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Hi everyone! I’m fairly new here. I have been into perfume for a long time but I would like to step up my game. I have trouble describing the notes. What does amber smell like? And how do I know when I smell it? 
the best way to do this in my opinion would be together with other parfumados!  Is there anyone else that can help me or wants to dive into this enormous world together? 

Maybe I posted this in the wrong section, but please be kind. I’m trying 🥲

Amber is a really weird concept in perfumery. As far as I know, it can mean 3 different things:

First, and most common is the "amber" fantasy accord. This is comprised traditionally of three ingredients: vanilla, benzoin, and labdanum. Benzoin and labdanum are tree resins, which is probably where this accord got its name. It's a sticky, gooey kind of sweet and somewhat spicy scent that you can find in fragrances like Ambre sultan Eau de Parfum or Grand Soir.

Second is used as a codename for a specific class of aromachemicals that attempt to recreate the smell of ambergris, most notably ambroxan, when brands/marketers don't want to put the aromachemical itself into the note listing. Ambergris is an excretion from sperm whales that collects in their intestines and is sometimes deposited on beaches. The French named it "ambre gris" which is "grey amber." It has long been banned in perfumery as there would be an incentive to kill sperm whales and harvest ambergris otherwise. Fragrances such as Polo Red Eau de Toilette or Le Mâle Eau de Toilette fall into this category.

Third is very rare, but some perfumers actually suspend actual amber (fossilized tree resin) in a carrier oil or alcohol and use that as a base for their fragrance. This is sometimes listed as "fossilized amber" as opposed to just "amber" to distinguish it from the other two uses of the note. It is usually used by more artisanal/indie brands to set themselves apart from traditional perfumery. Suze, Mysore Incenza, and Tibetan Musk are examples of uses.

Hi @Madeliv,

To me amber smells warm, a bit 'thick', sweet and resinous. 

Hi @Omnipotato, thank you so much for your reply. I’m starting to get an idea of what it smells like. It makes sense, the warm color and the warm smell, but still it feels a bit arbitrary. 

Spermwhale’s feed mainly on giant squid which have huge beaks, think of a parrot but 20 times bigger. The beaks and other indigestible parts collect as slugs in their intestines and turn into the famed grey amber. At least this is what I know from old whaling books.

The idea of actual fossilized amber in a perfume is really intriguing to me. I love other resinous notes and I wonder if it would still have some of those qualities after fossilization. Worth a try!

@Ringtale In my mind it immediately starts to smell a little smoky as well. When I think of sweet, thick and resinous.. might be my current obsession with smoky scents but what do you think?

Hi @Madeliv 

Smoke doesn't come to my mind when I think of amber but that could be because I don't know any 'smoky' scents.

I (oh hate to admit this 🤫, it is such a bad habit) smoke, but I get no associations with amber when I do, but maybe smokey scents don't smell like cigarette smoke?? Amber is found powdery by many, but I find it rather creamy or moist in a way..When I think of a color, I would say: gold.

@Ringtale don’t be ashamed of yourself, we’re all mad here right?

Cigarette smoke is not really the smoke I had in mind. Cigarettes are more tobaccolike. The smoke in my mind was smoldering sugar or resin from a tree. A Maison Margiela By the Fireplace vibe. 

I love smoky tobacco notes in perfume by the way, like stealing a kiss from someone who just had a cigarette. 

Thanks @Madeliv Aha, well then it could be that you get a little of that in an ambery perfume, I can at least imagine amber to go well with that kind of smoke. Maybe some caramel as well? My father smoked pipe and had a lovely caramel scented tabacco. My sister and I both had a stuffed animal (rabbit) we would sleep with and, before going to bed, we always would hold the ears of that animal near the pipe so we would sleep on my father's scent which felt safe and cozy

@Ringtale ohh really?? That is so cute and heartwarming! 
I used to have a little kitty plush that I dipped in custard because I loved the vanilla scent. After it had been in the washing machine I never was able to sleep.
She had to be rubbed all over the dog, grandma, couch, everything that smelled normal to me to get her unique (yuck) scent back. Lol. 

@Madeliv Haha, I know that feeling 😃: I always was heartbroken when my little blanket (that I used to carry around when I was little) came out of the washing machine...They shouldn't do that to kids, really .