Notes on three Tibetan Incenses

May 8, 2008 at 8:12 am (Incense, Incense Notes/Samplers, Mike, Samye Monastery, Tibet (Unspecific))

It’s been a little while since I had the samples for the following incenses, but I wanted to transcribe my notes here for three scents that I don’t have quite enough to go on for a full review (although these may be forthcoming some day).

The first is the Samye Monastery blend Samanthabadhra. This could be considered a high end Tibetan at over $20 a box, but in this case it seems to be well worth it. I get an almost clay or even play-doh sort of scent from this one. It’s a bit richer than most Tibetans and also has some unusual, faunal ingredients like pangolin scales in it. It struck me as having quite a bit of energy in comparison to other incenses and has a bountfiul wood presence as well. A box of this is definitely on my list for further purchase as it seemed to have a learning curve that promised unrevealed complexity.

The next two can be found here. Both of these are also close to high end, yet are much closer than the previous blend to what you’d traditionally think of as Tibetan incense. Both are very, dry, wood and herbs incenses. Both of these incenses have an underlying base that makes me think corn or corn chips, combined with hints of the grassy and mesquite. The Saffron Medicinal Incense I liked the least of the two, its floral notes and pepper don’t seem to work as well with the base as the Medicine King Special. With the latter the spices seem to work a little better and the complexity of the incense comes out a bit more.