Asayu / Sandalwood & Plum, Premium Aloeswood, Sandalwood & White Sage, Sandalwood & Rose

June 28, 2023 at 1:59 pm (Agarwood / Aloeswood / Eaglewood, Asayu, Mike, Plum, Rose, Sage, Sandalwood)

Asayu is a very new, Awaji Island-based Japanese company (from 2020) releasing traditional incenses catering to a modern audience. The lion’s share of their catalog so far appears to be low smoke incenses dependent more on perfume mixes than their bases, but most of their aromas still seem to fall around traditional Japanese scents rather than the sorts of diversions you might see in Nippon Kodo or Shoyeido catalogs. I was reminded a lot of Daihatsu’s incenses in terms of the strengths of the scents, but also because the perfume mixes in these often feel quite natural and higher quality than you usually see at cheaper prices. Another thing I found interesting about the two pairs that I was sent for review, both are intriguingly different scents paired together, although from a quick glance you can certainly move to single boxes of the scents if you only prefer one and wish to repurchase. I have linked to both the sets and the single boxes in the reviews below.

In fact, the first scent in the Temple Incense Set, Sandalwood & Plum, is a very traditional merging of sandalwood and plum (blossom). Start with something like Baieido’s Kobunboku or Shoeyido’s Baika-Ju for references, but then maybe imagine if Daihatsu were to take a similar shot at a plum blossom incense. But where these traditional scents seem to imply the plum blossom by a mix of other ingredients, Asayu’s stick really has a plum scent cut through the base in a much more striking way, as if it were created specifically from perfume. This brings it a bit closer to a modern rather than a traditional but since I can’t think of any other incense off the top of my head that does this, it carves a bit of a new space of its own. It’s interesting as well because different spaces will likely contour the scent a bit differently, in one place I felt that blossom part to be stronger than the base, in another it merged quite nicely. The sandalwood is quite noticeable as part of the overall blend as well, although I would imagine it’s modeled more on non-Mysore level sources. It is perhaps the conundrum today that disappearing sandalwood sources are certainly having a dance with increasing prices and so I can only say that one might want to make the judgement call on their own as to whether the price does or does not justify the types of notes you won’t get in rarer Mysore sourced woods, but a lot of these sort of standard traditionals do not feature that (even Kobunboku, I think, has shifted on this account). Whatever the case it’s certainly a pleasant scent and had me sampling several sticks trying to feel where it would land. However, it has to be noted that the Kobunboku is still strikingly more inexpensive and quite a bit more complex, while the Asayu will turn up the volume and scent a larger space. And while the Kobunboku tends to weave a plum blossom scent out of its various ingredients, the Asayu is much more forward about it, even actually getting to some fruitier levels of the plum that the Kobunboku doesn’t touch. So while they are in the same class of scent, they are quite different incenses. My only caveat on this one is that there’s something at the edge of the plum that finishes in a way that’s a touch sharp, but I’m guessing this is something you’d notice more close up.

And where the previous scent really brings up the issues of sandalwood, certainly an incense called Premium Aloeswood will do the same for that much rarer of woods. Suffice it to say that if you’re looking for traditional, resin heavy sorts of aloeswood scents you’re not likely to find that here, instead it actually reminds me a little of what the Vedic companies are doing with their oud incenses, which is basically to take aspects of spice and wood that you would find as sub-elements in a scent like this and make those the actual features. So while this doesn’t really strike me as all that much of a traditional aloeswood, it is still a really nice incense, one I liked right away, perhaps something more like a sandalwood/aloeswood-like mix with all sorts of nice, spicy top notes. In a way I think this is often when perfumed incenses really succeed because they can lift those spicy notes and intensify them and I like the way that sort of cinnamon-clove top spice really comes out on this. What is particularly nice is this stays dry enough to not feel like it’s as much of a cologne scent (which is certainly what you get with Vedic oud charcoals). OK and I take it back a bit, while this doesn’t have premium level resin notes, there are definitely some resin-like characteristics in the very background, but you have to concentrate a bit to suss them out. I kind of loved how by my second stick I realized that were some really complex things going on with this incense. It has an invigorating fresh wood scent about it that is quite attractive.

The Purification Set presents a couple of sandalwood blends and honestly you could probably not pair two more different incenses. The Sandalwood & White Sage is a pretty standard sort of sage scent and there’s certainly a very clear white sage oil at work here that has that kind of intriguing sweet middle the better oils usually have (in addition to the food/cooking like aspects) so I think it’s safe or even sage to say that this is a quality variant of the scent. Essentially you will likely already know if you’re going to like this one by how much you already like sage, and I have seen very little on the market from domestic/Native American type smudges and sticks all the way through Indian variations and onto a refined Japanese stick like this that really varies all that much from this central scent. The sandalwood, naturally, can really only be a base and I would think anything expensive would likely be wasted sitting underneath an oil with this kind of strength, so it’s likely more for the format/base of the stick than anything else. So in the end pricewise this is probably pretty high for such a scent, but I certainly can’t think of a better sage incense either. Sitting here in the early morning with it (twice even), it’s quite invigorating and powerful.

