L'Eau Ambrée is the latest in Prada's series of amber-based perfumes (see Prada Eau de Parfum, Prada Intense, Prada Eau Tendre and Prada Amber Pour Homme). It's supposed to "modernize traditional amber" and to have a "…graceful presence, empowering but never demanding". If that sounds sort of like L'Eau Ambrée is meant to do for amber what Prada's Infusion d'Iris did for iris, that's exactly how it turns out, in fact, for the first few seconds on skin, it smells vaguely like Infusion d'Iris — enough so that the first time I tried it, I was confused for a moment and had to check the bottle to be sure I'd sprayed the right fragrance.
As it dries down, L'Eau Ambrée settles into something rather different, although the feel is so close to Infusion d'Iris that I have to wonder why they didn't call it Infusion d'Amber. It's like a very transparent take on the dry woody amber-patchouli from the original Prada fragrance crossed with a bit of the creamy men's soap from Prada Amber Pour Homme (with, I would swear, a drop or two of Infusion d'Iris, thrown in for good measure). The floral notes are subdued and it's more dry than sweet. It's darkish and warm, but it's so light that you could wear it anywhere, anytime, and there's nothing overtly feminine about it.
The sillage is minimal — I find it quieter than the already-quiet Infusion d'Iris, and not quite so tenacious, although it does do much better sprayed than dabbed. The first time I tried it I thought it was perhaps too quiet, but its aura of subdued elegance has grown on me since then. I'm not so enthralled — yet — that I'll pay full price for it (especially since I just caved on the Van Cleef & Arpels Bois d'Iris) but it's going on my "buy" list, where it can hang around with Prada Amber Pour Homme, which has been languishing there for a few years. Maybe one day I'll get lucky and find both at a fabulous price: a tiny drop of Amber Pour Homme, sprayed liberally with L'Eau Ambrée, is a lovely combination.
Prada L’Eau Ambrée was developed by perfumer Daniela Andrier, and the notes include citron, rose de mai, gardenia, patchouli, vanilla, opononax. It is available in 30, 50 ($76) and 80 ($104) ml Eau de Parfum, and in an 80 ml refillable atomizer ($117; refill with funnel $78). Matching body products are also available.
Well, that was a surprise ending! I thought you were going to say that ultimately you found it a little meh. Funny about the Id’I – it makes me think of knockoff advertisements: “If you love Infusion d’Iris, try Infus..uh… Eau D’Ambree!”
Yeah, I can see why that might be…perhaps you have to know in advance that I love Amber Pour Homme & Infusion d’Iris? This is really beautifully done — I do think Prada/Daniela Andrier in general are doing a great job, even though I disliked Infusion d’Fleur d’Oranger — but for me, it’s not a “wow” sort of scent. I can see wearing it quite a bit though. But also still feeling burned by how quickly IdI went to the discounters after I paid full price for it. I’ll be patient w/ this one!
It’s funny how so many fleur d’oranger scents think they need to add an actual orange scent to the mix, just in case you didn’t get the idea. The thing I love so much about neroli is that it DOESN’T really smell like oranges, which is, like, one of my least favorite scents.
This amber scent sounds lovely; I don’t think I have many dry amber scents on hand. I wonder if I am going to amber myself out eventually?
In my case, it wasn’t the orange so much as the powder. Maybe I just don’t like powdery orange blossom? Or something else, I don’t know, but I do most definitely like some orange blossom + orange combos.
This sounds lovely, and I totally agree about waiting. So many new releases are at the online discounters within what seems like weeks! I’m having an amber craving at the moment, so looking forward to smelling this. I like Id’I and fell for the original Prada not long ago; I think their mainstream scents are well done. Haven’t smelled Id’O or any of their more exclusive line.
You know, I’ve smelled *almost* all of the exclusive line, and they’re nice, but in general I like their mainstream things better.
Being an amber fan, I have wanted to try this and now more so after your review [and i don’t think amber is a favorite note of yours?]. I was hoping Sephora would have it the other day, but nope, they didn’t. I think they only had the original Prada. Anyway, I hope this isn’t an exclusive somewhere – that can be inconvenient.
