SL Ambre Sultan

**rickboone1** · 09-22-2011, 07:09 PM

I'm really liking this. What do you think?

**Obsessed** · 09-22-2011, 07:26 PM

I just got a decant recently. Nice stuff.

**StylinLA** · 09-22-2011, 07:53 PM

If you like amber, you'll love this. I like it, but don't wear it much. There are good reasons to like it. Consider this quote from an online article in The Guardian about perfumes and scents;

"Still more notoriously, Serge Lutens' Ambre Sultan comprises a ripely resinous vegetal amber suggestive of female arousal."

**john parker** · 09-22-2011, 07:59 PM

I regret that my wife finds Ambre Sultan entirely too smokey. Oh, well........

**Schad** · 09-22-2011, 08:12 PM

I hate it.

**The Knize** · 09-22-2011, 08:19 PM

I really like it, and so does my wife. I can see why some would not like it though. Seems very oriental to me, if the sense of when "oriental" meant the Middle East!

**rickcharles606** · 09-22-2011, 10:30 PM

Looks like I'll need to try this one, it sounds nice. Would you guys consider it a Fall or Winter fragrance?

**The Knize** · 09-23-2011, 12:45 AM

Originally Posted by rickcharles606

Looks like I'll need to try this one, it sounds nice. Would you guys consider it a Fall or Winter fragrance?

I do not frequently divide scents up seasonally myself. I would say that it seems "night time" to me. It seems like a pretty heavy frag, which seems Fall/Winter. But on the other hand it has middle Eastern type associations to me, which would include hot nights. Perhaps in every respect!

**jakespoppy** · 09-23-2011, 03:55 AM

I would wear it anytime, as it's not overly sweet or overpowering or have any potentially offensive notes. It is warm, but I would still wear it anytime. But like Robbie, I don't generally "categorize" fragrances by season anyway.

**daverasi** · 09-23-2011, 06:05 AM

Originally Posted by jakespoppy

I would wear it anytime, as it's not overly sweet or overpowering or have any potentially offensive notes. It is warm, but I would still wear it anytime. But like Robbie, I don't generally "categorize" fragrances by season anyway.

Warm is exactly how I would describe it! I have a sample that I rarely use. I would also tend to classify it as more of a evening scent. Based on my very limited experience it is not ad sweet as a number of other amber frags.

**The Chandos** · 09-23-2011, 07:35 AM

It's a rich herbal amber, a tad sweet, a bit odd in the opening, but dries down to an amazing amber experience. It's not my favorite amber (that distinguished title is still being decided but the contestants are Annick Goutal's Ambre Fetiche and Tom Ford's Amber Absolute) but the herbal approach makes it appealing in its uniqueness. The amber in this is very high quality and should make any amber enthusiast happy.

**StylinLA** · 09-23-2011, 07:38 AM

In SoCal, I'm not very seasonal with scents, but this doesn't seem suited for really warm or humid weather. Also more of a nighttime scent. Leans way more sensual than office or casual.

**Obsessed** · 09-23-2011, 07:55 AM

Originally Posted by daverasi

Based on my very limited experience it is not ad sweet as a number of other amber frags.

I agree.

**The Knize** · 09-23-2011, 10:03 AM

Originally Posted by StylinLA

In SoCal, I'm not very seasonal with scents, but this doesn't seem suited for really warm or humid weather. Also more of a nighttime scent. Leans way more sensual than office or casual.

Well maybe not humid. That would not be very desert like. I still get a vibe from it, as I do from many sandelwoods, of lying around the sultan's tent or compound/harem, on a hot evening, with the wind blowing across the desert. Maybe it is just the name!

What are the good amber scents besides Annick Goutal "Ambre Fetiche" and Tom Ford "Amber Absolute"? Seems like something I have not thought about much for some reason. Amber is certainly one of those "noble" notes/accords.

**The Chandos** · 09-23-2011, 12:21 PM

Originally Posted by The Knize

What are the good amber scents besides Annick Goutal "Ambre Fetiche" and Tom Ford "Amber Absolute"? Seems like something I have not thought about much for some reason. Amber is certainly one of those "noble" notes/accords.

That's a good question, actually, only a few come to mind and I KNOW there are tons of others. Histoires des Parfums' Ambre 114 is really good but something in it turns me off. Sonoma Scent Studio makes a great Amber (I like a lot of stuff the SSS does). Ambre Precieux by MPG I haven't tried but I hear it's one of the flagship ambers. And Ambre by Reminiscense 1970 is also very good.

**tehtimmeh** · 09-23-2011, 12:41 PM

Tom Ford's Amber Absolute is similar, but better and of course has insane longevity like most of the PBs. I'm not overly enamored with either one though, honestly.

I didn't really care Ambre Precieux either. Amber must not be my cup 'o tea.

**The Knize** · 09-23-2011, 05:28 PM

Originally Posted by The Chandos

That's a good question, actually, only a few come to mind and I KNOW there are tons of others. Histoires des Parfums' Ambre 114 is really good but something in it turns me off. Sonoma Scent Studio makes a great Amber (I like a lot of stuff the SSS does). Ambre Precieux by MPG I haven't tried but I hear it's one of the flagship ambers. And Ambre by Reminiscense 1970 is also very good.

Thanks! Welcome to B&B! Sounds like we are lucky to have you! Please keep contributing to the "conversation"!

I think of amber as being more a supportive accord. I suppose, literally a "basenote."

Interesting "sniffing" notes around the web on this one. Folks seem to like it, but from person to person seem to smell every possble fragrance note somewhere in this scent.

**jakespoppy** · 09-23-2011, 06:02 PM

Originally Posted by The Knize

...I think of amber as being more a supportive accord. I suppose, literally a "basenote.".....

That's interesting. I think of most typical basenotes - amber, vetiver, sandalwood, musk, etc - as also sometimes a fragrance "type" of their own. But I generally prefer them with some supporting note to give them some complexity, and that is especially true with amber.

**The Knize** · 09-23-2011, 06:22 PM

Originally Posted by jakespoppy

That's interesting. I think of most typical basenotes - amber, vetiver, sandalwood, musk, etc - as also sometimes a fragrance "type" of their own. But I generally prefer them with some supporting note to give them some complexity, and that is especially true with amber.

Maybe I am just overlooking the ambers of the world, and the musks, too. I absolutely agree that any of these notes do better with some supporting notes. That is scentmaking! I cannot think of any note that I prefer pure, in say an EO. And that includes sandalwood, which can smell extraordinary on its own.

I had a scent way back that featured center stage oakmoss. Actually, it was very nice. Oakmoss was clearly be an accord I do not think of as ever being up front!

**jakespoppy** · 09-23-2011, 06:39 PM

Originally Posted by The Knize

Maybe I am just overlooking the ambers of the world, and the musks, too. I absolutely agree that any of these notes do better with some supporting notes. That is scentmaking! I cannot think of any note that I prefer pure, in say an EO. And that includes sandalwood, which can smell extraordinary on its own.

I had a scent way back that featured center stage oakmoss. Actually, it was very nice. Oakmoss was clearly be an accord I do not think of as ever being up front!

Surely you remember Luca Turin/Tania Sanchez talking about how they didn't want to review the plethora of amber scents on the market for their "Perfumes: The A to Z Guide" book? But they still reviewed quite a few. There probably aren't as any musk scents as amber, but still quite a few.

I don't think I'm familiar with the Oakmoss centered scent you described. Sounds interesting and unusual, though.