Of all these incenses perhaps the most surprising to me was the Sandalwood & Rose. I’ve gone on record a lot of times that rose incenses can be a bit sketchy at inexpensive levels simply because it’s just not usually rose that’s in them. Perfumes and oils, unless they are of the very pricy variety, will not have legitimate rose scents and you’d honestly be hard pressed to find anything that isn’t just craftily created with more inexpensive ingredients. In Indian incenses this often pushes these scents into general florals or even fruitier variants, but with Japanese incenses the problem can be that these incenses can end up being bitter and poor quality. So the surprise here is, well first this is probably not what you’d call an inexpensive rose per se (but…), that this is a really lovely floral incense, it actually reminds me of some of the better Shoyeido Floral World incenses before they were deleted. Part of that is there’s some sort of powdery floral element in play here that is neither rose nor sandalwood, but it’s quite friendly nonetheless and I’ve found it to sneak up on me in some really pleasant and subtle ways that show some solid crafting. Unsurprisingly it’s not going to remind you of so much of actual roses (in the capitol of California here I have walked fairly frequently in a large rose garden at the park, so know exactly what a bunch of them smell like), but it is a nicely balanced floral confection that at least genuflects in that direction and does so without feeling cheap or bitter. It almost feels like there’s a couple of levels, something a bit more herbal on the underside and then the friendly perfume on top. Will you like both of these incenses? Well you might, but they really couldn’t be more different.

In being approached by the company to review, I expressed that I don’t usually go for low smoke incenses (and thus may not be the best person to review them as my enthusiasm is often pre-dampened), but if these four incenses are any indication, Asayu are doing a rather good job at creating quality scents and one can imagine that stretching to their low smoke lines as well. I was also told that for a time, shipping will be free to the US, Canada and United Kingdom out of warehouses in those countries, so it couldn’t be a better time to introduce yourself to this new company. And if you’ve tried and enjoyed any of their low smoke incenses, please feel free to tell us in the comment section!

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Espirit de la Nature/Balsam Coast, Kama Sutra; Mermade Magickal Arts/Cafe Arabic, Holy Wood

June 26, 2023 at 9:31 am (Animal, Balsam, Benzoin (Loban), Breu Claro, Canada, Chocolate, Costus, Esprit de la Nature, Frankincense, Honey, Incense, Labdanum, Mermade Magickal Arts, Mike, Musk, Myrrh, Oud, Palo Santo, Raisin, Rosewood, Sage, Sandalwood, Sweetgrass, Tobacco, United States, Vanilla)

It is particularly difficult in the first half of the year to keep up with the sheer amount of brilliant incense art that both Bonnie Kerr and Katlyn Breene spin out over this period, and it can be hard to get to things before they sell out. Hopefully this guide will be helpful to readers, and there will certainly be a second round up in the (very) near future as Mermade has just released a number of intriguing new scents. The current four I have sat with a bit longer, so I wanted to get my thoughts on them out while you can still go find them.

First of all, I do have to admit something when it comes to the Espirit de la Nature line and that is they can be very quiet incenses and with my level of domicile incense saturation, maybe some personal age, etc., I often can find it very hard to get the right space to smell these and quantify my impressions. For one thing several of Bonnie’s incenses are recommended to heat at lower temperatures, but I have found I have to really sit right by the heater to even catch the scents and the top levels often still go pretty fast. This may not be the case for everyone and it may also be the warmer weather, but it can be a bit tricky. Of course it’s well worth it because the picture you get would put reducing fractals to shame in their complexity and beauty and I’m always amazed at their almost Zen-like balance.

Balsam Coast is probably a bit stronger than the more floral based incenses so the balsam centrality along with a lovely sense of clay and floral in the mix cuts through. The mix is a really impressive and very different South American themed incense that even with the inclusion of palo santo and sweetgrass is actually quite different to the blends that Katlyn creates that are more based on copals. I very much love balsamic qualities in incense especially those that border on ambers and while there is some hints of that here I think this is a very new direction. It sort of dissolves into this almost gooey like marzipan direction with some slight nuttiness in the background by the midpoint that is utterly gorgeous. But the back end of the burn really brings out this sense of clay more with earthier notes more reminiscent of patchouli or vetivert. A brilliant achievement indeed to have that many things going on with one tiny nugget. It is running out quite quickly, there was only one left on Mermade when I checked, so it may be worth reaching out to Bonnie if you miss it.

