What is Ambergris?

Ambergris is a substance formed in the body of sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus L.). Whales produce it to protect their digestive tract from the sharp pieces of food they cannot digest. For example, beaks and suckers from the giant cephalopods are not digestible and whales have to excrete them.

Ambergris is lighter than water and floats, which allows it to be exposed to oxygen and sunlight - a process that gives ambergris its perfume qualities. This precious perfume raw material is then collected already "processed", and thrown ashore from the sea. Because there is no harm to the animal, we can still see real ambergris in perfumes today (although they are often pretty pricy).

Ambergris began to be traded as early as the 9th century BC and was used as medicine, for food seasoning, and as an aphrodisiac. By the 14th century, ambergris was one of the most expensive perfume ingredients. One gram of perfume-quality ambergris costs $20-40. Ambergris has a very complex smell - woody, incensy, slightly earthy, and mineral, with hints of musk, tobacco, and vanilla, surrounded of course by the smell of the ocean.

Big perfume houses such as Fermenich, IFF, and Givaudan have since synthesized many synthetic products that could mimic parts of ambroxan's complex fragrance profile - Ambrox, Ambrinol, Cachalox and Cetalox Leavo, Ambermor and Cetalor, Ambroxan, Ambrofix etc. Despite its initial high cost, Ambrox has always been a very popular ingredient, It gained huge popularity after the launch of Drakkar Noir, and since then, Ambrox has become an integral part of men's fougere fragrances and even women's perfumes like the famous Thierry Mugler's Alien.