Rose Royale

Rose Royale lives up to its name: it's a lovely realistic giant rose blooming in a freshly-pruned garden. It reminds me of Perfumer's Workshop Tea Rose in some ways. The opening is a lot to process for me. The citrus, passionfruit, and black currant come across very jammy and sweet, almost like juice concentrate. As it settles more, the notes mellow, and the rose is prominent and juicy, with something grassy and herbal behind the sweetness. This scent does go the slightest touch soapy on me, but only if I smell very closely. For the most part, it's a big watercolor rose with fresh-cut grass on my skin. I think this is an elegant, timeless fragrance that strikes a balance between classic and modern. If you love realistic rose, you will love this. The longevity is very good, and it projects moderately for me.

A very fresh dewy watery rose that is well balanced. Very natural smelling and pleasing to the senses. Sometimes roses can be too sharp , too soapy, too sweet or too green. This is a rose perfume that would suit anyone and doesnt induce any headache (im very sensitive to many fragrances). A very simple perfume which reminds me of a straight forward rose water scent, that is over priced in my opinion. Need to test this for longer to see how its longevity is, but appears to be of soft sillage.

Gorgeous rose, one of the most beautiful I've experienced in a perfume. A strong, fresh citrus is the other most prominent note but that fades as citrus often does. Given the hottest, most humid summer day, this is the perfect fragrance to reach for but honestly, I'd wear it in the winter too. It feels so elegant. If I look for some of the other notes, I can get some sandalwood, some musk, and others but they're all perfectly blended. I can't get over that lovely rose though!

On the blotter: the rose note in this is very similar to that of Guerlain’s Nahéma (2021 formula - I wonder if they may even be the same material?) This is not a sweet, dewy fresh, delicate rose. This rose is a heavy fruity diva who makes her presence very much felt. Maybe greener overall and certainly leans fresher than Nahéma, so not necessarily redundant. One to consider for fans of the Guerlain classic

Super classy rose with green and metallic undertones. A bit sharp for my nose, but definitely refreshing. I feel like it’s a dark red colored rose in a full bloom, nothing else! Follow me on IG: scent.guide

Failed blind buy on my search for amazing rose fragrances. I get NO rose or passion fruit. This is really weird. I feel like I've smelled this before. I love vintage fragrances but this smells vintage in a bad way. Not a safe blind buy as I feel the listed notes are very misleading.

Opens as a pretty and bright, fresh rose with some subtle sweetness, though it tragically dries down very metallic.

I am trying to make myself love this one as the house of Nicolai has so few rose offerings: It has the freshness of a spritely pink rose - think zingy rose water as in Kate Spade's In Full Bloom but more naturalistic and earthy. It has earthy notes to ground the rose from being anything too pink and precious - faint, ghostly whispers of woods, musk and ambrette help to anchor the heart - while the top notes of bergamot, passion fruit and black currant bud are supposed to lift it. What ruins this scent for me is the miniscule amount of sweetness of what seems like the usual swipe of clear simple syrup Patricia De Nicolai runs through some fragrances - think the same tinge of sweetness in Angelys Pear or the overbearing sweetness of Rose Pivoine. It takes away from what should have been a photorealistic scent and turns it into a more idealized version - a sort of fantasy addition to a true rose scent. If her signature syrupy note would have been left out and the fruits left sour and zingy (like ripe fruits are in nature) this would have been beautiful and elegant... but I'm afraid the syrup ruins it from being the beautifully classic fragrance that it could be. I would have at least loved to see a miniscule amount of sweetness in the heart of the fragrance as the very heart of the bud is faintly sweet compared to the rest of the flower. But the syrup throughout the top notes and the entire composition just doesn't work for me nor does it come off as a photorealistic rose jam.

As a consummate rose lover I manage to try almost every potentially beautiful fragrance showcasing the "Queen of the Flowers." Patricia de Nicolai is a very talented nose and has all the genes to prove it coming from the Guerlain family as is the case so it is no surprise that her perfumes are not only beautiful but high quality. Rose Royale is no exception with its fresh and fruity top notes of black currant and bergamot, spicy, musky heart and woody notes layered with passion fruit. I would categorize Rose Royale as an extremely jammy rose scent due to the strong presence of passion fruit, bergamot and black currant. The other notes seem to fade into the distance while the fresh and green rose carries through to the end clinging to the strong passion fruit. Lovely if you adore jammy rose scents!