Kama Sutra, however, is like what I alluded to earlier, in order to even get some idea of the scent, I have to sit right next to the heater and bend my head over, it is that subtle (or maybe I have some personal scent blockers in my make up somewhere!) It is an incense that seems largely a vehicle for muskrat musk with a lot of interesting resins and infused resins in a mix. You can definitely tell this is a musk incense, it definitely has that sort of sweet animalic scent you tend to expect, but the question here is how much of it interacts with the rest of the scents to provide what is a lot of almost liquor like notes and even some interesting floral aspects. Part of my difficulty is that this comes off so low that you are almost teased by the incenses subtleties, there’s something kind of new and unknown that actually fuels one’s fascination. And of course one is pulled along by the name to imagine the intent of this was to work more on a pheremonal sort of level (in a way I don’t want to quite spoil what direction I’m thinking in here, but reading the description at the page might give enough clues). Overall though, I tried heating this a few times, but largely struggled to get over the threshold with it at least in terms of how I’d normally analyze an incense. Those with higher intolerances to heavier and smokier aromas might actually find this more to their resolution, but if one thinks a bit more laterally here, this is quite interesting indeed maybe even paradigm shattering. I’d certainly love to imagine more experiments in this direction, it kind of forces one to approach the incense both more intuitively and at the serpent level. Unfortunately in this case the incense had sold out by the time I posted this, so it may be worth checking with Bonnie if you’re interested.

Cafe Arabic attempts something like a mix of coffee and oud. The ingredients listed here start with dark cocoa, and include a blend of Oman frankincense, Tolu balsam, and benzoin; genuine honey tobacco absolute; and agarwood. Mermade explains, “It is bound with raw labdanum resin and specially prepared honey and raisins in calvados. Also, a generous dose of oud was added to elevate this blend, making it a perfect blend for the gourmand and smoke lovers alike.” So in a way one can see this as a sidestep from Mermade kyphis as well as the labdanum experiements of the last few years. Coffee is one of the really difficult aromas to get right in incense. Vedic Vaani, for example, do a few coffees that actually abut on coconut and so the experience is often how does an incense creator move things in that “smell of brewing coffee” direction more. There’s certainly some basis for labdanum, balsam and some aspects of previous kyphis that move in this direction, after all you are kind of looking for a darker sort of scent, but if you’re marrying the coffee with its sweeter cousins in drinks, it gets a bit easier to accomplish. It is fun in a lot of these incenses to see how balsam can be coopted to move in a number of different directions and there is certainly top notes that work well to create a coffee scent. Agarwood and oud also do so in part, and you get that sort of secondary effect of creating something more deluxe with them as well. I tried this out on a couple different heaters to see if I could see how different temperatures volatized this one. I would have thought hotter temperatures would bring out the oud or agarwood more but I was surprised to find the balsamic qualities to be a bit stronger when I turned it up. The coffee is really something of a fleeting top note and the middle is more of a conglomeration of different effects. The honey tobacco absolute in particularly moves this in a sort of harvest-like or summer direction. So in many ways this is something of a chameleon and even though I heated this nearly a half dozen times before I put the review down, it felt like I was still pursing what to say about it.

Holy Wood is a real triumph, it might be my very favorite of all of Katlyn’s South/Central American themed incenses so far. If I was to do a real quick rendering of what this is like for me, it’s almost something like a chocolate-peppermint confection. I’m not always a huge fan of palo santo, so the fact that this contours that ingredient to exemplify everything I do like about it really makes this an attractive and powerful incense for me and something of a revelation. All of the cooling, minty aspects of that wood have been drawn out and I think the mix of it with vanilla, honey and balsam manage to combine to give it that confectionary, sweet feel. I’ve mentioned elsewhere that sage can often have some really interesting sweet notes as well and with three kinds you would think that might herbally overwhelm the incense but it just gives it an interesting sense of lateral depth instead. I would guess from the ingredients what gives it a more darker, chocolate-like sense like you might find in the Cafe Arabic is the labdanum resin, mixed with everything else going on it almost feels like some level of molasses to give it a darker, thicker background. It’s wonderfully named as the overall effect is redolent of a shamanic experience, like a deep cooling mist through Amazonian rainforests. Nice to see this one isn’t running out as I review this either, so be sure to add this to any order you might make, it’s that great.

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The Mother’s India Fragrances / Oudh Nagchampa, Palo Santo Nagchampa, Sage Nagchampa + Herbal Sampler (Part 2 of 2)

October 1, 2021 at 6:56 am (Champa / Durbar, Incense, India, Mike, Mother's India Fragrances, Oud, Palo Santo, Rosemary, Sage, Spice (Cinnamon Clove Nutmeg etc.))

