Memoir Woman Amouage (2010)Eau de Parfum

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Top 35 in Women's Perfume

8.3 / 10 409 Ratings

Memoir Woman (Eau de Parfum) is a popular perfume by Amouage for women and was released in 2010. The scent is spicy-oriental. Projection and longevity are above-average. It is being marketed by Oman Perfumery.

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Perfumers

Dorothée Piot, Daniel Maurel

Fragrance Notes

Top Notes	Absinth, Fenugreek, Cardamom, Mandarin, Pink pepper
Heart Notes	Clove, Woods, Jasmine, Pepper, Rose, Frankincense, White blossoms
Base Notes	Castoreum, Oakmoss, Labdanum, Leather, Musk, Styrax

Ratings

Scent

8.3 (409 Ratings)

Longevity

8.9 (315 Ratings)

Sillage

8.4 (311 Ratings)

Bottle

8.6 (296 Ratings)

View Video of Memoir Woman (Eau de Parfum) (Vimeo)

Submitted by Kankuro, last update on 26.07.2020.

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Reviews

10/03/2019

Jas0N

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Jas0N

Top Review 16

Male femininity

I don't know if this headline makes any sense. Honestly, this scent is so hard to describe anyway. Just like his male counterpart.

I had to smile when I read Nurmalso's description below: "Amouage scents don't make prisoners..." The more fragrances you test from Amouage, the more often you come to the conclusion: These doors kick in, but not in a bad way. No, he wants to be my constant companion. Others will be rejected.
Apart from the Jubi, which is more discreet and less striking in its charisma, this fragrance also applies to the description given above.

When I look at the pyramid, I despair. I can't smell everything. This smell is again so complex arranged that each user smells out different components and this can lead then to a nevertheless broadly varied judgement.
For my part I smell a lot of pepper, absinthe mixes in and I can also smell out a spicy part. Above all lies incense, just like its male counterpart. In contrast to this, I notice here still slight echoes of floral notes.
I can sign the conclusion "black", but I find Memoir Man to be a bit more pronounced.

As with almost all Amouages, the shelf life is sublime. For 10 hours I noticed him clearly and could enjoy his. For my part I could even imagine that I would like to wear this fragrance more often. Therefore also the heading chosen by me.

Last but not least I'd like to say a little generalization of the Amougae scents :)

A: Sophisticated
M: Markant
O: offensive
U: Uncaring
A: Endurance
G: Violent
E: Impressive

Have fun testing. I can only recommend it to everyone!

10 Replies

09/26/2019

8.5
Scent 8
Longevity 7
Sillage 8
Bottle

DonJuanDeCat

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DonJuanDeCat

Helpful Review 10

I'm sure my memoirs will be full of comments!

Hello, fragrants, how are you? I hope you do! :)
Anyway, welcome to my commentary on Amouage's "Memoir Woman". What does memoir even mean? Hm, these are actually memoirs which one writes about oneself, for example, in order to write down what one has experienced and make it available for posterity, for example. That happens a lot, especially with politicians. But what's this scent about?

Well, according to the description, the fragrance was inspired by the stories of Charles Baudelaire, especially his work "Les Fleurs du Mal", which shows the extravagant lives of people who are constantly roaming or torn between good and evil. There are still some descriptions of the scent here, like mysterious other worlds, which represent the other self of you and which also show the already experienced of you (memoirs thus...), which of course you can only see (thus the other world), if you walk around intoxicated by absinthe and opium in the night alone.... yeah... I have also seen some strange things, if I should have been intoxicated once... umm... well :D

The interesting question is: What do you ladies see when you're intoxicated? Go ahead, speak up! And don't write things like pink, winged and therefore ultra-sweet kittens :DD

The fragrance:

