Royal Extract II

Royal Extract II is Thierry Wasser's tribute to the green florals and chypres of old — to Chanel's Cristalle and No.19 and Guerlain's own Chamade . And it has a luxurious, refrigerating chill that somehow calls to mind an earlier, classical time, as though fashioned to keep an ancient aristocracy or an emperor's favourite cool. So perhaps the extravagant price and the fact that it's exclusive to Harrods department store is fitting. It's magnificently mossy with galbanum's green bite and shards of icy hyacinth, vetiver and hedione mutilating the soft orange flower–petitgrain heart. On hot summer nights the white flowers bloom on skin, on cooler ones the moss leads the dance. Beautiful, decadent and out-of-time. My only gripe is decanting from the bottle to the little atomiser is a hassle for those who prefer a spritz to a dab, even at parfum strength.

Guerlain Royal Extract II (2020) - green orange blossom - An exclusive Harrods Guerlain in a beautiful bee bell jar with #thierrywasser as its nose. Up front, I do get vibes from chanel no. 19, but it changes in a different direction. Starts with a cologne-like opening mixed with aromatic Pink pepper. This shifts quickly to greener notes mainly from Galbanum and a moss-like backbone. I was ready for a heavier chypre heart, but this is more modern and streamlined with Orange Blossom, Cedar and a bitter green accord. This accord is radiant and one of the most beautiful orange blossom accords I enjoyed. As it dries down, the woods and moss take-over, but with a spiced sweetness at the end. Hoping this can be more accessible to more Guerlain fans.

This fragrance is pure class and would easily be considered one of the best Chypre ever made to my nose. This is what Mr. Changretta from Peaky Blinders would wear.

It would seem Guerlain exhumed the style of the late, great Henri Robert (of Chanel No 19 fame) when composing this new, curiously expensive scent. Royal Extract II is a green floral with a pleasant, luminous character. After a brief dance of galbanum and bergamot in the opening, it transitions to a noticeably floral (but quite abstract) heart before fading out as a balm of green woods. It really does hit those same notes as Chanel No 19, but Royal Extract II is less cold, more floral and more 'delicate' (but not prim) and slightly more upbeat. Though lacking the complexity and deep-throated quality of a true chypre, REII is very well blended; it's not so easy to pick out individual notes from the fluffy green cloud the perfume creates. It's not especially sweet despite the orange blossom, and overall has a fairly dry herbal quality. Very clarifying and if you love stark greens (No 19, Bel Respiro, Sur L'Herbe, Herbes Troublantes, or green colognes in general) like I do, you would definitely like this. It has an untroubled, recumbent mood replete with fresh air and soft grass. The very deep drydown gives the barest touch of sweet woods (not a ton of moss to my nose) but you'll be huffing close to find that. My only quibble with the scent is its relatively poor performance on me, lasting 3-4 hours maximum with an intimate throw throughout. Using it quite liberally as a splash helps, and given its cooling quality, it sort of tempts you to use it as a green summer EDT for days spent lazing around in fields. Though lovely (especially for green fans) this is not quite worth the very high asking price in my opinion, as it just doesn't have the potency its price implies. Furthermore, while I love its light and breezy attitude, I actually think No 19 carries off the green theme with greater artistic merit than this (a difficult concession for me as I do prefer Guerlain to Chanel generally). If you're swimming in money and love perfumes like No 19 then this isn't so similar as to be redundant, but if you're looking for high-quality greens at a (somewhat) more reasonable price No 19 extrait will treat you right.

This is a pleasant, well-put together green-leaning-white-floral with a chypre-ish thread. On its opening, I actually feel I smell bergamot more than anything (or maybe I'm just bad at identifying pink pepper), harmonizing with a clear but subtle green galbanum note. It segues into an abstract floral core that I can definitely pick out orange blossom and jasmine out of, though I can see a certain greenness or oiliness that leans towards hyacinth. The drydown is a subtle version of the modern, musky vanilla Guerlinade, moss, and a little woodiness to round it off. It is by no means a smell-alike to Estee Lauder Private Collection, but the galbanum-floral-moss chord does evoke the green stemmy floralcy of that scent. It also conjures up more contemporary riffs on that theme--notably Jasmine White Moss (again, Estee Lauder) and Ormonde Jayne's Tiare. Again--doesn't smell exactly like those by any means, but certain aspects of it conjure a similar feeling. Fresh enough for daytime wear, but I can also seeing the white floral aspect of it working well at night. Edited to add: now that I've been wearing it more, I definitely feel the drydown is dominated by a mish-mash of sandalwood aromachemicals that rather than its alleged "cedar" base.