Please be sure to read Part 1 of this review as this is really a continuation of that review and that context is somewhat relateable to how I continue below. I will also note again here that all incenses in this range can be found at Mere Cie Deux.

The issue with calling something an Oudh Nagchampa is different from a lot of other aromatics because oudh, of course, is an agarwood-based scent and oudhs can be stratospherically expensive, so one must lower one’s expectations for an incense that is only $3 for 12 sticks. We have certainly also had our expectations set by the Absolute Bliss/Happy Hari and Temple of Incense lines with sticks like Oud Masala and so forth that are still quite affordable while delivering very satisfying incenses with legitimate and surprisingly powerful oudh notes (although these are essentially 2-3 times as expensive if not more so). And so for me, I try to look at something like this new nag champa in the sense that does it live up to the name and if it doesn’t is it a good incense on its own? In terms of the former issue the oudh note isn’t the sort of rocketship it is in the previously mentioned lines, it does not sit about the champa base and dominate, it’s a much more subsumed and subtle scent. In fact it took me a bit less incense fatigue and a second stick to notice that it is actually in there as part of the mix.

So anyway, oudh expense to champa mix aside, how does it work out? Well the champa base comes out quite a bit in this, there’s a real sense of the gummy and halmaddi sweet. Most champa bases tend to be at least mildly spicy, if only from the sandalwood, so the oudh actually fits pretty comfortably next to it. For a note you often expect to be loud it ends up complimenting what is surprisingly one of the mellower incenses in this current batch. Its an odd one for me because it feels like the overall diffused aroma seems a bit more generic than when you get in there close and notice that it’s actually a pretty well balanced incense. There’s a bit of spice and tanginess to it overall that the incense gets from the oudh but overall the agarwood notes here aren’t as strong as you’ll find in a Happy Hari, Temple of Incense or Pure Incense scent.

The next two aromas, sort of like the Neem Nagchampa, strike me as pretty strange and experimental for a nag champa format as both palo santo and sage aren’t aromatics I think would match up well with a sweeter halmaddi sort of masala. The Palo Santo Nagchampa may then be the first of its ilk and it’s a very interesting match indeed. For one thing, the palo santo itself is quite good quality and very reminiscent of the finer wood itself, so it’s off to a good start on that front. The base seems to have some of the more chocolate and confectionary qualities of the Sweet Frankincense and Guna Nagchampa, although it’s certainly not quite as decadent as either. But it seems modified appropriately in order to actually make a palo santo nag champa and balance the Mother’s format against what is a very identifiable and unique woody aroma. Now you will either know or not know if palo santo is to your taste, but its surge in interest among lovers of Native and South American culture know that the aroma has made a significant dent in the new age markets with its popularity. I might caution one to try the wood out first rather than dive in here, but honestly the palo santo note here is completely legit and it is hard to imagine Mother’s could have done a better job with this one.

Sage, on the other hand, is a strange beast in that sage wrapped for smudging (or used in cooking) smells a lot different to my nose than oil distillations and then either one’s application to a masala can also end up varying in a whole lot of directions. Check out Stephen’s reviews of the Temple of Incense Desert Sage or White Sage for examples of variance. I also had a Designs By Deekay White Sage review up at one point that demonstrated its more smudge-like, resin-based approach. Japan Incense has a Minorien-sourced Sage stick. All of these really differ a lot. The Sage Nagchampa also does. There is certainly some level of sage like herb in this and maybe oil as well but it felt like the creators dialed it down a bit to mix with the champa base, because, let’s face it, you’d have to. It’s an interesting creative choice because unlike the palo santo where the wood tends to have spicier qualities that might roughly fit in a cinnamon, clove or copal category, sage is going to move more in a direction like the Neem Nag Champa except where that one is green and bitter, this has a sort of general cooking herb sort of scent to it, rather than feeling specfically sage. The Sage Nagchampa also has a very similar base to the Oudh Nagchampa in terms of having a bit of gumminess to it. The issue with a stick like this overall is that so much compromise has gone into balancing two almost opposing formats that even though the balance is successful, it also feels like maybe it’s created something a bit too generic and maybe not as reminiscent of sage or a champa in the end. I know of the seven incenses I’ve just looked at this might be the one that’s the muddiest and hardest to define. But at the same time, one must see it as a unique and interesting experiment for sure.

I was also sent what amounts two a two stick by three fragrance package of Mother’s new Herbal Incense range. I should probably mention another difference in the overall line in that many of Mother’s aromas now have mini stick options which is an even more inexpensive way to try some of their many incenses. Anyway the two mini sticks each here might come close to one regular stick so I’ll just give my initial impressions on these. Well I’m going to try to. I just realized that in order to get the wee packages out of the strange cardboard package you also have to loosen them from their moorings so I now have three incenses where I’m going to also play guess the incense (I’m on the second stick of each)! So here we go.

