Reviews of Ambre Canelle (1949)
by Creed

Pretty simple - a natural, slightly sweet, spicy cinnamon scent over ambergris. Very enjoyable on myself, but I don't think others would enjoy it as much as I do.

Like the other Creed's from back in the day, Ambre Canelle smells very dated and old-fashioned, but in an eccentric and nostalgic way. It also has the same great quality and blending the other older Creeds have. Like Royal Scottish Lavender, I can't really see myself wearing this, but I would love to smell this on an older person, (male or female), perhaps in the age range of 50+.

Overall, Ambre Cannelle is a simple, yet strange and very interesting fragrance worth trying for fragrance aficionados. I wouldn't suggest trying it though if you're looking for something modern and easily accessible.

7.25/10

A very sweet amber and cinnamon scent. It has powerful sillage so do not over apply, or you might smell like an old lady at first. It isn't very masculine because of its sillage and sweetness but I love wearing this for that very reason - you are constantly reminded of what you are wearing and it is pleasant. However, I still prefer to wear this at home because it's not something I want others to smell on me.

Ambergris and cinnamon together -- yum! This is a rich and old fashioned frag that -- more than any other Creed I can think of -- is definitively a "love it or hate it" number. (And I love it.)

The ambergris is so strong (think Youth Dew) and the whole effect so animalic yet ancient that I really can't effectively describe either in a few words.

The amber, btw, doesn't come in until considerably later in the frag's progression. The cinnamon (canelle) you smell throughout, but more so later on.

Try before you buy. Try before you buy. Try before you buy.

Whoah! Quite the opening here: amber, very smooth, rounded cinnamon, and lots of soap. It's an entry that grabs me right away and then leaves me impatient to see where it will go next.

The soapy sensation might recall Cypres-Musc, but here the soap is balanced by a highly suggestive accord of indolic jasmine, rose, and amber. The whole thing smells like a self-contradiction, but in the most fascinating way. The constant tension between clean and "dirty," civilized and feral, builds tremendous suspense as to just which way the balance will eventually fall.

For a time the rose takes control and molds Ambre Canelle into a very bold, yet slightly austere floral scent. Yet the yeasty, "doughy" quality in some rose essences is brought forward by the amber, eventually erasing the last traces of soap. At this point, three or more hours into its development, Ambre Canelle falls onto a luxurious amber and indole soaked cushion, upon which it stretches languidly for the remainder of its stay.

A Creed that does not smell like any other, and which stands beside Angelique Encens, Royal English Leather, and Orange Spice as an exemplar in this old line. .

Complex. Great evolution here. It starts out pretty heavy with something that smells a bit on the feminine side. The drydown though, as others have said, changes and often. Spice, ambergris, musk, all take turns like children on a sliding board. Decent longevity and projection.

Caltha is right: This pretty much smells like that yellow lye soap that my mother made decades ago. Ambre Canelle doesn’t have the acrid bite of homemade lye soap, but it seems like pretty much the same base…that’s a good thing. The spices — a dose of cinnamon (more cinnamon leaf than cinnamon spice) and bay leaf — fit in perfectly with the ambergris and the musk. But, as IPaid and Robyogi both point out, the true star of this fragrance is jasmine: I’ve encountered only one or two other fragrances that could match this fragrance in indolic power. I guess its the soapy clean and the indolic dirty combination that makes Ambre Canelle so compelling—it’s both clean and animalic; both spicy and musty — and all these characteristics done to excess. The only other fragrance that I know of with such contrasts and excesses is Kouros. As a matter of fact, I view Ambre Canelle the same way I view Kouros: I don’t like it, but I totally love it. I am intrigued — and I never thought a Creed could do this to me.

This scent almost certainly had to be an influence on the creators of Paul Sebastion PS. On the first sniff they are strikingly similar, but whereas PS is slightly more dirty with a sort of rubber note that at times can be disturbing, Ambre Canelle opens slightly soaply and clean and evolves into a soft, ambery, cinnamon scent. The lack of any harsh notes and the powdery, calming nature of the drydown do infact make the scent unisex.

