Royal English Leather (1781)
by Creed

After a initial burst of freshness, owing to bergamot with an orangey undertone, I do not have to wait long until the centerpiece of this creation takes the stage: the leather.

And what a leather this is: intense, rich, creamy, with warmth balanced by a bit of austerity. It is sweetish - just the right amount - and lacks any significant element of the gasoline harshness that is such a core part of Knize Ten.

The other important component is the ambergris Creed is rightfully famous for. Is becomes a bit more prominent in the later stages, and in the base is combined with touches of a gentle sandalwood impression; the latter is never very prominent. The whole development is centred around the leather in a somewhat linear fashion, with the other notes modulating the core like variations to a musical theme.

I get moderate sillage, excellent projection and a - for Creed - impressive eight hours of longevity on my skin.

This grand classic of the history of perfume is beautiful in autumn. The quality of the natural is glorious, and the blending is done with beautiful balance. 4/5.

I'm glad I was finally able to sample Creed's Royal English Leather, now vaulted, via a decant from a friend and Creed enthusiast / collector, and it certainly doesn't disappoint.

REL is leathery, spicy, and animalic, and it's a bit too spicy and animalic for my taste, overall, keeping it from being a leather that I really love.

The ambergris factors in very strongly, fostering an acidity that's both natural-smelling and resolute.

Performance is unusually superb for a Creed fragrance, especially from the EDT era of the 1980s and earlier (presumably my sample came from the 1980s, not earlier, though).

Between the classic, masculine vibes of this fragrance and its power, REL is a nice option for an older man if one can afford it, but it's simply a bit too sharp to be wearable in many situations in my case. Nonetheless, I'm very glad to have finally tried it out.

7 out of 10

Not the most creative or interesting leather around and definitely unworthy its prices, especially now that it’s discontinued (sorry, “vaulted”), but I can’t really argue Royal English Leather’s quality. It smells good. Almost great, if you’re into classic, waxy, dark, austere “shoe polish-infused” tanning leather scents. True rich and faceted rusty leather, forget today’s stupidly flat and artificial Tuscan Leather-ish stuff. Just think of Knize Ten: Royal is definitely close to it, just adding a whiff of flowers, a very pleasant touch of ambery mandarine giving some “air”, colour and sparkling sweetness to the heaviness of leather, and in the most recent bottles, also Creed’s trademark base of metallic-dusty ambroxan. I had the chance of getting an older bottle of this, and that base accord was definitely not there – it was quite more all about leather and oily shoe-polish like notes (also darker, drier and spicier, overall slightly heavier too).

That’s it: no tremendous twists during its evolution – actually, almost no evolution at all, nothing particularly standing out. But it smells good, very good. It’s rich, distinguished, totally – somehow, slightly pedantically – elegant and austere, with the perfect balance of complexity and simplicity: it’s nearly only waxy, brownish, lived-in leather - done extremely well, with a subtle sort of ambery-floral-mandarine aura giving a perfect hint of bright sweetness, and yet it doesn’t smell boring or simplistic. Not even dated, actually; somehow it does have a “vintage” feel (think of Knize Ten again), and yet its texture feels crisp, clear, without the old-school thickness one may expect from this type of scent. Quintessentially British in fact: unexcitingly impeccable!

7,5/10

Reference leather fragrance. Superb quality, good investment value. Pounce on it. Even if you're not a fan of leather you'll be intrigued by a leather that's so well done. Likely that you can turn it at a handsome profit, if you can bear to part with it. I love it, Mrscologneguy isn't too keen on it. Too bad. I wear it with impunity. Best in freezing winter, but always a good choice if you're seeking a top-quality leather fix.

One of the best leather fragrances out there sorry that has been discontinued.