A good portion of my adolescence was spent in racing and touring leathers. Ombré Leather does indeed smell like smooth leather to me (as opposed to suede) plus some sweet florals, as if I had a broken in riding jacket that had picked up some dried down Metallique. Olfactory memories are amazing. So strong was the association, for me, it triggered the remembrance of the sweat, shampoo, and plastic-metallic factory smell inside my helmet. Pretty cool. Ombré Leather gets two thumbs up for that.
Brand new shoe or suede leather jacket smell, together with something fresh and tart from the plant kingdom. I do not perceive the raspberry note others have mentioned; it is more green, like crushed raspberry leaf maybe. The two notes do not mesh at all, but switch back and forth and you can tell them apart very easily. Also a very synthetic impression. Oh, and an utterly offensive price tag. Get out of here.
Smells similar to the raspberry opening of Tuscan Leather. But its funny, it only smells similar right off the top. It changes, and becomes a floral leather, then ultimately a dash of ambrox. At times it smells dry and floral like Dia, others its clean smoke patchouli. Its really good, and been an enjoyable wear every time. Lasts about 10 hours. Thumbs up!
Raspberry shoe leather!
Others before me have done a good pull-apart of this fragrance, so I won't get too verbose with this.
It's a linear scent that smells like shoe leather with the cardamom and jasmine giving this a slightly floral and sweet touch to it, akin to the faint odor of raspberries. The best way I could describe this would be for you to go to a Nordstrom/Saks, etc., grab a nice captoe, maybe Allen Edmonds or Ferragamo, from the men's shoe department, walk towards the fragrance department, stand about twenty feet from a fragrance counter where the various perfumes can be smelled in the air, and then bury your face into the shoe and take a big whiff. This smells like the midway point between the men's shoes section and the fragrance counters. That's the best way that I can put Ombre Leather into an experiential description.
That said, I like it. I'm not sure if others would enjoy smelling it on my person, but I just dig it. I love the smell of good shoe leather, and this is a solid representation of it. I'm also not sure what situation I'd be in where I would want to wear this or where it would be appropriate, but I do know that it needs to be autumn/winter to pull this one off.
Thumbs up on this quirky number!
19th November, 2019 (last edited: 21st November, 2019)
Effectively a flanker of a flanker, Ombré Leather (2018) is not the unabashed home run that the limited edition Ombré Leather 16 was. Ombré Leather 16 cannily rebuilt Tuscan Leather around a sensual, striking, dark floral heart, creating a dynamic contrast between the leather blast for which Tuscan Leather became so celebrated and a more feminine, formal-feeling supporting structure.
The 2018 release is a drier, starker, more direct affair. The central leather accord is mostly preserved and is still appealing, but the lack of complexity is a significant weakness (unless you're using it for layering purposes). Still a fair buy, though, and I find it more pleasant and balanced than the originator of the line, Tuscan Leather.