Royal Opera vs Carved Oud

Carved Oud is highly regarded as an excellent performer with strong longevity and sillage, and a better value alternative to Tom Ford Oud Wood. However, multiple users report that newer batches (post-2021/2022 reformulation due to banned ingredient restrictions) differ noticeably from original samples, featuring more prominent talcum notes and less spice complexity, which has caused some disappointment among those familiar with earlier versions.