of the Lambs where Buffalo Bill looks lasciviously into the mirror and says "would you **** me? I'd **** me." Well, with this perfume on, I'd totally **** me.

Love love love this one. It has a healthy amount of the yummy brown chewy sort of patchouli mixed with amber and musk. Overall though it is stronger in its amber presentation than patchouli. But if you like the intense heady dark patchouli as well as a strong amber I think this will be a perfume that will warm your heart. I can imagine walking the streets of Paris in winter inhaling this delicious brew. I haven't smelt any vintage scents but it strikes me that this one evokes a grand age. It does have a luxurious and sensual feel and I really want a bottle of this one. I'm testing quite a few Parfumerie Generale scents and am finding that it's a great range.

With such a short list of notes, one might think this scent is very simple and straightforward. It couldn't be furthest from the truth. When I try to use my head to analyze the notes I come up with amber and patch and some smoke and kitty belly fur(must be the musk).However when just smelling without using my logic I smell a cave. Yes, a cave naturally formed in the mountains, with that salty mineral musty smell that can only be found in nature. I'm not sure if that was Guillaume's intention but this one makes me feel protected and at home. Sorry for the cheesy prose!

I was put off by L'Ombre Fauve's opening--got a strong balsamic & animalic amber, but after about 30 minutes it gets much smoother and quite intimate and comforting. It is reminiscent of Musc Ravageur as some people mentioned, but far less brash. This, I think, is much warmer and cozier than MR and it's more amber-dominant than vanilla, though there might be something sweet like vanilla or tonka present in the base. I like it. It lasts 8+ hours and projection is moderate. It's a very intimate fragrance.

L'Ombre Fauve: Without a doubt, the most beautiful animalic amber i have ever smelled )(possibly as one reviewer says below EVER CREATED?) Warm, resinous and oh so very deep. This starts off as a sharper musk, which eventually (30-45 mins) turns into an amazing sweet amber musk scent that lifts your mood and transports you far away. This is a dream - it's that good. The dark juice and exquisite composition exudes class and confidence, this one is a marvelous creation, for sure.

Wowee do I love the opening on this! Animalic and in-your-face musky, furry prowl like delight! I love the drydown just as much (if not more) because it smells exactly how I want my skin to smell. It smells like 'me' with the patchouli, amber and musk. I have to control myself not to spray more just to smell that wonderful opening again. This is so very warm and ultra comforting. I never want to be without a bottle of this! Probably not a work or church safe scent!

This should technically be too sweet for me, and starts off with that oily rubber vanilla pod thing, but morphs, after a moment (1/2 hour?), into something crazy angelic. Amber cream, whiskey-edged vanilla, all made right with earth & animal. One of those fumes I catch in the air around me and wonder what the glory is, then realize it’s me. It’s big. It’s lovely. Pairs well with dry spice, too. I’ve layered it with Paestum Rose before and soared.

Holy smokes is this ever gorgeous!!! L'Ombre Fauve belongs on the most sophisticated, drop-dead woman on earth. Fur?... yes. Not the long-deceased pelt of something worn on the queen's shoulders. But the smell of a "tame" lion or ocelot that happens to deign to come to your chair and give you a sniff. This is a cold amber. It reminds me of drinking high-quality vodka on a cold night with my beloved by the fire, outdoors. Yes. So good. Try it.

Yep, this is really good. Amber, patchouli and civet (not sure why it's missing from the notes on here, but it says so on the PG website). It has that rich and sumptuous amber that reminds me of a Lutens creation. In fact, some days it comes across as a sibling to Chergui. The animalic base of L'Ombre Fauve gives it depth. It's smooth and luxurious, no need to worry for anything too harsh. Overall excellent perfume, ideal for winter.

Its hot today and I was hoping to experience the animalic side of PG's L'Ombre Fauve by testing it in this sunny, humid weather. I was not disappointed. The musk has a refined civetesque quality that reminds me a bit of Bal a Versailles. The combination of amber/patchouli/incense is lighter and drier than I thought it would be. Over all its a nice composition, I'm not sure I need a full bottle.