It might be exclusive to Neimans at the moment, but I’m not at all sure. Anyway, no, I’m not an amber fan, and anyone looking for a deep, rich, oriental-type amber will be disappointed by this (although technically I think it is an oriental).
I do think it’s very much worth trying, and on skin — I don’t think it does so well on paper, personally.
Unfortunately it’s exclusive to Nordstroms right now, RusticDove. The Saks SA mentioned it last week and I confirmed it when I ran through Nordies the other day (didn’t get to sniff it thought).
Definitely not exclusive to Nordstrom, NM has it in-store and online!
I was fed lies! Sorry for the misinformation guys!
No worries! And seriously, I think the store managers tell the SAs things like this all the time — I can’t even count the times I’ve been told something was exclusive when I just saw it in another store in the same mall.
Well, good to know Nordie’s has it too – that makes it a little easier for me. Thanks Norjunma! 🙂
Sounds lovely. I am a fan of both amber and Infusion d’Iris, so I have a feeling this is up my alley.
Hope you’ll love it then!
Sounds perfect for daytime use so! I’ve bought one unsniffed from ebay, and I was worried since I’ve saw some negative comments about it. Well, after this review from robin, I can relax lol It’d be perfect to have a version of the traditional prada worked in a light way that can be used in office and in daytime wear.
Robin, I’ve saw a review commenting that sometimes ambree reminds of eau des merveilles. Is that true?
They aren’t smell-alikes at all, but yes, similar sort of treatment, and they both have that kind of “understated sexy” thing. If you hate it, send it to me, LOL…
I love the understated sexy thing of eau des merveilles. Sorry, i think i’ll like a lot this one lol
It’s a supremely quiet, demure fragrance. without being overtly feminine or girly. It would probably complement another fragrance layered on top of it quite well.
Agree, it was nice layered w/ the Homme & think it would have lots of other layering possibilities. It would be really nice w/ the rose amped up a bit, for instance…I might play with that.
Being a perfume newb, I’m curious to try this one. My limited with experience with ambers has been a little…cloying. I’m hoping this will make me heart amber the way Infusion made me pine for iris!
Oh, then do try the above-mentioned Eau des Merveilles from Hermes too!
Oooh! I’ve been due for a trip to explore the Hermes frags. That’ll be first on the list!
Norjunma, if you’re going to a Hermes store, you can also try, if you like creamy boozy spicy confort amber, ambre narguille. It’s gorgeous and I think you’ll be problably like me, whishing that it was a cheaper so It could be more acessible to buy a 100ml bottle.
I love Ambre Narguile too, probably forever and ever. Robin, how do the two compare?
Yes, I adore AN too. I find it quite a sheer, friendly yet snuggly amber so definitely worth a try.
Thanks for the review, Robin. I saw this in Selfridges but didn’t try. I’ll give it a whirl as I quite like amber and used to wear the original Prada when it came out.
Monstabunny, the Hermes AN is entirely different — it’s a fall/winter scent to me. Rick’s “creamy, boozy, spicy” is right, and to me it’s also a bit foody, rich, deep. Nothing like the transparent Prada at all. You could dislike what most of us think of as “amber” and still like the Prada, not sure that’s so true of the AN.
Did you not think about getting the 4x15ml Set de Voyage and share?
Or getting yourself all 4 different with Vetiver Tonka you’ll surely love, AN and the Pepper one. And I bet you can even use Rose Ikebana layered or just sell/swap it.
Glad to read this got high marks, Robin. I haven’t yet met a Prada I didn’t like, though I have yet to try their take on orange blossom or the exclusive boutique frags. But the original Prada for women is one of my favorite “new classic” fragrances in all its intensities. I look forward to trying this one as well. I found the Prada Intense had a lot of amber in it, which I really liked.