At the beginning one smells a somewhat peculiarly bitter note, from which I assume that this should be the absinthe. In addition there are spicy scents, which come mainly from the clove and the pink pepper. Then I smell a light, plum-like scent. By the way, plum is not mentioned here, so it is possible that the plum appears to me only like this, e.g. due to the interaction of clove, cardamom, pink pepper and possibly some mandarin.
The fragrance remains as described for a little while before it begins to become softer and sweeter in the middle section. The incense becomes more intense over time, making the fragrance slightly fluffier or airier, and of course sweeter. In addition there are nice woods and further still the spices, which smell now more clearly spicy, but are rather small in their intensity. By the way, in my opinion, one can still best perceive the cloves and now also the pepper from the spices.
A little later, a mix of slightly animal scents comes through together with the oak moss, none of which stands out above the others or becomes particularly strong.
In the base, Memoir smells like woods and resins, making it not only soft but also nice and warm. The fruity notes are all gone now, but you can smell more sweet scents like musk and labdanum. Some beaver horny remains in the background, but oakmoss gets even weaker and you finally get to smell a little leather. A generally beautiful, spicy-sweet fragrance.

The Sillage and the shelf life:

The Sillage is quite good, which means that the scent will simply be to be smelled at one. You would also have to leave a nice fragrance trail here as you walk past. The shelf life is also very good, as the fragrance can be smelled from morning to evening, i.e. over ten hours.

The bottle:

The bottle is rectangular and slightly inflated. It was slightly pressed in on the sides. The bottle here is glossy black this time, which fits well with the theme of the fragrance (night walks and so on). On the front you can see as usual the beautiful silver-metal Amouage logo. Also the lid, which reminds as always of oriental roofs, is silver or chrome-plated and shows a black Swarovski stone at its tip. As always, a beautiful and naturally high-quality bottle.

Soo, has the fragrance turned out to be as mysterious as it might sound according to the description? Well, actually it is, because it offers many dark notes like spices and absinthe and all this is combined with incense. Okay, all those who don't have a vivid imagination will of course say that it's just a well-made, spicy resinous fragrance. That may be true, but damn it, let your creativity and imagination out! Sniff the scent, but close your eyes and think of mysterious things!

Well? No? Do you get beautiful or mysterious images projected into your head? No? God damn it... those are scents, man! You have to let your imagination run away with you a little bit... I think about perfumes and... uh... that's not so important now... :D
But you... maybe you should be intoxicated to enjoy those scents better. So you should still be able to get absinthe for it somehow... but opium might be harder to get, he he :DD

Anyway, Memoir Woman is one of the most beautiful Amouage fragrances I've known so far. I could have done without the Bibergeil (and what also led to a slight devaluation), but well, luckily it wasn't so intense, so that this animalic note doesn't bother me so much. Everything else smells nice and has been well composed, the dark but beautiful radiance of the fragrance comes through well, making the fragrance a great all-rounder for colder days. Applied very lightly, it could be used in the office for special occasions, but this fragrance really shows its strength when going out, celebrating and other social occasions, where you just want to come across well. It looks a little more mature, so that it may be less recommendable to the younger ones. But everyone else should definitely have a look at this scent!

Well then, I'm ready again for today and wish you all a nice evening :)

2 Replies

09/29/2018

Anosmia
5 Reviews

Anosmia

There is a reason it is considered the best amouage....

Amouage, a brand that started with an extraordinary piece of work (gold) around which a lot of myths were piling up, is now a brand well-known and well-established, with a perfume range from friendly scents like blossom love to really strange ones like interlude.
Although I have to admit I am more on the sunshine side, because it's easier to wear, the real masterpieces focus on oriental ingredients.
And the masterpiece of all masterpieces is for sure Memoir.
Not only because of all the interesting and intense scents added to the perfume, frankincense being the most dominant one, in general showing woody, spicy, smoky sides.
The real work of art here is the blending. Memoir is like an old, complicated Single Malt, coming up with new notes and tones every half an hour.
It is constantly changing, not in a disturbing way though...this perfume takes you on a trip, showing all his beautiful ingredients by switching attitudes.
That is astonishing: The constant changing.
In one moment you might be a lady, distant and coolish, next one a black witch going through the underwood, laughing huskily and burning herbs, then an Arabian princess, seductive and erotic, leading a lush life in the palace...
...and all of that with a bomb sillage and outstanding longevity.
For feminists.
For punk-ladies.
For witches.
For every woman that wants to show her strength.

