Ambre Sensuel
Rose set against resin and leather, like a delicate fabric in a dark, severe cut.
Perfumer: Serge de Oliveira
Ambre Sensuel is pictured as an evening gown worn to a slow, romantic dinner. Serge de Oliveira has a particular dress in mind, a dark one from his own wardrobe, made of a delicate fabric but cut in a sombre, mysterious line.
In the perfume, that tension becomes rose meeting amber. Bergamot and elemi make a bright, resin-edged opening before the heart turns to rose with guaiac wood and labdanum, which give the petals a smoky, gummy depth.
Cedar, patchouli, leather and Tolu balsam make up the base. Nothing here smooths the contrast away; the softness of the rose and the darker materials are left to pull at each other, which the perfumer describes as opposites attracting.
