Reviews of Royal Aoud
by Montale

Aoud Lime without the citrusy blast at the start, and a slightly different wind down. Like other Montales Aouds I’ve tried (excepting Attar) it takes half on hour for Royal Aoud to settle. Once it does it too is magical, rose that’s wearable on a male. Not my favourite Montale but certainly not far off. The only thing bringing it down for me is the sweet vanilla wind down, but really I’m just nitpicking, Royal Aoud is superb.

I have in front of me 9 Montale samples. I chose to wear Royal Aoud for a night out with friends. I have just come back. I have spent the whole night feeling ROYAL. this is Royal Aoud. I know what aoud smells like. But this aoud is the crown jewel. Etherial yet woody, sensual yet dry, lingering yet not cloying. If you want to know what aoud smells like probably this is the one. If you want to know what Montale is capable of definately this is the one.

if one has to be introduced to oudhs, i think this would be the safest way to do so. Royal Oudh is well, Royal. a very familiar smell (kumquat), sweetened by grapefruit, its sweet to an extent, but its stops way before one would call it fruity or gourmand. i really loved the opening notes of this one. makes one feel like one of those rich sheik arabs. the oudh in it is massaged in the background with slightly sweet fruity notes along with rich spices...the oudh is very much put in background and acts as a rock solid base for other top and midnotes...the whole balance of this frag amazes me..to see how the intensity of the oudh is controlled from top to midnotes is to be witnessed...its only in the base tht the oudh and some kinda chilli notes rule the roost..giving us a totally different frag that it was in start.....overall, worth sampling.

Sometimes I think Montale can put Aoud in anything and VOILA! it will work magic. Aoud *seems* to be able to make anything it surrounds exciting. That probably is not accurate, but I seem to find all of these Montale Aouds to be intoxicating.

Now Royal Aoud was the fourth or fifth Montale Aoud that I have tried. The above observation is not really a reflection on this scent in particular, but rather a cumulative observation. This one is smoother than some, fruity, with rose and spices too. I find it delightful and intoxicating, but not as intense as others. Probably not my favorite in the line and one that I will pass on for now, but excellent nevertheless.

I’m new to the world of oud so I’m exploring my reactions to this new sensation. This is intriguing. It has a haunting, elusive quality that appeals to me. It is piercingly ‘clean’ but not synthetic or ‘fresh’ in the current style. It is bright and yet dark at the same time. Bug spray... band-aids... rubber... medicinal... I sort of agree and yet I find this appealing. It is not an industrial nouveau, edgy sort of scent. It is in the old Arabian tradition of rare perfume, a world of scents perhaps unfamiliar to modern sensibilities. Many have said that this is not a big powerhouse scent, and I agree. Applied lightly, this has restraint, artistry, a quiet sort of power. I find it to be coolish rather than warm. It is not woody (except for a sharp sandalwood sort of tone), not very spicy, not very leathery. I agree with Vibert’s profile, particularly the powdery-sweet and vanilla aspect. And the fact that I like this amazes me, normally I detest such elements! At times there is the hint of something like chocolate liqueur or creme brulée. Certainly there are ambery notes. I can only account for my approval in the sheer artistry and subtle panache of this. The drydown is a very subtle, second-skin scent.

This is a very fine fragrance and my favourite of the montale aouds. It has great presence but doesn't shout like some of the others, more like a strong and persistent whisper than the aria of black oud (which I also like).

You have to be careful applying this as it takes time to come alive. It reaches full projection about 30 minutes after application and then stays bright for another one to two hours with the powerful oud and the subtle offset of the kumkwat and other citrus before it morphs again.

Then something strange and magical occurs. From the sillage, a beautiful but subtle (compared to black oud) rose note emerges. Smelling close up, this seems to vanish into oud for me, but it is there from a distance. I am not sure how this is achieved, but it is beautiful and impressive.

One of my all time favourites.

Kumquat? Grapefruit? I don’t get citrus! I get aoud. Aoud in abundance. As usual with an aoud fragrance, my first sniff of Royal Aoud gave me that electrical fire note that was my first experience with Aoud Pur Oriental. This time it didn’t bother me at all because I knew it would take several wearings before my nose and brain would adapt to my lack of familiarity with the aoud note. To my nose, aoud (as with most strong woods used in scents) completely dominates and submerges the citrus elements (or many other elements, for that matter). As far as I am concerned, this is an almost pure aoud scent—I’m not complaining, I love it this way, because aoud has become an addictive note for me: I’m long past the stage where I think of it as electrical fire—or insect repellant. As with several other aoud fragrances from Montale that I have tried, a rose note comes to the fore as the potency of the wood wanes. It’s an excellent rose note, and it’s like the calm AFTER the storm—it’s a rose I can love. Royal Aoud is different from some of the other aouds in that it seems to morph into a skin scent extra early in its progression.

Not bad. The oud is simply irresistible note; I love that warm, sticky medicinal aroma. It`s intoxicating and somehow, spiritual. Very mysterious.

On me, Royal Aoud is very pure on oud - can`t see very much more going on after it settles down after application.
Some charachter it still certainly has : I think this is the most leatheriest oud blend in series. Indeed, sometime during the drydown I thought very much of nicely kept rugged leather, perhaps polished horse saddle or something that kind. Later on, these leather associations disappear, and it turns more woody.

I has come as a big suprise to me that my biggest favourite in the series is Aoud Lime. Didn`t expect that to happen, really. (but I do like that one alot, it`s one of my biggest favourites among "fresh" scents)

Thumbs up here, but to be honest, I really don`t think any Aoud is worth for the 118 euros a bottle. For that price, I can get something even much more captivating and overall better.