Amouage Library Collection Opus VI

As I have mentioned a couple of times recently on this blog, Amouage's latest in the Library Collection, Opus VI, has really struck a chord with me, making it by far my favourite of the Opus range and certainly one of the best recent releases from Amouage, in my opinion. It is no secret here that I am a fan of Amouage, so I should state that my opinion is possibly biased, but in any event, a perfume house that has so many perfumes that appeal to me must be something special. I don't know why the other Opus perfumes haven't appealed much to me. I think part of the issue is that none of them has that 'something', or the wow factor. In fact, thinking back on Opus I, II, III and IV (I haven't tried V enough to form a fair opinion) I struggle to distinguish between them and if someone had to ask me right now to describe each one, I couldn't.

Opus VI, on the other hand, struck an immediate chord with me the moment I first sprayed it on a card, then on skin. The notes include sichuan pepper, frankincense, St Thomas bay, periploca, cypriol, patchouli, ambranum, Z11, sandalwood and cistus. I think what immediately strikes me about the notes is Amouage's openness about the ingredients. No fancy-schmancy bullshit about all-natural ingredients gathered personally from remote reaches of the world. Cypriol is derived from a grass-with-rhizomes, as I understand it and has a slightly animalic, spicy-musky accord, while Z11 is a new (or fairly new?) synthetic compound that has an amber profile, as does ambranum. The effect is a perfume that to me smells woody, resinous, slightly smoky/leathery and, of course, amber-like. Amouage state that Z11 gives Opus VI a bone-dry feel, and while I can appreciate that, Opus VI does not smell that dry to me - there is some 'sweetness' from the cistus and sandalwood, but it does smell gloriously woody. 

The opening has that that trademark Amouage frankincense accord and throughout the duration of wear, Opus VI to me has hints of, or a nod to Epic, both the men's and women's versions, without the oud or tea notes. 

What I find quite fascinating about Opus VI is that it smells like a totally new take on the amber genre of perfume. It does smell like an amber perfume, yet it feels totally modern and unlike any other amber perfume I have encountered. Opus VI is well-balanced too. Like all Amouage perfumes, it has stellar lasting power, but is not that forceful. At the end of the day, it smells amazing.

If you haven't tried Opus VI yet, I would highly recommend getting your hands on a sample.

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