I’ve not liked them all, but Prada Tendre was the only one I found “blatantly commercial”, and I really appreciate that. Some of them, maybe even this one, seem almost anti-commercial, like they’re making what they like instead of what they think will sell. Or maybe that’s my own idealism 😉
QUIETER than Id’I? Goodness. Actually, I’m convinced I’m a bit anosmic to Id’I. I sense something there even when I spray VERY liberally. A friend was able to smell it very obviously on me when I felt like I could barely detect it myself.
I’m curious about this one, though it certainly sounds as if the citron, rose de mai, and gardenia are but mere suggestions in the composition, eh? And it sounds like I really ought to try Amber Pour Homme; I’m wondering if I can track down a tester locally.
In 2 million years of sniffing, I wouldn’t have picked out gardenia. I don’t even really notice the rose, although it’s there.
I really like APH, but you have to like shaving cream sort of scents!
I love the men’s Infusion, and love amber, but could never get into either the men’s or women’s Prada ambers – they all smelled like paper and rubber to me! This may be the first women’s Prada I can get into; thanks for a great review!
Hope this won’t be just transparent paper & rubber for you, LOL…
Funny, I love the original Prada for women but I didn’t really like Infusion d’Iris. I like the deep warmth of the amber. I am guessing then, that I might not need to try this new one.
Eau des Merveilles is one I wanted to love, but the dry down smells just like my mother-in-law–her perfume comes from Walgreens or something and it’s so cheap and overwhelming! I couldn’t understand how something that comes out of such a beautiful bottle and started out so sparkling could turn into that syrup. Amber Narguile was definitely nicer, but I feel like the hermessences are too sheer. I think that’s why I like the Prada–it’s feels more substantial.
This one does not have “deep warmth” and it isn’t what I’d call substantial either. Always worth a shot, but doesn’t sound like you’ll love it.
*faints dead away at this maligning of the beloved EdM*
Syrupy? Loud? Wow. Now if you’d said that about the AN I’d understand…
I haven’t seen it at Nordstrom and I was just at NM today and they said that it was an exclusive to them – of course, sometimes it’s just a matter of the size that they carry being an exclusive. They told me the same thing about Jasmine White Moss a few months ago and it isn’t exclusive to them at all.
I really liked this scent and was tempted to buy – but I was afraid that it would end up at the discounters in a few months as well. I did cave on the Alien Liqueur though and I paid full price for that. They didn’t have any samples of the VCAs at NM either – but she did say that they’d send me some if they get more in a few weeks. I liked the Gardenia Petale, but I already have Tuberose Gardenia and the original Marc Jacobs – so I didn’t feel the need for the VCA.
Really, I can’t remember what fragrance they last told me was exclusive and I told the woman it was right down the hall at Nordstrom and she honestly didn’t believe me. So I don’t think they’re lying, just misinformed.
Hey, did you happen to try the Angel Liqueur, and how was it?? I forgot to even look for it when I was at the mall last weekend.
Sadly, I didn’t try the Angel Liqueur because I can’t stand Angel – probably because I used to work with a woman who doused herself in it and I’d get stuck in the elevator with her on a regular basis. Just the merest whiff of Angel is still enough to trigger my gag reflex after all these years.
I’m still holding on to my sample of it though, just in case I like it someday. Unfortunately, the samples they gave me with my purchase were Innocent and the regular Alien – if they’d given me an Angel Liqueur, I would’ve shipped it right to you.
I’m not an Angel fan either, but I really liked the Angel Part des Anges that I think must be similar to this one. No worries, I’ll find some to try!
Aargh … now that makes me wonder if I shouldn’t have tried it while I was *right there*. Of course, I don’t know if I had any skin space left to spray it on – lol.
I was just at the mall trying the Angel Liqueur yet again. I even managed to get a sample out of the stingy SA this time I’m positive I’m going to crack and buy the Angel Liqueur at full price soon. For some reason, I didn’t smell the Alien Liqueur. How is that one different from the regular version? The Angel seems more smokey with the sweetness toned down.
I’m not sure if I can explain it or even put my finger right on it, but I’ll try. To me, the original Alien is very dry, in the way that L’Air du Desert Morocain is dry – it almost sucks the breath out of me. While it’s not a scent that I’d wear every day, I fell in love with it at first scent because it brings a very specific sense-memory back to me when I wear it – it smells and feels like a very hot, dry summer day in Albuquerque.