05/27/2018

9
Scent 9
Longevity 8
Sillage 8
Bottle

Liss77557

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Liss77557

Very helpful Review 9

The darkness and the light

It's dark
in my heart,
dark and cold.
But there,
in the dark,
is a red pain,
very small, very fine.
Do you know what this is?
A note that
the darkness breaks,
a trail of fear,
but also very strong
and indescribable
is that something.
Do you know what it is?
It's LOVE,
Love that breaks the darkness.

Wow, this perfume really creates me like no other amouage scent.
He's so changeable and completely different from anything I've ever smelled.

First I take something alcoholic was , with the full force of pepper.
uuuufff first back with the nose ...
Afterwards, however, it develops a little more flowery, the jasmine and the white flowers join in.
The alcoholic disappears completely.

After some time it becomes close to the body and nestles to the skin. It becomes creamy, woody, flattering. I smell oakmoss at the end with the musk most.

He gets dark and mysterious, a little unapproachable.
It's not a little girl scent and that's exactly what I like about him that he's so far away from mainstream.

Really a fragrance that you must learn to love, but if you learn to love it, it brings a little light into the darkness of everyday life.

2 Replies

08/06/2015

8
Scent 10
Longevity 10
Sillage 7.5
Bottle

Isabelle1
46 Reviews

Isabelle1

This really fits me

I love this one, I am a zero in storytelling and in perfume notes the same goes for wines, I only know what I dislike, can stand, like and love. This I love, but there is my vintage poison that comes on the First place for me.

1 Replies

06/07/2015

8
Scent 7.5
Longevity 7.5
Sillage

Missk
1165 Reviews

Missk

Very helpful Review 4

My favourite Amouage for Women

I believe I have finally stumbled upon my favourite Amouage. Memoir Woman is a stunning and bold fragrance, which makes me feel like an Egyptian Goddess decked out in the finest yellow gold.

People will smell you coming from a mile away. Memoir Woman has intense sillage, that leaves the most intoxicating trail. I love turning heads, so this fragrance is very appealing to my nose. I wouldn't wish for it to be delicate or soft. The louder, the better.

The rose accord shines through quite strongly on my skin, followed by shiny leather, incense and spicy cloves. There's something a little naughty about this fragrance, something that hints that Memoir Woman is a perfume intended to be worn by 'bad girls'.

Putting all morals aside, Memoir Woman is incredibly sexy and rich. Men will find it hard not be captivated by the woman who wears this. Some fragrances work as a confidence booster, and this is one of those. I feel powerful and in control while wearing Memoir Woman. It's a scent that I'll always find myself coming back to, time and time again.

Memoir Woman is rather complex in terms of composition. There are some sweet, syrupy nuances throughout, brought about the zesty mandarin orange, rose oil and white floral blend. Leather, spices and incense tend to drag this fragrance over to the 'dark side', giving it that mysterious aura.

Although classified as a chypre, it also has some strong oriental tendencies. If there was ever a genre called, 'oriental chypre', Memoir Woman would be number one in that category. The sillage is powerful, so spray with caution. The same can be said in terms of the longevity as well. In conclusion, this fragrance may not suit everyone's tastes, but it is worth a try even if it is not to your liking.

Originally written: July 08, 2012.

1 Replies

06/12/2014

10
Scent

NaughtyKitty
6 Reviews

NaughtyKitty

Top Review 9

Amouage Memoir may just be the seductress of all perfumes.

After wearing and appreciating Memoir enough times that it has actually become as close to a "signature fragrance" for me as possible, I feel that it is my rightful duty as a perfume lover to give it a proper review.

Up until my encounter with Memoir, a majority of my perfume collection consisted mainly of blind buys from discount stores such as Ross. At the time, I did not understand why someone would pay over $100 for a fragrance. I knew nothing about the house of Amouage, but when a fellow perfume hobbyist recommended Memoir to me based on my love of incense and enigmatic orientals, I took the gamble and bought it.

When I received my Memoir in the mail, I was stunned. I had not smelled anything like this fragrance before. It was intoxicating yet strange and new to my nose, and I did not know what to think of it. Smokey notes, a strong tangerine, and warm spices....I was confused because this was not a scent I was used to. It was simply too wierd for my untrained nose but somehow I still liked it (not loved it). I was astounded by how long Memoir seemed to last on my skin. I could still smell it a day later (to this day, Amouage remains the only house which makes fragrances that last this long on my skin).