While nearly every incense in this new line seems to specifically be one note and so close that both cinnamon and clove are broken down into two different types, the masala mix does sort of alter the profile, so these aren’t the same sorts of aromas that you’d find in a charcoal. So the Rosemary actually kind of works a little like the sage does in the Nagchampa above. That is, this doesn’t really smell much like the kind of rosemary used in cooking lamb (for instance), it has a sweeter more distilled oil like scent instead. The masala seems to have some woodiness and sweetness in it to also change the profile to some extent. It hasn’t lost the spice qualities of the herb really, but it feels like its presented more like a floral than an herbal sort of incense. Overall it’s not going to be like most expect.

I actually had trouble telling which of the two sticks left was Clove Bud or Cinnamon Bark because they are so sweetened up that any clear note is kind of obscured. My best guess (in addition to finishing the second mini sticks) was based on the pictures at the site where the Cinnamon Bark shows the darker of the two sticks, but honestly it could have gone either way. The darker stick has a sort of Madhavadas family like base with a lot of vanilla in the mix and the spice kind of plays around the outside. It’s not at all like cinnamon candy you will often find in charcoal sticks (like the brash Fred Soll versions) but a lot more delicate. Once the aroma builds up, the cinnamon does as well, and I would guess there was no use of oils in this and only the bark. But to me the base seems a bit distracting.

Strangely the Clove Bud is even sweeter, almost confectionary like, in fact it reminds me a little of some Japanese moderns in a way. There isn’t really a vanilla-like base , but once again I am struck by how little this smells like the clove you would normally think of, which may very well be because the aromatics are distilled from the fresh buds rather than the dried ones ground for spice? I’m guessing mind you because this is very far away from what I normally associate with clove, a note that is fairly common in a lot of the Tibetan incenses I’ve been reviewing. Anyway I don’t see much more in the way of description to clue in a bit more on these (and Mother’s are actually pretty good with the info thankfully), but they’re an intriguing trio of incenses in how little they tend to resemble what you expect. A different take is OK for me, but I didn’t really have the inches to go into these to maybe do them more justice.

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Temple of Incense / Sandalwood, Vanilla Woods, White Sage, Oudh Extreme

September 19, 2021 at 10:17 am (Agarwood / Aloeswood / Eaglewood, India, Mint, Oud, Sage, Sandalwood, Stephen, Temple of Incense, Vanilla)

Temple of Incense Part 12
Temple of Incense Part 14
The entire Temple of Incense review series can be found at the Incense Reviews Index

Finishing out the series of Temple of Incense sticks, we have some woody ones and the last one, Oudh Extreme, is another ‘advance sample’ as the ToI does not yet have it up on their website but when they do, hopefully this review will still stand up.

Our first stop is Sandalwood. This is the third sandalwood stick, after Banaras Sandal and Sandalwood Extreme. This is an oil-heavy charcoal masala hand-applied to a thick natural bamboo core. There is some flecks of light powder here and there but it doesn’t appear to be finished with powder.

Lighting this up, the oils become apparent as the stick immediately bursts into flame as it gets close to a heat source. The sandalwood is here, but it’s not as strong or as luxurious as the expensive Sandalwood Extreme. There is also something else added in, something sweet and dry, making this more like some of the cheaper Japanese sandalwoods where there is things like cinnamon and clove to spice it up as well as cover the fact that the sandalwood is probably a lower grade or else you’d just make a stick without the spices if it was nicer. Now comparing to cheap Japanese sandalwoods like Mainichi Koh isn’t to say this is a bad stick, I’m trying to zero in on the profile of sandalwood presented here, because there are hints of richer, salty and buttery sandalwood but they come sandwiched in this drier sweet note.

I’m going to post a note here and mention that when I compared this review I wrote to my initial impression of this stick, I realize something is wrong. In my initial impression, I describe it as a handmade masala on a bamboo stick painted red with a light tan powder finish. This is a different stick here because in my initial impression, I compared the sandalwood smell coming off it to Minorien Sandalwood, just a bit stronger because of the format. So perhaps there was a quality/consistency change between my sample and the purchase of the box.

Vanilla Woods is a charcoal masala hand-applied to a bamboo stick that appears to have been dipped in something. The masala has a sprinkling of a green powder (possibly that mint note). On the box, it is described as “Vanilla, Cassis, Sweet Musk, Woods, Hint of Mint.” My first reaction as I light this is that it smells like those sunscreens that are bad for the reefs. That sort of ‘banana/coconut/tropical’ sort of smell. But it transformed quickly between multiple scents vying for pole position. The mint is cooling and comes and goes but the clear leader is this vanilla smell that seems to trade places with a richer sweet scent that might be the cassis. However, I am not sure I detect a ‘sweet musk’ unless that is the sweet scent I called cassis or perhaps the sweet musk and cassis are on the same team? Regardless, as a charcoal stick that might have been dipped, this has a lot of class and character.