Alien Liqueur, on the other hand, still has that dry, solar accord underneath it, but the process of again it in oak barrels really brings the jasmine out. Instead of being a hot, dry summer day, it feels like one of those impossibly warm, lazy days in late April or early May when the jasmine is blooming and it’s still Spring, but you can feel summer coming. There is something really sensual about it, without it having the dirty, sexy overtones that can come with jasmine.
While I love Alien because of the associations that it brings up, it isn’t an easy scent for me to wear because it’s bright and hard; Alien Liqueur is much more comfortable and wearable for me.
*aging* it in oak barrels – not again. blerg … must get some sleep. 🙂
First off, I hope this comment ends up in the right place. Secondly, thank you for such an articulate response! You’ve got me very interested in trying both the regular Alien and the LE.
I’m the opposite of you – I got distinctive amber for the first hour, then it turned completely into Infusion d’Iris! I was actually in love for that hour, but the drydown was so similar, it was pointless to have both.
That’s so funny! When I first sprayed it I was really convinced I’d sprayed the wrong bottle.
Dear guys,
I’ve tried it in Harrods recently. It’s not worth the money are asking for it. It’ s only a tad warmer than Infusion D’Iris and it dissapears quite fastly from the skin. Drydown is so similar to InfusionD’Iris that’s it’s simply not worth having. And I am a huge fan of Prada scents, even though they are often mainsteam, and I honestly thought this would be my new favorite, but nothing, a blank shot.
Instead I fell in love with EL Private collection Amber Ylang Ylang. I wish Robin or daisy would write a piece on this one. A bit loud at the beginning, but quite lovely as it develops.
Seriously, skip buying L’Eau ambree and save your pennies for smth. else you love…
Angie reviewed the EL:
https://nstperfume.com/2008/10/15/estee-lauder-private-collection-amber-ylang-ylang-perfume-review/
Great Review!! Gosh Im so jealous you got to test it!!! Im dying to smell it!! I love my Infusion D’Homme and everything Prada so I just know Im gonna LOVE it from your description!! The only one Im kinda not SO in love w/ is Fleur d’Oranger. But hey if someone gave it to me, Id happily wear it!
I wonder if you’ll feel you need this if you already have the stronger Amber Pour Homme? Do report back after you try it!
Hey Jonr951, if you (or anyone else) is interested in Fleur d’Oranger, I have a bottle I’d like to swap out (am I allowed to say that, Robin? Huge, huge apologies if not)…
You can reach me over on MUA (username: queenvicky)
Sure, that’s fine!
Thank you for the beautiful review!
I managed to try this new Prada at Neiman Marcus a few weeks ago. It is rather airy. In fact, I felt as if I were enveloped by citrusy cloud. The citrus never disappeared from my wrist. It is really pretty and very, very soft for me. I agree–it would have been a good fit for an “Infusion” series.
I also think it is very different from Ambre Narguile, which was one of my favorites last winter. Ambre Narguile is much sweeter and although both are soft, AN is somehow heavier than Prada L’Eau Ambree. To my nose, AN has a very distinct honey-like note, almost like a foody. I don’t perceive AN as spicy, though. I look for my spicy fix elsewhere 🙂
Always so interesting how differently people experience scents…the citrus is mostly gone on me w/in 15 minutes!
Wish they’d do an Infusion d’Incense next.
Agree it’s way diff. than AN!
Robin, yes, you are absolutely right! The world would be such a boring place if we all experienced it the same way 🙂
In all fairness to Prada L’Ambree, I may have been too quick to judge it. Soon after I tested P L’A, I sprayed Le Baiser du Dragon on my other wrist, the pure parfum, which I have liked for some time but have been a wuss to wear. This will change, I think.
Yeah, not at all sure L’Eau Ambree could hold its own against the Cartier! Do give it another shot.