So I put Memoir away for a while, thinking of it as a special ocassion fragrance. However, something kept calling me back to that strange alluring scent. I began wearing Memoir more often just because I wanted to smell that smoky tangerine incense. It became a fragrance so distinct that even in a purse which mingled with the scents of 10 other perfumes, I could still overwhelmingly smell Memoir while failing to identify everything else.

Memoir is a special scent if you allow it to be. I didn't appreciate it much when I first bought it, but now it is a perfume which I feel is *my* scent. It is one of those perfumes no one has mistaken for another perfume. Something about this scent is very personal. It doesn't scream at you with its scent. It's not an Angel or an Alien. It is a silent yet persistent seductress. Never have I felt like Memoir projected too strongly or offended those around me, yet it projected just enough to draw attention, and the longevity (as mentioned previously) is superb; the best on the market.

Memoir can be strange and tempermental. It is beautiful but because of its unique composition (which defies the mainstream perfume trends) and heavy smoky notes it is not suitable for everyone, so please sample before buying. You may either appreciate it, grow to appreciate it, or simply find it impossible to enjoy such a fragrance. Memoir can be grand and luxurious or dark and mysterious. It has many different facets and personalities.

I enjoy my fun gourmand scents, but Memoir is a different creature altogether. I must be in a contemplative mood to wear it. Despite it's slight tangerine fruitiness, it is a rather serious scent.

People often wonder whether Amouage fragrances are worth their price tag. This is up to the individual to decide for themselves. As for me, when my bottle of Memoir runs out, it will undoubtedly be replaced. And because of the unique quality of their fragrances, I certainly intend to buy more perfumes from this wonderful house.

1 Replies

07/14/2012

jtd
484 Reviews

jtd

Very helpful Review 5

Believability

Memoir Woman is a moving target. It opens as an orange incense chypre, with spices and some huge white floral notes (jasmine, tuberose) holding an impatient sweetness at bay. Soon, though the flower and the spice hang in, a syrupy thickness takes the lead and Memoir comes to feel strikingly similar to Serge Lutens’s Cèdre and Arabie. By this time, you realize that Memoir won’t so much blur genre lines as jump over them. It’s moved from mixed-bag chypre to syrupy sweet and finally lands in the balsamic spicy oriental camp.

All of the above. More is better. Bigger is better. You get the idea. There’s nothing either subtle or minimal happening here. Wearing it, I keep flashing to the image of an insect caught and preserved in amber.

I recently heard an interview with a Danish film director who noted the difficulty and ultimate payoff of delivering the unexpected while maintaining a believable narrative. She might as well have been talking about Memoir Woman.

02/20/2012

9
Scent 10
Longevity 10
Sillage

Sherapop
1239 Reviews

Sherapop

Top Review 5

A Multilayered and Compelling Modern Oriental Chypre

Amouage MEMOIR WOMAN is a thick and satisfying oriental chypre with a marked smoky leather note which darkens the composition overall while at the same time framing the lighter floral and fruity notes. I do not find the leather very animalic; it almost seems like dark-roasted tobacco, in fact.

As the composition develops, the smokiness fades to a light shadow of itself, while the labdanum becomes more prominent. The heavy hitters--including clove, absinthe, cardamom, pepper, styrax and incense--are judiciously measured in this composition so that none overwhelms the other notes.

MEMOIR is definitely a modern chypre, à la COCO MADEMOISELLE, BRYANT PARK, or LEXINGTON AVENUE, albeit not sweet, and nothing at all like the classic chypres, including MITSOUKO, FEMME ROCHAS, et al.

This creation strikes me as well-named. Multilayered and compelling, MEMOIR WOMAN has a significant and worthwhile development trajectory, which mimics the manner in which memories proliferate in consciousness as one reflects upon the past: one image leads to another until by the end one may even forget what started it all given where one lands… In this case, a scrumptious and complex perfume of the oriental-chypre kind…

My favorite Amouage so far...

2 Replies