I am not quite sure that I can recommend this scent over PS for the average wearer especially since PS is much cheaper, but I can definitely recommend it for fragrance collectors that appreciate a scent that has a significant evolution.

I really like this one, but I agree with the other reviews that say that it might not be a good one to buy blind. Those accustomed to GIT, Himalaya, Green Valley, MI, or Neroli Sauvage will probably be very surprised by this one. Along with Baie de Genievre, it's my favorite "non-Creed" Creed, or one of those Creed fragrances that will surprise you, just when you think you've figured out what's going on with this house. The "soapy/spicy" opening others get is a blast of the pink pepper, which stays quite discernible until the drydown, but subsides to give more amber and cinammon. Definitely worth a try, but sample it first.

Notes:

TOP:Cinnamon leaves, pink pepper
MIDDLE:Rose, cinnamon, bay leaf, coriander
BASE: Ambergris, Tonkin Musk

Even though Ambre Canelle (AC) isn't one of the more popular Creeds, I was intrigued by the name as well as the fact that it supposedly contains one of the highest quality ambergris notes in existence. Oh, and that its basically sex in a bottle.

AC has an immediate impact. It took me multiple wearings to decipher its opening accord. Its soapy yet spicy, spicy yet skanky, skanky yet sweet, and sweet yet soapy. It gets even more perplexing as the fragrance evolves - theres a certain amplitude to this accord, which is perhaps brought on by the use of jasmine in concert with the pungent bay leaf and spicy coriander. It is startling and intriguing at the same time, and a far cry from the usual citrus/lavender opening accords of the mass fragrances. This soapy/indole-laden/spicy accord lasts for an hour before drying down to a luscious and provocative ambergris and musk combo. The ambergris smells slightly sweet, deep and powerful; its in fine form here, and the quality of ingredients shows. This whale vomit is so good, you might want to bath in it. The sensual drydown stretches the longevity to almost 7 hours.

Ambre Canelle is an unusual and sensual offering from Creed. From its multifarious soapy/spicy/indolic first half to the ambergris-dominated pheromone-like drydown, its an arresting fragrance experience. It may not be for everyone, but once you are lured in by its composition and witness its bewitching effect on people around you, you may never want to go without a bottle in your collection.

Most Creed fragrances have a strong bergamot and/or lavender overlay. This intense fougere overlay has been long used by many houses and is no longer welcome in my world.

I thought it would be interesting to see what I would think of a Creed that had no bergamot and lavender – if such a fragrance existed.

Fortunately I had access to Michael Edwards’ [paid] online Fragrances of the World database. I was able to look at Edward’s fragrance pyramids, which provide detailed descriptions of all of the notes in the Creed fragrances. I found Ambre Canelle which has none of the dreaded bergamot and lavender. I ordered it and it arrived today.

I like it a lot. Because it is free of fougere notes, it is more unique and has a stronger personality than other scents in the Creed family. It is light, gentle and delightful to smell. A man or a woman could wear this. It is not sweet, but has a nice, gender neutral rose note. It is pleasant, refreshing and makes me feel like getting down to business. Would be nice in a workplace. For people who wear scent seasonally, this would be a nice spring scent.

Ambre Canelle is a hard one for me to understand. When I got it, I was expecting an amber and cinnamon fragrance. When I tried it, I got jasmine and a massive Creed House note. To this day, I don’t really get any cinnamon at all, but I do get Amber (I guess) as Creed defines it. I don’t know if anyone else gets this, but I find it very jasmine dominant. I do like it a lot. It’s rich, masculine, and floral. It’s not what I expected, but I like it nonetheless.

A man or a woman could wear this scent. The only notes listed on the creed site are ambergris and cinnamon. Ambergris must smell wonderful then.

Sex in a bottle. The purest use of ambergris I have come across. This is a powerful fragrance best reserved for romantic occasions and cooler weather. Wonderful but dangerous!

A very fun, clean, barber-shop like scent. Sweet. Yet, on the negative side, it sort of reminds me of Paul Sebastian PS.