Sigh. Our blog is still down. Maybe I’ll just pass the days annoying you on YOUR blog… so, I tried this, but it was on a day when i’d tried a bunch of other stuff (along with several other women.) We all had a bit of trouble smelling it! I think we’d broken our noses 🙂 I’m going to go back and re-sniff…. I can’t believe I haven’t bought Pour Homme, every time I smell it I think how lovely it is.
Looks like you’re back up! But you’re always welcome to annoy us here, LOL…and do give the Ambree another chance. It definitely does better w/o competition.
I can’t believe I don’t own Pour Homme either, although it’s not the only thing I want that’s been sitting in the “to buy” list for years.
I second that – I didn’t think much of it when I tried it in the store (along with about 50 other scents), but really enjoyed it when I pulled out the sample at home. Of course, I still haven’t bought it because: a. I’m afraid that it will hit the discounters right after I buy, and b. I have a couple of other ambers that I enjoy and I don’t know if I need another one.
Hmmm interesting review. Now I’m really curious.
I’m running out of my 50mL bottle of Infusion d’iris… and want something that sticks just as close to the skin, but perhaps a bit warmer for winter? I was actually going to buy a bottle of Infusion pour Homme because when I tried it on skin (much to chagrin of the SA) it smelt like a more incense-sy version of d’iris. I adore the warmth of the incense on Iris. Maybe this could be a good buy? I usually just buy one scent a year and wear it all year long… or maybe I should go buy D&G Light Blue like every other teenager my age?
Ideas?
The L’Eau Ambree is certainly worth a try…it’s warmer than the Infusion d’Iris.
I tend to walk by the Pradas because I hate those bottles. Anything I have to hold with two hands so I don’t spray it in my eye is a pass. Plus everything I have tried has been too soapy on me. The men’s one sounds really nice.
You can get them without the silly bulb atomizer – I don’t know why they tend to display them that way.
It isn’t the bulb, it’s more the shape of the bottle – my hands are too small or something.
Ah… I can see why you wouldn’t want to bother then, especially if you don’t love the juice. I have a couple of scents that I probably won’t bother to buy again because the bottle is so annoying. If it was something that I adored, I suppose that I’d decant it.
This has a definite soapiness to the dry down, so that might be a negative for you Tama.
Good! lol – one to leave off the list for a change.
After trying a few samples of this – I ordered it. (It arrives today – I HOPE!) I am crossing my fingers it works out well! (I don’t live near a NM – an hour away at best) Anyways – I’m intrigued to find Prada Amber Pour Homme mentioned in the review. My mom got it as a sample for my dad. (imagine typical ex-Navy pilot that only wore Old Spice my entire childhood.. Now I have him wearing YSL) Anyways, she took the sample to him and he didn’t like it. She LOVES it though & brought it to me asking if it was OK for females to wear it. (yesyes! hehe) I completely fell in love with that sample & told her it was going on my “To buy” list & that she should get a bottle – she was really loving it.
I love the original Prada & am on my 3rd bottle of Infusion d’Iris. I hadn’t seen this review before I purchased the new Prada, though. I may have gone ahead & bumped up Prada Amber Pour Homme!
We’ll see, though. 😀 I’m .excited about today.. I did enjoy the samples I had of the L’eau Ambree.
I saw Le Baiser du Dragon mentioned here. I wear Delices de Cartier – but I have never tried Le Baiser du Dragon! Another to add to the list. 😉 (no willpower.)
I’m getting a sample of VCA’s “Feerie” supposedly. I think I’m as excited about that as the Prada arriving because I have always wanted to try it. The other perfume sample was Jo Malone’s Necartine/Honey? I think! Never had a chance to smell anything in that range either. Today is like Christmas!
Oh, congrats, hope your package arrives today!
How funny – I imagined L’Eau Ambrée to be more intense than the original Amber perfumes, going by the dark smoky grey bottle.
But I suppose it *is* a “l’eau”.
It isn’t really what I expected either…still surprised they didn’t use the “Infusion” name.
OMG I did so bad 2nite! I went 2 a nordstrom fragrance event and went a little overboard!! I got me an L’eau Ambree gift set!! I LOVE it!! Even more then my ID’H! I got me John Varvatos Rock Vol 1! And I got me D&G 3 and 18!!! I couldnt help myself!! I LOVE them all!!!!