PG does not disappoint often and this is no exception. What you get is a long lasting earthy patchouli scent with undertones of woody and smokiness. Pure bliss for a mature patchouli lover that is tired of Mugler offerings and the price does not matter. In simple terms if you have the cash then this is it, if not stick to Mugler and stuff like Fancy Nights by Jessica Simpson.

Dirty/musky vanillic (but not overly sweet) amber supported by powdery patchouli, as well as a hint of woodiness. At the intersection of MH L'Air de Rien, Chanel Le Lion and JD Bal a' Versailles. As unisex as it can be, but likely to convince women more easily than the average joe. Alphairone's description as 'feral but not ferocious' sums up well my thoughts. Glorious stuff!

When I wear L'Ombre Fauve, I feel as though I've stepped straight from a George Barbier illustration; opulent and sensual, sipping champagne from a saucer. L'Ombre Fauve is a scandalous woman with a powdered nose. On the surface she is sweet musk and amber, beneath her shift dress lurks a nocturnal smoky spiciness, made earthy with patchouli. Utterly beguiling.

uhm...not sure about the fur, not much animal instinct on me. Has this fallen victim of IFRA, too? Still good, it smells like MARZIPAN, so I'd say it goes totally gourmand. Good stuff. I own Bois de Copaiba (which is dominant on amaretto, again that is derived from almonds), so I might come back later on as I suspect there might be resemblance.

L'Ombre Fauve smells of candles, of the warm wax of a candlelit dinner for two, of the moment when you blow out a candle, before the acrid smoke begins. Warm wax, not at all churchy, intimate, not like beeswax precisely, more like plain white candle wax. The dry down is more of a vanilla-tinted, soft musk. Altogether lovely.

This fragrance is all about primal instincts. Smelling this from your wrists feels almost like touching black panther. It makes me wanna take my clothes off and roll all over my own private fur-covered den AND I AM A VEGETERIAN! Must remember not to wear this to work.

This and L'oiseau de nuit are probably my best favorites from Pierre Guillaume. I love ambery patchouli and this definitely is one of the most lovely on the market. Warm, soft, almost furry, sweet yet earty. I long for it specially during the cold winter days

A patchouli-amber with an unwashed-hair note (costus?) that I find intensely appealing. Always a pleasure to wear this and skulk around the house like a self-indulgent beatnik, even though the current version is less concentrated than earlier ones.

What a cozy, patch-y amber that's not so cozy as to be boring. It gets a slightly animalic, ruffled-up quality from a costus note. L'Ombre Fauve, "The Wild Shadow", how well named. (You must love strong patchouli to enjoy this.)

A fragrance that suggests a feline sensuality with its vividly furry and leathery textures. There is a prominent sweetness akin to solid candle wax and an overall ominous haze of patchouli and woods.

Felanilla is the queen and this is the tomcat. They both carry that furry sexy vibe but this one is the masculine version with the heavier patchouli and incense. Very well done.

Is an amazing fragrance, i bought for my dad and loved...

Wow! The musk note in this was very animalic on me, almost like a soft, velvety civet note. The woods are smooth and the patchouli felt dry and herbal. It was never as loud as i expected but softened and truly became a skin scent on the dry down. I couldn't detect any incense beyond the initial opening. I tested this in cool weather, but because of the animalic facets on my skin, I think it might be better in really cold weather.

I really like the intensity of this one. Strong perfumes with good silage are rare. The woody ambery insence notes are great, this is also balsamic maybe a little powdery even. And I'm not hating the pachouli here, overall a great scent, good and strong. Not a love for me but respect to this one. *Check out my sample swap list on my profile - let's try every perfume out there!

I like this, and if you're a fan of patchouli-heavy fragrances then this is a good one to try. The initial spray reminded me of Coromandel. Then it transitions to a more chocolatey take on patchouli (closer to Psychedlique or Nobile Patchouli) combined with a slightly animalic musk. This lasted most of the day on me. Unisex, leaning masculine...particularly in the opening.

