Elizabeth Arden Untold Absolu Perfume: A Vanillia Fragrance Perfect for Fall/Winter

Elizabeth Arden's Untold Absolu is the latest fragrance flanker added to the brand's Untold line, which is supposed to represent sophistication. Previously, Elizabeth Arden had released Untold (the original perfume that started it all) last year, and then followed up earlier this summer with Untold Legere, a lighter, more citrusy version tht was supposed to be more of a hot weather scent. Now, with Fall and Winter around the corner, it makes sense that Elizabeth Arden should then follow up with a scent befitting the season - and here comes Untold Absolu to fill that gap.

Elizabeth Arden Untold Absolu: The new addition to the Untold range of perfumes

Untold Absolu, a you might expect of such an offering, is a "deeper, more sensual interpretation of Untold", with "luxurious floral absolutes, red plum and black raspberry accents" and a "magnetic amber base". Sounds like a fruity-floral on an amber base to me - let's check out the actual perfume itself and see how it goes!


Elizabeth Arden Untold Absolu: A warm fragrance in time for Fall/Winter seasno
The first whiff of Untold Absolu is mostly citrus, perhaps the bergamot note in the scent, and it made me wonder, where was the autumnal, cold weather scent in all of this? But I questioned too soon, because the citrusy top note quickly gave way to a fruity-floral middle note. As with a number of mainstream releases, the fruity-floral notes are a bunch of scents blended together (raspberry, florals), so the individual notes were somewhat indistinguishable to me, although certainly pleasant. I think I caught a hint of juiciness that the other Untold versions didn't have, and I ascribed this to the red plum and black raspberry. This part of the fragrance had some sweetness in it, although it is far from cloying or too sweet. The sweetness level is just about right in this one for me, and being in my late twenties means that I'm far from the teenaged-girl demographics sweet perfumes are often aimed at, so yes, it is sweet, but not overly so.


Elizabeth Arden Untold Absolu: Start off with citrus notes, followed by the middle notes of fruits and florals
After awhile, the fruity-floral middle note gives way to the best part of the perfume for me - the base notes! Elizabeth Arden describes the base notes as containing "Brazilian Tonka Absolute, Cashmere Woods, Tahitian Vanilla Bourbon Absolute and deep Benzoin Resinoid", so it would be primarily a mix of amber and some gourmand notes. Looking at the reviews on various sites, it seems like other people got mostly the amber part of the base more than the gourmand part, however for me, it was the total opposite. On me, I got instead a nice vanillic base, gourmand and sweet, and very comforting. Like the fruity-floral middle notes, the sweetness was there but to me, not overbearing, and I suspect whether you like it or not will depend on your own personal vanilla preferences. For comparison, I'd say that it's probably sweeter than those who like true vanilla scents (like L'Aromarine Vanille, which is pure smokey vanilla with no sweetness whatsoever), but not as sweet as a mainstream vanillic scent (e.g. Britney Spears' Fantasy, which is sweet as sweet can be). Overall, I'd say that the gourmand base note I got was a very nice welcoming note that would probably be quite universally popular with most people.


Elizabeth Arden Untold Absolu: The main basenote I get is a pleasant, nicely sweetened vanilla
Because this is a scent geared for Fall/Winter, it's heavier than the standard Untold, which was primarily white florals on an amber base. Despite the comparative heaviness, I'd say that it's still wearable year-round - I live in a hot tropical climate near the equator, and while I was wearing this, I never once felt that this scent was overkill at all in my weather, and fortunately, it never "turned" or gave strange off-notes in the warm weather either. The sillage was also moderate, if also wider than the standard Untold and the summery Untold Legere - those around you can definitely smell it, but it's not one of those scents that's too easy to overdo. The lasting power on this was also good. I wore this for about half a day, and I could smell the comforting vanillic drydown on my wrists pretty much the whole time.


Elizabeth Arden Untold Absolu: A warm, comforting fragrance with a touch of sweetness
So, what are my final thoughts on Untold Absolu? I'll start off by saying that it's perhaps the most mainstream of the Untold range, perhaps because of the fruity-floral-with-a-gourmand-base combination. But nevertheless, this is still a very well done fragrance. Despite being somewhat mainstream in terms of composition, it never smells like those overly-sweet fruity-florals geared towards the tween age group, and still retains some form of grace. I'd say that this is one of the better done fruity-floral-gourmand fragrances by a department store brand, and certainly, compared to comparable brand's offerings, it's one that strikes a good balance between being popular with most mainstream department store shoppers, while not being so mainstream as to make the hardcore fragrance addicts roll their eyes - in fact, it gets some pretty good reviews on some more niche sites, too. So if you're looking for a perfume in the vein of the fruity-floral-gourmand realm that's still done well, this is worth checking out. It's a warm, comforting, inviting fragrance with a touch of sweetness - perfect for the Fall/Winter season!

Recommended?	Scent	Complexity	Sillage	Lasting Power
Yes, if you like non-niche gourmand scents	Fruity, Floral, Gourmand	Average	Average	Good
The Bottom Line: Untold Absolu is a boon for gourmand perfume lovers who want a perfume that sits nicely at the crossroads of the mainstream and the niche, with a touch of sweetness.

(Product was sent for review. Review is my complete and honest opinion. I am not affiliated with/compensated by the company.)