Oriza L. Legrand Empire des Indes Eau de Parfum is a spiced, amber-vanilla with floral, almond, and resinous aspects that’s heady with out being intensely smoky and woody for almost all of its put on. There was delicate, extra incense-like smokiness that flitted within the background however well-woven with the opposite notes, whereas the woodiness was clean, creamy, and strongest within the drydown. The perfume was sweetly vanilla however spiced and dosed with loads of amber, benzoin, and myrrh that that it didn’t come throughout as cake-like vanilla.
Empire des Indes Notes
- prime notes: Ginger & Bergamot
- coronary heart notes: Heliotrope, Nag Champa flower and Tolu balm.
- base notes: Benzoin, Sandalwood & Opoponax.
What does Empire des Indes Odor Like?
It opened with the chew of spiced ginger, evenly candied and toasted almonds, and a whisper of bergamot on the finish of an inhale. There was a balsamic, heady and spiced vanilla from the tolu balsam married with the heliotrope, which gave an phantasm of candied almonds served on a delicate, breezy cloud. Within the first couple of minutes of wear and tear, there was a delicate floralcy all through the scent earlier than it grew hotter, denser, and spicier with thicker, extra resinous and amber-like aspects.
A darkish, wealthy honey oozed in on the 20-minute mark, which added a bit extra floralcy whereas giving the scent a heavier, thicker, and deeper candy word. The sense of candy and spiced amber laced with spiced vanilla dominated with all the pieces else a aspect, so typically it was extra gingered, different instances virtually nutty, after which sometimes, lemon and honeyed.
There have been tendrils of smoky incense and clean sandalwood that emerged after an hour or so of growth. Among the floracy died again, however it got here and went, in waves for the primary 4 hours total. Because the smoky and woody aspects filtered by, the perfume grew to become barely much less vanillic, a bit of nuttier and caramelized. From the second hour by the sixth hour, it typically got here throughout as extra ambered, different instances darker and extra resinous with much less spice and smokiness. It appeared to get extra caramel-like and fewer vanillic towards the dry down, particularly because the woodiness grew to become extra obvious within the base.
Longevity
It lasted for eight hours till it was a skin-scent and about 16 hours earlier than it was fairly troublesome to detect on my pores and skin. The sillage and projection had been reasonable with the sillage dropping quicker than the projection inside three hours of wear and tear.
Private Notes
Based mostly on a buddy’s overview of the scent and the record of notes, it appeared like a surefire winner for me, personally, which is why I ended up going for a full bottle from the get-go. (Word: this can be a unhealthy thought, usually, and my buddy completely side-eyes me if I do, however she’s often on the nostril for recs!) The floralcy made it rather less like different ambery scents I’ve and already love! I additionally preferred how a lot candy myrrh was in it for the primary half of wear and tear.
These are extra subjective emotions primarily based on what I like (or don’t like) in a fragrance in addition to contemplating the perfume in opposition to different perfumes I personal and love.
Testing Methodology
For testing, I used two sprays to underside of my wrist and forearm. I used an unscented moisturizer previous to making use of the scent as I discovered scent didn’t maintain properly right here in any other case.
I bought my bottle in June 2022; fragrances are recognized to be reformulated over their lifetime, so be aware of when a overview was made, e.g. a overview from 2010 could not mirror what the same-named fragrance smells like in 2022.
Availability
Empire des Indes is accessible for $165.00/100ml.
If doable, I extremely advocate making an attempt a perfume earlier than buying a full bottle as a result of perfume can put on in a different way simply due to pores and skin chemistry. Pores and skin chemistry can impact not simply the longevity of a perfume but in addition what notes are outstanding or hidden.
Empire des Indes Samples
We advocate the next retailers for buying decanted samples (usually 0.7ml to 2ml in measurement). This can be a fuller record, so particular person availability could depend upon stock.