Ambre Narguile (Hermes)

By Thomas

So this twin-pack of vials comes in the mail from a friend in Canada. I’d been avoiding the Hermesscense series very carefully for a number of reasons: 1) they’re expensive, and 2) they’re expensive AND hard to get elsewhere. Ellena has my respect for his focus, but even then the cons tend to outweigh the pros in this case.

Then, a decant of Poivre Samarcande caught my attention and proved captivating, so I returned to the vials to see what wonders they contained. The winner of the two was Ambre Narguile and I wondered what Ellena (who normally orchestrates with woodwinds and xylophone), would do with amber – which has the subtlety and transparency of a tuba.

At the outset: typical Ellena, dancing around the idea of Amber, a ballerina’s light steps with no heavy club of amber to be seen onstage. Not quite what I think of when I consider ambery goodness…but the effect is quite good. Sheer, spicy-fruity somethingness. Apples figure in here…I’d say light and transparent, but isn’t that already expected when we discuss JCE scents?

After a while the door opens and the amber comes in, much lighter than I expect. I’m used to a syrupy amber, custardy and smoky and heavy-lidded enchantingly intoxicating. This is none of that, unfortunately, but rather a bit of prestidigitation designed to say ‘amber’ without beating anyone over the head.

Towards the drydown, it reminds me of a light version of Egoiste, with the apple-pie sandalwood finish. Longevity was short: I ended up reapplying at midday. This, though, might be the only amber I could consider wearing in summertime – much like Shaal Nur for incense. So – taken on its merits it’s a good scent but it’s not as I tend to prefer ambers.

If I recall correctly from a few years back, Hermes was one of the brands that was bandied about under the ‘stealth-wealth’ banner, or if you prefer ‘discreet luxe’. The idea behind all this is that Hermes is about tasteful, inconspicuous consumption, noticeable only to a discerning few (how hot-pink Birkin bags figure into this is a mystery to me, but whatev). Anyway, the idea I get from Ambre Narguile is that this is an amber scent for the wearer’s pleasure only. Very little sillage, not much longevity, it’s the most discreet amber you’ll find, and only you will know what you’re wearing. In this case, I guess it’s true to the Hermes vision, but kind of a shame for those of us who like to share.

Year: 2004

Perfumer: Jean-Claude Ellena

Notes: Honey, ginger, amber, incense