When I first applied this, I didn't get the Musc Ravageur comparison, but the drydown really is extremely similar. I prefer the opening of MR, but the drydowns are equally nice. I gather that MR used to be more animalic when it first came out, so I wonder if L'Ombre Fauve evokes old MR?

Starts of very rubbery, tar like, scent mingled with incense, not impressive at first spray. But then... You don't have to wait long and it completely changes to a powdery, gentle animalic sweet musk...like the best skin scent, its creamy with definite incense notes. Love it!

Goodness me, this is an austere, musky amber. I don't get much patchouli at all until the dry down, when the scent sweetens a little. It's definitely masculine to me, and for those who mean business. The Master will see you now. 50 Shades of Grey with better dialogue.

Le Lion/Coromandel without the Chanel magic. Yes it's like Musc Ravageur, which to me is already a worse take on Le Lion. Way too similar to the above to be interesting.

This smells like sniffing the head of some small, brown furred animal. It's like musk and fur mixed with cream and sugar.

Very dry, strong and sweet. Good for wintertime. I feel some dried fruits in it. Plums or strawberries.

This smells like my cat wearing Prada L'eau Ambree. A genius fur note with some light amber. If it lasted longer I'd get a bottle because the smell of my cat comforts me, and because I get a kick out of the idea of her standing on two legs, spritzing on some L'eau Ambree without thumbs.

There are some amber based fragrances that I enjoy but This one is a definite scrubber for me It was a dislike in first sniff.musk isn't among my dislike notes but this one starts with a warm,animalic musk,smelling just as civet and I usually escape from civet because it smells really bad on me(but there are some rare civet scents that I enjoy) .after a minute it becomes even worse,because I can also smell some leather blending with civet which as someone mentioned before reminds me Shalimar edp!I wanted to scrub it but decided to give it some time,after some time incensy amber shows up and stands hand in hand with musk and make the scent sweeter,less animalic and tolerable.I can also detect a touch of patchouli and woods but they just sit at background and add a slight earthy,woody quality to L'ombre fauve Overall I don't hate the Drydown as opening but I don't like it either.it leans more towards masculine side IMO. Definitely a cold weather fragrance It's Longevity is very good but it's almost a skinscent.it lingers on skin for ages with soft to moderate sillage Recommend to whoever wants his/her amber with an animalic musky and earthy/woody twist..I prefer my amber to stay clean and powdery with a vanillic twist just like yves rocher voile amber,hermes amber merveilles,van cleef and arples amber ❤

FYI: You should sample this fragrance before you buy it. Ok, this is waaaay too powdery and animalic. A very heavy and polarizing scent. Not something you want to go out and blind buy. The only type of person who could pull this off is sophisticated, intelligent, and mature enough to withstand the barrage of both good and bad compliments. If you're a fan of strong, heavy old school fragrances, this one is right up your alley.

I've waited 3 hours for this to open up and the animalic notes to come through, but on my skin all I've got is sweet powder. It reminds my of sitting in the bathroom as a child watching my mother dust herself with expensive talc. Based on other reviews this is clearly more to do with my skin than it is to do with the scent.

I love patchouli. I tolerate musk. This is most likely not going to work for me. It smells like quality. If you like the combo give it a shot. This is wearable to me in a way reminiscence isn’t but I am going to have to pass.

Dude I'm done trusting these reviews in regards to what samples I'm going to buy, this smells like an old persons nursing home and musky basement. Horrible scent.

I'm a fan of Pierre but this scent on me disappears almost instantly.

