Hi there ULGers, Today I thought we could talk about an interesting niche brand that I fell madly in love with. Their Memory Motel was amazing, until it turned on me and started giving me headaches. SHAME! I was so bummed. Somehow its lush plastic amber and sweaty humanity stopped being fragrance and started being torture. Not so long ago, I was given two manufacturer boxed samples of their work. Une Nuit Nomade are the crew and today we are smelling Chemin D’Amande.

From Une Nuit Nomade: Long ago, before Portugal was Portugal, the Moorish king Ibn-Almundim ruled over Chelb in the Algarve. Returning victorious from conquest, he brought many captives, including Gilda, a beautiful queen from the northern lands. Though initially content, Gilda grew increasingly sorrowful, longing deeply for snow’s whiteness. Healers failed to cure her sadness until, advised by a mysterious woman, the king filled the valley with blooming almond trees. When Gilda saw the valley blanketed in white blossoms, her joy returned. Ever since, the Algarve remains the kingdom of almond blossoms, guardian of this ancient tale.

Chemin D’Amande by Une Nuit Nomade 2025

Une Nuit Nomade gives these featured accords:
Almond • Wheat Absolute • Pure Jungle Essence Conscious Bourbon Vanilla

HA! That warm, sweet nutty opening is so glorious. It’s everything as advertised. I smell photorealistic Almond flour, the Wheatiness you get from Korean grain tea and that ridiculously multifaceted boozy darkness of Bourbon vanilla. The fragrance is thick and luscious. What a sensational opening.

As we head towards the heart there is a whisper of metallic mechanical or electrical zing. Oh, it’s so surprising and takes the scent from pure gourmand to fine fragrance. A beautiful frisson between the sweet gooeyness and something so industrial. Alongside that I get a spicy, dry… I want to say BarBQ crisp but I’m not sure if that translates internationally. Like the taste of a hard taco shell with freshly cut chili and HP Brown Sauce. WOW! Chemin D’Amande delivers so much more than a simple sweetness. Don’t get me wrong, the sweetness remains. This is all running concurrently.

Chemin D’Amande does not collapse in to a boring, tired trope of a base either. It remains interesting and so wearable. Over the boozy vanilla sweetness there is a labdanum rich amber throwing some darkness. The twang of electrical sparks and the dregs of grain tea with that dry crack of almond shells. This is so bloody good, I’m swooning right to the end. Imagine Ead d’Italie Morn to Dusk but more nuanced, more ride and more niche.

If Une Nuit Nomade did 10 or 15ml Travel Size one of them would be winging their way to me right now.

Did you get the chance to try Chemin D’Amande yet?
Portia xx