DESCRIPTION
Over the past year, we’ve introduced HM atelier oud oils from regions rich in heritage: Malaysia, Burma, and India. Each one chosen for its distinction, depth, and character. HM Royal Viet now joins that lineage, marking our first Vietnamese oud release to carry this level of age, refinement, and authority.
The challenge with many modern cultivated Vietnamese ouds lies in their uniformity—thick, gooey, linear profiles with a synthetic sheen. It’s a scent that’s become familiar to newer collectors, forming a kind of generalised "Vietnamese oud" template. But this is a far cry from the real heritage of the region.
Vietnam is the birthplace of kinam. A land once known for transcendental resin: deep, complex, and ethereal. Sadly, modern distillation practices have dulled that legacy, leaving behind a shadow of what Viet oud once was.
Aged for around four decades, what you’re exposed to here is sheer elegance and refinement, paired with a rawness that only comes from distilling the highest grade agarwood. This is something you simply cannot replicate today.
The oil carries beautiful notes of plum and wild honey, layered over the traditional tangy tamarind sparkle the region is known for. The HM profile runs confidently through the heart of the oil, just like its Malaysian, Burmese, and Indian siblings. And then, just like SULAYM No.2, it hits: that crystalline buzz through the nose. Not charcoal. Not smoke. But something clean and sharp, like electric incense.
This is not a daily oud.
This is one to be saved for the Friday prayer, the Eids, and the gatherings of spirituality and intention; moments where the aim is closeness to the Divine.
Thank you, Sultan, once again… for allowing us to experience oud of this calibre.
