Royal Blend Sequoia by French Avenue 100ml Extrait De Parfum

Description

French Avenue Royal Blend Sequoia is a sweet unisex gourmand extrait de parfum: a 100ml spray of juicy raspberry and boozy cognac over praline and oak, and the range’s take on Kilian Angels’ Share Paradis.

French Avenue Royal Blend Sequoia fragrance notes

• Top: Raspberry, cognac, liquor
• Heart: Rose, moss
• Base: Praline, oak, sandalwood

What does Royal Blend Sequoia smell like?

It opens on vivid raspberry syrup and warm boozy cognac, moves into a soft rose and mossy heart, and finishes on sweet praline, oak and sandalwood. Rich and cosy rather than sharp. It takes the cognac and raspberry idea and turns the fruit right up, which makes it sweeter and more moreish than the fragrance it follows.

What it is compared to, and the version that matters

French Avenue make no comparison themselves. They never name another perfume on their own store, so this is wearer consensus rather than a brand claim. But it is a well-established one, and we have checked the detail that most listings get wrong.

The reference is Angels’ Share Paradis, not the original Angels’ Share. Those are two different products and the distinction matters if you are comparing. Kilian released Angels’ Share in 2020. Angels’ Share Paradis came later as a sold-out limited edition and has since become a permanent part of the line, and Kilian describe it as “an intense extrait de parfum”, their fullest interpretation of the idea. Sequoia follows Paradis.

The price gap is the largest in this range. Kilian sell Angels’ Share Paradis as an extrait de parfum in 50ml at $390 on their own site. Royal Blend Sequoia is £29.99 for 100ml. Per millilitre that is not a saving so much as a different category of purchase.

Where the two actually overlap. Kilian publish Paradis with raspberry, cognac and rose as its headline notes, over Bulgarian rose oil, sandalwood oil and tonka bean. Sequoia shares the signature trio of raspberry, cognac and rose, plus sandalwood in the base. Paradis adds tonka; Sequoia adds liquor, moss, praline and oak.

Be realistic about what £29.99 buys. The clue is in Kilian’s own wording: rose oil and sandalwood oil. Naturals at that grade are most of what you pay for, and they are the one thing a £29.99 bottle cannot reproduce. Expect Paradis to smell smoother, rounder and more expensive on the skin, and to hold its shape longer. Sequoia is sweeter and more obviously gourmand, because the praline and oak do the work the naturals do in the original. As a way to find out whether you like this style before spending £390, it is an excellent buy. As a replacement for the Kilian, it is not.

Any comparison above refers to scent profile only. Royal Blend Sequoia is French Avenue’s own composition, in its own bottle and its own packaging. Perfumeo is not affiliated with, endorsed by or connected to Kilian Paris in any way, and all brand names remain the property of their respective owners.

How it performs: longevity, projection and when to wear it

Strong projection and excellent longevity, which is what the extrait concentration is for. Expect it to be loud for the first two to three hours and to stay on skin well past eight, with longer again on clothing. Two sprays is plenty on a boozy gourmand of this weight.

Built for autumn and winter, and for evenings, dinners and occasions. In real heat the raspberry and praline amplify and it becomes heavy going, which is the one situation where it works against you.

Who it’s for

Anyone who likes boozy gourmands and wants the cognac style rather than the more common vanilla or date versions of it. The raspberry makes it approachable, so it also works as a first serious gourmand.

Who should skip it. If you find sweet fragrances cloying, this will be too much, and no amount of restraint in application will change that.

The rest of the line, and which Angels’ Share each one follows. This is the part nobody explains. Royal Blend follows the original Angels’ Share from 2020, and around sixty reviewers back that comparison, making it the better-supported of the two. It is cognac, cinnamon and plum over iris and myrrh, so fruitier and more powdery than this one. Sequoia follows Paradis, the raspberry-and-rose extrait. Royal Blend Nero steps away from the Kilian line entirely, swapping in apple and saffron over a spiced amber.

Worth one honest note: Sequoia carries praline and oak, which the original Angels’ Share has and Royal Blend does not. So if the nutty, dessert-like side of Angels’ Share is what you are chasing, this bottle has more of it than the one aimed at that version.

Why buy Royal Blend Sequoia 100ml

• Juicy raspberry and boozy cognac over praline and oak
• Shares the signature raspberry, cognac and rose trio with a $390 Kilian extrait, which we checked against Kilian’s own note list
• Extrait concentration, so the performance is genuinely strong rather than claimed
• 100ml against the original’s 50ml
• Sealed, batch-coded, and shipped free and tracked from our UK warehouse

Royal Blend Sequoia FAQs

What is Royal Blend Sequoia a dupe of?
Kilian Angels’ Share Paradis, by wearer consensus rather than any brand claim. Specifically Paradis, the intense extrait, not the original 2020 Angels’ Share.

Is Angels’ Share Paradis a real product?
Yes. It launched as a limited edition, sold out, and Kilian have since made it permanent. It is an extrait de parfum, sold in 50ml at $390 on Kilian’s own site. We mention this because invented version names are common in this category.

Does it smell exactly like the Kilian?
No, and we would not claim it does. Kilian use rose and sandalwood oils, which is where the money goes and the one thing this cannot match. Sequoia is sweeter and more gourmand; Paradis is smoother and lasts in better shape.

Is Royal Blend Sequoia long lasting?
Yes. As an extrait it projects strongly for the first few hours and stays on skin past eight, with longer on fabric.

Is it very sweet?
Yes. The raspberry and praline make this one of the sweeter bottles in the range. The oak and moss stop it turning into pure syrup, but it is unmistakably a sweet gourmand.

Is it unisex?
Yes, genuinely. Raspberry, cognac and rose carry no strong gender skew.

About French Avenue

French Avenue is a Dubai house, part of Fragrance World, known for long-lasting interpretations of luxury and niche fragrances in heavy bottles. Explore the full French Avenue collection at Perfumeo, with free tracked UK delivery and sealed, batch-coded stock.