You were bad, LOL…enjoy all your new things!
Yummie, it smells very very very good. It stays sweet (but not too sweet) and is very warm and comfortable.
I like it too.
I’ve just tried this and I hated it. Perhaps it’s the amber – but there’s a completely overpowering top note that I can’t stand.
Oh, too bad!
I loved this from the moment I caught it in the air. However, I am not an expert on any level and have a question, please. I bought a bottle in the duty-free shop at DeGaulle with the following on it:
L”EAU AMBREE, Essences de Mandrine et Cedrat d’Italie, Absolue de Rose de Mai, Gardenia Jasminolde, Opoponax de Somalie, Feuillies de Patchouli d’Indonesie
I bought some state-side with this:
AMBER Resine de Labdanum de France, Feuilles de Patchouli d’Indonesie, Resine de Benjoin de siam et Santal des Indes
Are they the same fragrance and strength? The duty-free bottle was the dark clear bootle and cost twice as much as the state-side clear bottle that came in a set with lotion.
Juanita
Sounds like the bottle you bought in the US was the regular Prada Amber aka Prada Eau de Parfum:
https://nstperfume.com/2006/08/24/prada-eau-de-parfum-prada-intense-perfume-review/
They are both the same concentration (Eau de Parfum) but the L’Eau Ambree wears lighter than the Prada Amber.
I like this, and find it very wearable, especially in the winter months. However, I’m not quite as impressed with it as my husband’s Amber Pour Homme. I think a tiny spritz of Homme plus a liberal spray of L’Eau Ambree is just about right. It does not have much staying power on me, and it is definitely a skin scent. There are times when I appreciate this quality: in the office, or while traveling, it’s good not to smell too overt. I find it quite similar to Infusion d’Iris, but without that Iris topnote bite, which is what makes me prefer Infusion d’Iris.
All three are great scents — the Infusion is probably my favorite of the 3 too though.
I am kicking myself now. Passed up on an opportunity to get this in a coffret at an obscenely low price, and I don’t even know why I didn’t even bother to smell it! ARGH
Oh, but maybe you would have hated it!
Robin male, or Robin female? For my question, I guess it doesn’t really matter. I’m just curious. I’m new to the site. Hard to tell sex online sometimes. The Prada fragrance ‘Ambree’ gets its name from “amber” and has amber notes, or amber qualities of some kind. My question is, what is meant by “amber” in this case? The fossilized tree sap, that supposedly smells mildly ‘piney’ when warmed? Or ambergris? The weird residue in whale intestines? or the color amber? a warm reddish yellow? I have worn Cartier Declaration for several years. I am switching to Prada’s Eau de l’Ambree. Want to know what I’m getting myself into…
Hi and welcome!
Robin female. Amber in perfume is an accord; you can read a definition in the glossary:
https://nstperfume.com/perfume-glossary/
Hi there.. I am pretty new here and just going through all of your reviews. I seriously love this blog and it is on my home page so I don’t miss a beat. Anyway, I printed out the perfume notes so I can conduct my own testing. I am having a blast. My love for perfume dates back to when I was a wee little one however LIFE got in the way until now. So I just wanted to say thank you for creating such a great atmosphere and a great great resource for fellow perfume lovers. My two cents on Prada L’Eau Ambree is that I love it. I usually wear original Prada lotion layered with Narcisco Rodriquez but I have been wearing Ambree layered with (yikes) Benefit’s Carmella. I don’t know how that happened but I received a sample from my beloved Sephora and just sprayed. What an amazing smell.
Oh, thanks for the very nice words — glad you’re enjoying NST! And glad you found a perfect layering combo, I’ll have to try that.
True, it doesn’t last long, but I love this as a scent when the summer ends. I find it’s amber sweetness and smoking bonfire undertone a perfect reminder that the autumn, or Fall to most contributors here I think, is about more than snuggling up in warm layers.
I think I wear it nearly year-round, but fall is the perfect time.