Eleven year-old Maroke from the days of Maroke 2004—only done the ‘Royale’ way, i.e. Oud Royale I.
If you thought Oud Royale 1985 wasn’t a close enough replica of Oud Royale I, I’d like to see what you think of Royale No 5—same jungle, same distillation style, same price Oud Royale I was initially launched for in 2005.
If you’ve got any experience with Maroke oud—or any top-notch incense grade oil—you’ll get that this scent is easily worth its price thrice over. That supreme incense vapor rising straight from the start, pumping full steam through the middle, and baffling you through the drydown. The kind of pristine agarwood vapor you only get from heavy resin, cooked at a time when the adjective ‘incense-grade’ was still catching on and ‘copper pot’ simply meant good biryani.
If you were never into the darker, muddy tones of some Marokes, No 5’s immaculate agarwoody aroma will leave you a Maroke lover for life.
You don’t just get the scent of gently heated agarwood chips. No 5 actually smells like the raw resin itself—hold a handful of black resin-drenched oud chips directly to your nose and savor that primal ‘this wood is something else’ aroma!
As an addition to your collection of vintage ouds, No 5 gets its own slot, with a scent that takes its cue from the ’82 and the ’85 in its depth and grandeur, but goes on to set its own trend which every Maroke made during the last decade owes something to.
Royale No 5 doesn’t just share the ‘vintage agarwood liqueur’ facets of the first Royale, like the '85 did. This is an actual Maroke and the distillation style is the same as Royale I.
The royal incense profile never quiets down. In reality, this oud doesn’t even have a drydown. Its top notes are oudiness, layered with more oudiness an hour later, and another three hours thence, only to reveal a depth of oudy oomph where other oils would have long thrown the towel in.
If you’ve had a love-hate relationship with Marokes so far, it’s gonna be all Love this time round. If you’re already Maroke mad, two swipes a day of No 5 is mandatory.