The second sage entry from ToI, White Sage is a handmade thicker agarbatti, finished with a light tan powder. This comes on a natural bamboo stick. This comes across as clean and crisp, though it is less exemplar of what I consider sage to be as there is something sweet in here as well as a soapy note that reminds me a bit of Ivory or Irish Spring in that sharp acrid note. The more I spend time with this rather cooling smoke, cool possibly because of the mint mentioned on the box, I am realizing that the scent reminds me a bit of when the dentist’s sterilized hands were in my mouth and against my nose. This is back when I was a kid before fear of things like HIV meant people wore gloves. Overall, I’m not a fan of this scent but it does have a very fresh and clean scent, like someone doing laundry with Fels-Naptha.

Oudh Extreme appears to be a triple threat. The bamboo is purple and discolored as if it has been dipped in oudh oil and my fingers smell of oudh after touching just the bamboo. The masala is a charcoal heavy masala, finished with a tan powder. My guess is the masala is charcoal and oudh and agarwood and then the stick is dipped in a oudh perfume/oil, and then finished with an oudh powder. This has so much oil in it that it lights like a torch. The scent is definitely deeper and more complex than the Oudh stick, this actually has a lot of scent profile in common with their Oudh Masala, which is a powder you can buy in their bakhoor section. This is very rich, very heavy in the perfume oudh profile. This has a bit of interplay between a sort of cologne scent you’d expect from the Persian area of the world, and the oudh sticks that Happy Hari/ToI carry. I really like this. It’s like when you’re burning Minorien Aloeswood and decide that you want a bigger punch so you reach for Minorien Kyara Chokoh. This is the bigger oudh punch. Recommended for anyone who loves Oudh and Oudh Masala from Happy Hari.

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Temple of Incense / Tulsi, Desert Sage, Dragon’s Blood, Frankincense

August 31, 2021 at 6:29 am (Basil / Tulasi / Tulsi, Cedar, Eucalyptus, Frankincense, Incense, India, Mint, Pine / Pinon, Rosewood, Sage, Stephen, Temple of Incense)

Temple of Incense Part 7
Temple of Incense Part 9
The entire Temple of Incense review series can be found at the Incense Reviews Index

While the plan was to go in alphabetical order, the fine ladies at Temple of Incense decided to send me two samples and they said they are coming to the website soon so this is a sneak preview of Tulsi and then we go back to the alphabetical crawl through the ToI catalog.

Tulsi arrives as a thick extruded agarbatti that looks to be a mixture of charcoal and aromatics, finished with a brown powder. It lights up into a warm, mildly sweet scent that is dominated by tulsi. My caveat to talking about this is most of my tulsi olfactory experience comes from the tea, which steeping in boiling water is different than extracting the oil and combusting it. What I get here is something that comes across as warm and fresh, with a herbal note that almost pushes into the lavender/fabric softener range. The soft sweetness could be a touch of halmaddi or similar binder/sweetener.

As I mentioned, being relatively new to Indian Incense, I don’t have the experience to talk about the stuff from 10 or 20 years ago and compare, but one thing that I can do is mention that in the 100s of sticks I’ve sniffed that have mentioned tulsi as an ingredient, none of them were as pleasant as this one, in fact, until this stick, I had started to think that tulsi was a note to avoid in incense, as I was starting to associate it with a Ivory Soap type of smell. But none of that is here. What I like so much is how fresh this is and how it seems to freshen a room and brighten it.

Speaking of cleansing, Desert Sage is one of the entries from ToI that follows on the tails of the likes of ‘Big Cleanse’ in that many of the ingredients are used as space cleansing for intentional work. They list eucalyptus, sage, mint, rosewood, cedar and pine on the box. Coming out of the box, unlit, the scent is like a sage bundle. But when you light it, you get more of the other ingredients in a shifting interplay that sometimes combines into a minty, cool, refreshing sort of scent and other times you just get a whiff of cedar or eucalyptus.

You can tell they are using high quality oils both because it smells great as it burns but also because it lit up like a torch soaked in gasoline. There are moments when the pine shines through it all, and others where the cool mint can be felt, but mostly this is good for anyone who likes ANY of these scents because they are all rather in the same ‘school’, they all come across cool, clean and refreshing. I’m going to mention that initially, when I got all the samples and had 1 of everything, this was the first stick I didn’t like. Now that I bought a box of it, I can tell the first one was contaminated by nearby samples because of how much more this smells like the ingredients and not like a bar of soap.

