Amber fragrances, scents of the season...

Far from ending, winter’s cold is stretching its misty limbs into the new year. So for a few more weeks, all we really want is to nestle into a soft, enveloping cocoon of lush, shimmering scents. This season is perfect for amber fragrances: their purring sensuality is unequalled for taking the sting out of winter’s chill. For Osmoz, the amber accord – the outcome of a sophisticated pairing of labdanum and vanilla – is beautifully revealed in the following fragrances.

Serge Lutens was one of the first to treat ingredients like gems. His jewel-like fragrance Ambre Sultan turns labdanum into a precious stone set at the heart of the composition, underscored by frankincense and graced with a fanciful flight of spicy and aromatic notes. The feline spirit of this majestically thoroughbred scent can be found almost 20 years later in Dior’s Mitzah, subtly enhanced with rose and vanilla, this interpretation is as bewitching as can be.

One of the pioneers in this niche, Jean Laporte, the founder of L’Artisan Parfumeur, renewed the experience with Maître Parfumeur et Gantier. That’s where you’ll find his Ambre Précieux, a stunning fragrance with a perfect balance between dry and resinous notes. Lavender and myrtle quickly swirl into balms (Tolu, Peru); their sweet vanilla tonalities make this fragrance a warm and velvety cocoon.

Behind its powdery, feminine finery, Bijou Romantique (“Romantic Jewel”) by Etat Libre d’Orange hides an addictive amber accord. Don’t let this floral-oriental’s romantic-sounding name fool you – it is actually a tribute to Italian comic-book writer Hugo Pratt. The juice is a modern twist on the guerlinade, which gives resinous notes pride of place. In Bijou Romantique – a sensually carnal perfume – vanilla, iris, patchouli and benzoin are as sexy as can be.

Elegant and arousing, Akkad by Lubin renews the genre by intertwining ambry notes with cold spices (cardamom, elemi). The brisk, modern freshness at the top creates a contrast with the fragrance’s more enveloping evolution towards a blend of labdanum, vanilla and patchouli. Oriental tonalities jazzed up with vibrant frankincense make this a unisex scent in which noble ingredients go hand in hand with the intensity of a lush and voluptuous trail.

Of course, amber didn’t have to wait for niche perfumers to reveal its bewitching charms. A stroll through the classics is enough to be convinced of that. Take Habit Rouge by Guerlain: after a refreshingly sparkling dash of citrus, ambry notes flirt with patchouli and a hint of leather. A seductive elixir for men that some women like to slip on from time to time.