Ambre Noir Yves Rocher 2013

I received it as a Christmas gift in 2014 and didn't unpack it for almost 4 months - because I wanted to spare myself the possible disappointment. Then, as it got warmer, I decided to give it a chance.

A full spray on my inner elbow.
At first, the scent seems confused. As if the fragrance particles don't know what to do.... Released for the first time, they act really dumb, probably need to blink, look around stupidly, and get used to the daylight. This bewildered clamor lasts about 10 minutes, then they finally manage to create a scent. One that makes me hopeful.
It could become something.

It has a pull, like a dark, bitter praline, with an orange cream filling. Even though the praline itself is dark, it is just a recurring, subtle thread of scent. Nothing else is dark. On the contrary. The fragrance has the same color as its liquid in the bottle.
Time passes, I enjoy this quiet promise, sniffing at my skin again and again... We - I and the fragrance - seem to be stuck in a state of expectation. I expect it to become something. No idea what. Maybe that the particles will do something - if they can't put on a striptease, then at least loosen their hips. But maybe the fragrance is waiting for me to like it for what it already is, so it can shed its shyness? Well, okay. I approach it, my nose nudges it kindly, benevolently. That seems to give it courage and it shows me a dry, floral note. An exceedingly beautiful one. The only stupid thing is, it only shows it to me when I'm ready to cuddle. Otherwise, it practically disappears after 3 hours! What’s that supposed to mean?!
The performance ends before I even realize it has begun? It certainly seems that way!
I stand there and wonder what I should do with this perfume. Like it? Look at it offended? Give it away? Is "nice" good enough? Does all of this now justify a disappointment?

My problem with this scent is that its fragrance components are beautiful, but homeopathically dosed. If I don't bury my nose in my inner elbow, I smell it weakly, and only at the beginning.
It's annoying, yes, it's disappointing. I think it's not enough to just be nice. Why should I flirt with it and put up with its impotence? I don't need that.
It's always the same with Yves Rocher fragrances, I've written it elsewhere too: Many nice, good approaches, and poor presence and longevity! Guys, do something in the bottle, for heaven's sake! Is it about money? There are companies where you pay the same and get perfumes that last. I don't care what it costs. Make it 10 times more expensive, but good! Then I would buy it for myself. Oh, and don't lie about the name, if it's not too much to ask. The fragrances are too good to throw away, but too weak to wear. Yes, I could reapply. I do that sometimes at home. But outside, I just forget it. I don't go out to flirt, I go to do whatever, but not to think about whether my perfume still lasts.
All the Yves Rocher perfumes I own have been given to me as gifts. But somehow I can't help but look into the mouth of the beast. Maybe I'm just too ungrateful....
So, that would be it.