Dragon’s Blood is an extruded agarbatti with a red powder finish that stains the bamboo stick. Absolute Bliss sells this same stick as ‘Red Blood Dragon‘. This is a very fruity and sweet interpretation of the resin, and the stick format is similar to the other resin sticks in this lineup; like Amber, Myrrh, Frankincense, all have similar extruded resin-agarbatti though this one is a bit thinner. The masala is charcoal heavy because it is very black under the red powder.

This is almost like having a cherry soda or similar kind of treat. I would call it a ‘nose dessert’ because of how sweet it is. The nice thing is that it has a lot of class. Some sweet types of incense get too cloying, but this is one of those things that reminds of one of my weird friends who asked if I’d ever had microwaved Kool-Aid. This is what the microwave smelled like after we boiled a few cups of ‘berry’ Kool-Aid. It was delicious, by the way, hot Kool-Aid. I’m fairly sure that this incense will titillate anyone who loves sweet but also needs a bit of class, like choosing Tiramisu over a Snickers Bar.

Frankincense opens up with a nice serrata/frefreana citrus note. This is a thick extruded agarbatti with a soft coating of powder and it burns a bit slower than average. If you’re familiar with Happy Hari’s King of Frankincense, this is the same stick coming from the same maker, even the bamboo core is the same color and size.

One of the things as I was getting introduced to Indian style incense is that many times if frankincense appeared in the name it was never available in the scent. Even the high end Pure Incense Connoisseur Frankincense doesn’t actually smell like frankincense. But this one does. There isn’t actually much else competing with the scent other than maybe something salty that I can occasionally detect as possibly one of the binders. This is easily one of my favorite frankincense sticks, if you like the Tennendo Frankincense, you will most likely like this and it burns for an hour or so, too!

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Mermade Magickal Arts / Sanctuary, Pan’s Earth (2021) + Esprit de la Nature / Lavender Kyphi (via Mermade) (Discontinued)

June 30, 2021 at 6:13 am (Amber, Ambergris, Balsam, Benzoin (Loban), Breu Claro, Canada, Copal, Costus, Discontinued, Esprit de la Nature, Fir, Frankincense, Honey, Kyphi, Labdanum, Lavender, Mermade Magickal Arts, Mike, Myrrh, Palo Santo, Patchouli, Raisin, Sage, Sandalwood, Spikenard / Jatamansi, United States, Vetivert / Khus, Violet)

Here’s another handful of Mermade offerings including one direct from Esprit de la Nature. One I almost missed and the other two newly arrived…

I bought Sanctuary a little while back so I’m not sure if what I’m reviewing here was the first or second batch as mentioned on the page. Katlyn lists the ingredients for this blend of sacred space as Copal Blanco, Copal Negro, Maydi and Sacra Frankincense, Breu Claro, Greek Sage, Palo Santo, Peru Balsam and Fir Balsam. So I think the one thing that this instantly brings to mind is the idea that this is something of a South American blend with a touch of the outside. Space clearing incenses often to tend to be resin heavy, so this checks the box, plus this has that sort of uplifting feel that copals frequently bring to incense especially when they’re high quality. Sanctuary is also a bit of gentle blend, much more so than resin mixes that are frankincense heavy, in fact the frankincenses here seem to have not so noticeable an impact on the overall bouquet. The Palo Santo is fairly obvious as it always is in a mix, and I very much like the way the balsams weave in here as well. Once again Katlyn’s skill at blending multiple ingredients and getting them all to face out in a noticeable way is quite apparent.

Be en Foret’s Lavender Kyphi (picture is just a sample container but cool enough to include – check out the final artwork at the link) is another one of her intriguing variations on the old Egyptian formula. Check out this amazing ingredient line up: “From the Garden: Salted lavender buds and Dominican Sage leaves from my garden, Spikenard root from the Himalayas, Violet leaf extract from France. Resins: Dark Frankincense, Tolu Balsam, Dark Benzoin, Labdanum, Kua Myrrh, Liquidambar, Peru Balsam. A dash of aged Ambergris in Sandalwood oil â—Ź Bound with organic honey and raisins â—Ź Rolled in Agarwood and Sandalwood powder.”

Gulp. That’s a whole lotta goodness there, as is common with labyrinthine Kyphi preparations. Be sets this at a very low temperature kind of melt so you really gotta get in there to experience how complex this is, but of course the lavender is in front just like the name implies. One thing I love about kyphis is there are multiple ingredients, multiple recipes, everyone does them differently, they’re aged and tend to have vintages even among single “authors” and so vary all over the place while still hitting these notes that remind me of the finest of wines or even ales. The second thing I notice off this incense is the honey and balsam scent, a lovely mix that also tends to highlight the spikenard which is a favorite of mine. I do tend to like my lavender as close to the plant as possible, so I appreciate that it’s the kyphi that tends to be sweet here, which is a really nice contrast. And yes this does have that almost thick, wonderful base of a kyphi, more noticeable as the heat progresses, which I always contribute to the raisins and the way they kind of infuse a bit of wine-like goodness to the mix. Anyway I hope you’re convinced on this one, Be has the kyphi juju down!

