Happy Hari / Oud Masala, Royal Amber, Corpulent Amber, King Sandal

September 10, 2011 at 5:05 pm (Aloeswood, Amber, Happy Hari, India, Mike, Sandalwood)

One of the really fun things about running Olfactory Rescue Service is watching fledgling incense companies expand their lines, and just like Shroff, Mother’s and Dhuni before them, Happy Hari is really starting to deliver impressive products and we can only hope this tendency continues into the future. We’re really starting to see more connoissuer level Indian incense than we did, say, five years ago and this latest batch, which apparently is just the beginning, is extremely impressive, in fact at least one of these really deserves to be in the pantheon of the Indian greats.

That incense is the extraordinary Oud Masala. I remember when I first started buying Indian incense decades ago, I found it very rare to see Indian incenses with agarwood listed prominently. That changed with Mystic Temple’s addition of an aloeswood champa (called Agarwood) and then the two excellent Agarwood incenses from Pure Incense. But as nice as these are, the Oud Masala, of which to date I have no idea how much this is going to cost people, is definitely the best of all the Indian aloeswoods, one of the most beautiful, bewitching, incredible incenses available. The key is the oud oil on top of the rich base. This is a very woody and spicy scent, much more like the oils you would encounter than the scents you find from the Madhavadas family. Of course on a different base this wouldn’t come off so well, the damp, feral, spicy oil on top of what seems like a sandalwood, halmaddi and honey base is a total kaleidoscope of aroma, every element of it of very high quality. It burns nice and slow and never gets in the way. Really the only question with this one is how much it will cost in bulk! I could burn this for days.

Royal Amber and its thicker cousin, the hilariously named Corpulent Amber, will definitely bear similarities to Dhuni’s versions. At first I found Dhuni to be the superior incenses in both versions but after a few sticks I think the difference is incidental and would think fans of the Dhuni should find these different enough to enjoy as well. Both incenses are made from the same incense material, but the difference in size does affect the overall aroma to some extent. The Royal Amber is a lovely, perfumed amber that gets better the more you burn it, like with the Dhuni incenses, there’s something almost like a fine wine when it comes to a good amber. The perfume here really melds with a perfect resinous touch for great balance. In fact the difference with the bigger stick is that it seems to be more resinous, although I’d only hazard to guess why this is so.

Happy Hari’s King Sandal is a champa type scent that will be familiar to those who have tried incenses like Rare Essence’s Sandalwood Supreme and Precious Sandalwood. However, unlike those incenses Happy Hari’s Sandal has a nice and sweet sandalwood, honey and halmaddi mix that really lifts the whole scent so that you have a fine oil mix riding an excellent base. In Indian incense, these are the types of sandalwood sticks I tend to prefer as the oils smell very woody and not so much a buttery/vanilla thing like so many of the masalas have.

I’m being told there are a lot more incenses in the range on the way. What else can I say but I can’t wait. Happy Hari’s company seems destined to be one of the higher echelon brands in Indian incense. In fact to date they’re 6 for 6.