No3 Cuir Amber

I can only speak for this scent from the exclusives, the quality of Cuir Ambre is incredible! Fragrant aromas of resins, sandalwood, spices, and soft flowers are what I get from No.3. It has a classic feel to its composition yet it’s beautifully balanced. I get an ambery styrax, soft heliotrope, iris, some clove and of course, nuances of leather. It opens very masculine at first but don’t let that fool you, as it warms on the skin the powdery florals and sandalwood shine. You get this beautiful, velvety richness. Never would I’ve thought that this was a take on a Cuir de Russie style fragrance, I don’t get much smokiness or prominent notes of leather. It is perfect for both sexes, maybe I’m crazy but sometimes I smell nuances of different perfumes here, The masculine opening of “M7 by YSL,” the sandalwood and spices in Francesca Bianchi’s “Under My Skin,” and the powdery, dry down found in “The Dark Knight,” also by Bianchi. In finality, if sophistication had a scent, Cuir Ambre would be it in my opinion.

Cuir Ambree is a very sophisticated and luxurious leather full of spices, iris and heliotrope in an animalic background, that i think is castoreum, and uses patchouli and moss to gives a chypre feel to the composition. The scent is very personal and stays close to the skin. The concentration is somewhat in the middle between parfum and edp, but works great when dabbed freely. Its similar to Cuir Mauresque and Knize Ten but it has its own point of view and lots to say. If you come by in a Prada store, try it!

This perfume makes me "see" the hold of a ship full of spices, resins, amber, precious woods, leathers, coming from the Indies. Yes no3 Cuir Amber of Prada is a full immersion in spices and is more Oeillet than Amber in fact it makes me really think to Gomma by Etro (twin of knize ten) and share the same impression to be into an ancient room in wood, furnitures, paviment, beamed ceiling, ancient oils, candles and alchemical experiments with Da Vinci. Obviously I love it.

To me this is closer to Knize Ten than Gomma, but it's a bit different (more "feminine" and floral). It also doesn't seem to be as strong. I have a mini with several ml remaining, and I'll likely swap it off or sell it on ebay because I can't imagine reaching for it instead of Knize Ten (I have enough of vintage KT).

I have it, ten years later still smells warm & heavy. Black leather case/box was an optional cost, very expensive at the time $EU v $ AUD. Glad i got it.