Hydrating, vitality-boosting wonder serum / 1.7 oz

(Formerly known as YÜLI Ambrosia Beauty Nectar, with upgrades)

Gentlerist Ambrosia, the much-anticipated reincarnation of / update to YÜLI Ambrosia Beauty Nectar, is one of those products that’s surrounded by intrigue and mystery. “What does it do? How? Why? And why is it so expensive?” you might wonder.

We wondered the same things, so we asked its developer when we first got our bottle. His answer: “Try it. You’ll see.”

As infuriating as that answer may be to the perpetually inquisitive, it was the right one to give us. Because with Ambrosia, it’s not that there isn’t a solid ingredient deck with awe-inspiring benefits behind it, because there is; it’s that, with this product, a lot of its magic comes down to those ingredients’ synergistic effects.

We’re fans of hyaluronic acid; this takes hyaluronic acid to new levels a multi-molecular-weight complex that’s a true overachiever. Then it adds supercharged antioxidants like astaxanthin and fucoxanthin (which leave Vitamin C in the dust), a special EGF derived from marine algae (used by plastic surgeons in Korea to speed healing), and coconut endosperm (which drenches skin with the type of moisture it may not have seen since its days in an amniotic sac). The upgraded formula also includes superoxide dismutase for even greater environmental protection and an orange blossom peptide extract for better penetration. It is a crazy-wonderful ingredient list that makes you think, “I have no idea what all these things combined will do, but it sounds MARVELOUS.”

So let’s get to what we noticed with this gel-like serum. The first day we used it, we thought our skin looked particularly vibrant, but we weren’t sure if we were imagining things. After a few days, we were convinced that it was this product, but we still weren’t sure what it was doing, exactly. And after two weeks, we resolved to never live without it, if at all possible. Our skin looked fresh, vibrant, healthy: it was our skin at its best. We weren’t looking for lines and wrinkles to see if they were plumped up; we weren’t looking for dark spots to see if they were diminished; those specifics, quite honestly, didn’t really matter anymore. We were just looking in awe at our skin, thinking that it looked better than ever.

Those of you who fell in love with YÜLI’s original Ambrosia Beauty Nectar will, we predict, like this one even better. There’s more heft to it – it doesn’t sink into skin like water — and it leaves behind a pleasantly soft, moisturized finish. The orange blossom scent feels, somehow, more elevated. And the effect: still “my skin looks fab, and I will never understand exactly why, but quite honestly, I’m fine with that.”

If you're new to this product, you may want to try a sample first with our Custom Sample Service. And to learn more about Gentlerist and the Ambrosia upgrades, check out our Brand Spotlight interview.