Royall Lyme (1957)
by Royall Lyme of Bermuda

I recently purchased a bottle of this and Royall Mandarin online. It is nothing like the original that I used to get from friends returning from Bermuda. The original Royal Lyme was a rich, slightly green lotion with a very limey smell. This is a clear liquid with a much more complex composition. It's fairly good as a general purpose lotion and leaves a nice residual fragrance after it dries. It will probably be a nice lotion to use after bathing during the summer months. The Royall Mandarin smells only slightly different. I wonder what ever happened to the original Royal Lyme. I imagine that it was much more expensive to make than this present version of the lotion. It's disappointing that the original lotion is no longer available.

Royall Lyme of Bermuda Royall Lyme

True to its name, Royall Lyme starts with a strong lime blast. It is refreshing--fruity and juicy without being candy-like. It evokes all parts of a lime, the aromatic rind, the juice and the pulp. I would not say it is sweet necessarily, but a balance of sweet, tart and bitter. The juicy part of the opening fades rather quickly, but the bitter lime rind lingers, and is joined by subtle spices (clove, cinnamon), bay, and sweet resins (benzoin). Eventually, RL starts to take on a dry floral powder note which I would guess to be orris. From time to time, I catch whiffs of lime rind, which adds a pleasant, slightly sour edge. I have only tried one other Royall fragrance, and with RL, I am starting to see that this house tends to produce non-fussy, straightforward and classic cologne water. Royall seems to have a house base which consists of resins, bay and spices with faintly present floral notes. It is very pleasant, and is fresh and clean smelling without being soapy. The bay note does add a "barbershop" sense to the composition, but in RL, the bay is quite subdued. This is preferable since to my nose, bay can easily hijack a fragrance--as a single note it is strong and long-lasting, so I appreciate the deft use of it in RL. RL was originally intended for men, but its overall balance of fruit, floral and muted bay/resin base makes this very wearable for a woman. As with most cologne waters, the longevity is rather poor, but most of these types of scents were intended as an after bath or after shave freshener. Total development took 3-4 hours, and the deep drydown is soft bay, benzoin and a bit of sweet powder.

Royall Lyme begins with a clear, sweet, and sharp lime note – so enjoyable and refreshing. That lime note is about all there is to fragrance – but it’s a superb lime note. It does have that tiny bit of disinfectant that Naed_Nitram refers to, and it does have the aura of candy. Lime is my favorite citrus scent, and Royall certainly knows how to present it. Royall Lyme is a splash and has even less longevity than most splashes. It lasts about twenty minutes on my skin, but it’s a great scent while it lasts.

Jolly Rancher lime. I never liked those. I was a cherry guy. This fragrance last just about as long as a Jolly Rancher, too. Still, a good blast of lime but that's it.

I recall my uncle wearing this as a kid growing up and so I have fond memories of it. I've owned it in the past and still like it although I don't think it has that long of a staying power but it's still overall a great scent. I will take EricM's advise and try St. John's Bay Lime which I've heard of but have never tried.

lime hard candy. nuff said