Royal Taboo

I've spent a few days with this and his other release with French Avenue and I have to admit that I am thoroughly impressed with not only the performance, but also the quality of the oils and the quality of the presentation as well!!! I've got niche fragrances that I paid well over the $200 mark for that fall short of these two in multiple if not all areas and have a much higher rating than either of his releases do. I hate that people are unable to just judge the fragrance and presentation as it comes and not base the rating on anything else. When it comes to this scent in particular, it's very, very well done and not at all challenging to my nose in any way. I imagined that the cinnamon and wood accords would be much more prominent than they are and this leads to a much smoother, well rounded tobacco fragrance than you normally get. While it might lean just a tiny bit masculine, I still rated it as unisex down the middle because I don't think it's enough to pull it in the masculine direction. I find that this one gets better the longer into the wear you get and performance is on par with my other strongest fragrances. It's definitively in one of my top 10, and the other one, Carnal Desire is even stronger! Though, I think it's best when you first put it on and get the great opening which does last for a good 2 hours on that fragrance!!! So far I have been very impressed with French Avenue, Lattafa and Paris Corner and I think Neeb made a wise decision given his personal tastes to go with one of these brands to manufacture and distribute his creatively directed projects. I would have done the same myself. These brands are doing more for the customers and innovations in the industry than I think any of the larger designer or niche houses are. Both of his releases are very good smelling and compliment pulling fragrances though Carnal Desire might be for a more seasoned enthusiast due to the profile, but I think they are unbelievably good bargains and I look forward to seeing more from him and French Avenue soon.

Nose Note #700 This one has the least amount of votes and reviews out of four (P.S. when I first wrote this review there were only four releases in the line up) and I don't know why. Maybe people are afraid of the tobacco note, but just like with most apparently tobacco centered fragrances - I can't smell any tobacco. If anything this is more coca cola type of fragrance. It's slightly similar to the recent Tabac'N'Coke. It's somewhat similar to TF Tobacco Vanille. But ultimately it's a thing on its own. I haven't smelled the OG or any other clones of Centaurus, but this is pretty special. I'd say this definitely has a mass appealing set up. It doesn't smell very niche, it's not overly heavy. It's just a masterfully done fragrance. More masculine. For me this was a win from the first spray. I often think "hm, do I like this or not?", but here it was like "damn, I like this a lot". 9/10, amazing UPD: more like 8.5, it got tiring pretty quickly. Definately an occasional fragrance, i.e. better suits something solemn. Comparing this to Boundless - Royal Taboo doesn't stand a chance. Boundless is just so much more interesting, but ultimately the two are different scents. It is also stronger though! Great longevity and sillage, I give it that! And the scent is super memorable, this is a big plus

My first association was immediate and unexpected: imagine a fresher crossover between Thierry Mugler Pure Havane and Burberry London. Two references you wouldn’t naturally pair, yet somehow it works perfectly here. There’s a warmth built on cinnamon and ginger cookies vibe that never tips into gourmand excess — it stays refined, almost powdery, with a sweet “camphor”note running underneath that keeps things interesting and slightly cool against all that coziness. That contrast is what makes it compelling. This is a December fragrance through and through. It conjures scarves, snow, wool suits, and everything that comes with the holiday season — not in a cheap or obvious way, but in the way a well-dressed man smells walking out of the cold into a warm room. Cozy without being casual. Quality feels top tier. There’s a gentlemanly restraint to it that elevates what could have easily been a straightforward sweet fragrance into something with real character and composure. A crossover you didn’t see coming — but one that earns its place immediately.

I'm a huge fan of tobacco fragrances as long as they are done well. This has that fresh cut very authentic type tobacco smell. Almost like opening a fresh pack of Marlboro Reds! (Man I miss smoking! 🚬💨 😂) There is something very familiar to this scent profile yet it has some niche qualities to it as well. The quality is top notch.. especially for the price point. In my opinion, it's unisex leaning a little masculine. After reading other comments I feel like I'm one of few people who didn't have any issues with leaking bottles or piss poor performance. Not going to give it a rating only because I'm starting to get annoyed with all of the "wannabe" overnight fragrance professionals who crap on good fragrances just because there not mainstream enough. It's a very well done unisex, tobacco forward fragrance. Good job Neeb! Let the haters hate..

💫SWAPPING💫 Too masc for my taste but this is macerated, has never leaked a drop, I don’t get a ton of cinnamon &/ or cardamom (very well blended smelling after months of maceration) batch produced 8/25, i personally opened & sprayed her 5x to get any old juice out of the tube & help kick start maceration ⭐️no problem offering ample proof of legitimacy as a swapper/ seller [email protected] (Layers beautifully out of the box w/ my favorite Althair schmoop by a long shot- Khadlaj Island Vanilla Dunes, a true 100ml extrait de parfum - gorgeous ombre dimpled heavy glass bottle with a brass placard you could do your lipstick in & a brass top/ paperweight... too masc for my tastes)