If you have the patience to wait for the dry-down, you're in for a treat. L'Ombre Fauve opens with a sour, powdery amber. And for the most part, that is all that is apparent at the start. Personally, I don't care for the opening. It's a mix of powdery amber and the smell of clothes that are wet and have sat out for too long, or wet socks. On my skin, this persists for at least an hour. Gradually, L'Ombre Fauve begins to change. While the powdery aspect remains, like a frosting on the top, the rest of the composition takes a turn to the sweet, animalic side. The sourness from the opening disappears. Somebody mentioned that at this stage it smells like their cat's fur, and I think that's a pretty good description. Part of L'Ombre Fauve takes on this almost salty, crusty quality, that smells like skin that was licked and has since dried. Combine this muskiness with a deep, rich, sweet amber base and you have a wonderful dry-down that is hard to pull your nose away from. It's cozy, warm, inviting, and *dare I say* "sexy." It's one of only a few fragrances I can honestly say becomes like a second skin-but-better in its latter stages. It feels natural and human (or animal). I believe the patchouli in this fragrance serves as a bridge between the amber and musk, ultimately holding everything together, and deftly executing a successful balancing act. I think L'Ombre Fauve will be appreciated by those with some experience. Had I tried this a couple years ago when I was just beginning to get into fragrances, I would have been immediately turned off by the opening and not have fully appreciated the dry-down. So for anyone just looking to smell 'good' or for someone looking for their first Amber, I recommend looking elsewhere. However, if you're looking for a fragrance that rewards your patience, or a personal fragrance to be enjoyed on an intimate level, this is a great choice. Definitely worth sampling. Projection is average. Longevity is excellent.

A magnificent addition to your amber craves. I can't help of being reminded to the also marvelous Givenchy Gentleman, with its strong, dry patchouly... but let's just say GG is just a shade within this beast. There is also an indescribable, sexy, animalic, musky shade within L'Ombre Fauve that makes it a better choice for cold nights. Who gives a damn, I will wear it whenever I feel. Incense provides an additional shade to this beauty. And it brings a kind of chilly air into the warmth of the amber/patchouly combo... Images are powerful with this one... It is as if all of the sudden you are in a centuries old magnificent building, with the gargoyles staring at you... You could call it gothic if it pleases you, it is just a simply amazing and unique amber from PG. Smell great my friends. Update: Time gives you different impressions. Two years later and OF does not smell amber to me, but rather as a musky, vanillin patchouli, I make this distinction because classic ambers are usually resinous. Not the case with OF. The description of this being a furry beast to be worn with pleasure is spot on. There is also a leathery after taste that kind of evoke (but not the same) Ombre leather by TF. Hell, just wear it.

Synthetic static from a nylon fluffy bunny over-perfumed with some sort of weird kids' vanilla-eraser-toy-plasticine note, then talcum powdered to truly sickly effect. A rare and absolute no from me, usually a frustrated PG fan (love the innovative and beautiful smells, often feel let down by longevity and price). Ok ok, it gets a little closer to some sort of organic life - real fur rather than artificial fuzz - as it gentles down and more of the musk comes out after a couple of hours, but still, overall, way too sweet and too artificial for me to get along well with. Very powder-puff pink and femme indeed; hangs around for about 4-5h on skin, which isn't bad for PG, but I'm afraid that with this one, even that is just too long for my taste. Life's simply too short. If you love femme, vanilla-heavy ambers and don't want anything too spicy or weird, it may work for you. But not it's not my (powder-pink plush) bag at all, it doesn't do any particular thing spectacularly well, and I can think of scores of similar-but-nicer relations. Big shrug, I'm afraid.

The opening of this is leathery, boozy, Smokey, furry animalic and voluptuous musk. You can almost smell the soft animal fur of a leopard on your cheek. Then in the dry down the scent cloud is extremely familiar: Musc Ravageur. It’s very masculine, cozy, and almost worldly. Amber, rich smoky and vanilla like benzoin even though it’s not listed it feels present. The patchouli is the perfect pinch of earthy spice and the musk is sensually exotic and just amazing. This smells like a well educated, traveled, man that smokes cigars, drinks cognac by the fire, and owns many leather bound books Lol. The guy Ron Burgandy was pretending to be while hitting on women. Lol This fragrance is (and person wearing it) feels smooth, but not overbearing, very self assured, but not obnoxious. It softens more and more on the skin becoming increasingly sweet and creamy. The scent cloud is so husky, cozy, musky, manly. Really very beautifully done fragrance.