And if kyphis are a tradition going back to Egyptian times, Katlyn has made something of a vintage out of Pan’s Earth herself. This is one of Mermade’s perennial classics, an almost definitive pagan earth incense, a mix of divine resins with all sorts of herbal notes that furrow their roots deep into the soil. And like kyphi, repeated vintages of Pan’s Earth always seem to improve and get more deep and impressive, and honestly, this one’s even a bit of a quantum jump in how good it is, easily my favorite of all of the good scents under this name. So what’s in the 2021 version? Black frankincense; breu claro; copal negro; vetiver root; aged patchouli; agarwood chips, powder, and oud; Pan’s Earth Special Blend Oil; Arbor Vitae cedar tips; jatamansi; costus root; kua; and Yemeni myrrh. The first thing that always strikes me about Pan’s Earth, despite all of the high end ingredients is that patchouli and vetiver mix. That green, soil-rich earthiness is just right up my alley and has always been the feature that would draw out this god of satyrs (and to be fair jatamansi and spikenard also have a little of it). If you’re gonna talk about Pan you need something feral and dark, something that makes civilization vanish. However to my nose this is actually a bit more resinous than I remember previous vintages, and it almost feels like the aged depth of it actually highlights and provides a well-roundedness to the incense that reminds you that the mystery of Pan still remains and that matched with all that earth is the sense of the universal as well. Perhaps 100s of years from now, some future archaeologists and anthropologists will be trying to make sense of the complexity of Pan’s Earth. Because this great incense is now becoming a tradition like kyphi, where there’s so much to experience, a review may not be able to do it full justice. One subnote melts into another into another. Definitely don’t miss this!

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Japan Incense (Minorien) / Theology Series / Eucalyptus, Sage and Myrrh

December 28, 2012 at 2:28 pm (Eucalyptus, Incense, Japan, Japan Incense, Minorien, Myrrh, Ross, Sage)

These are three scented offerings from Japan Incense’s Jay Cowan, who had them made by a major producer in Japan [NOTE 7/5/21: All appear to be produced by Minorien –  Mike]. These tend to be a very “Japanese” take on these scents as compared to other companies styles. They have an overall elegant and somewhat subtle scent as opposed to the more standard “in your face” style. I was personally pleasantly surprised at how nice the Eucalyptus is, this is not something that I would normally buy but I picked up a box of it before Christmas and have been steadily going through it. The eucalyptus scent is lifted up out of the ordinary with a slightly (very slight) sweet woods base note that also seems to run through the rest of the line and works well with all of them.  The Sage is also very approachable with a light sage note mixed in with the above mentioned sweetish/woods. The Myrrh continues along the same lines as the other two with a noticeable main note mixed with the base. This one was also a surprise as getting a decent myrrh scent out of a stick is (IMHO) rarely successful.

Overall I think these will appeal to many people who would like to experiment with these scents but do not want to deal with the big amounts of smoke and normally very strong scents that these three plants can present. These are not for smudging as much as for creating an lightly scented environment. Let your nose be your guide!

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Mother’s India Fragrances / Arjava, Hansa, Lavanya, Om, Purusha, Sattwa, Yajna

August 31, 2010 at 10:54 am (Amber, Balsam, Benzoin (Loban), Cedar, Champa / Durbar, Citrus, Evergreen, Floral, Fruit, Halmaddi / Mattipal, Incense, Iris, Orris Root, Jasmine, Kewda / Kewra / Pandanus / Screwpine, Lavender, Mike, Mother's India Fragrances, Nagarmotha, Oakmoss (Lichen), Patchouli, Resins, Rose, Sage, Sandalwood, Spice (Cinnamon Clove Nutmeg etc.), Tuberose, Vanilla, Vetivert / Khus, Woods, Ylang Ylang)

[Recipes may have changed and review may not be relevant anymore. Further research needed. Mike 6/17/21]

Since the last installment on the newly released Mother’s Fragrances Nagchampa incenses, the company kindly sent me what I’m dubbing the “Nag Champa Construction Set,” which is a series of ingredients that go into making their fantastic bases. One thing I learned fairly early about incense is that information from the east on these treasures has actually been remarkably sparse and so I’m extremely thankful to have received a further education from the creators. Not only has the set helped to show me where the sandalwood works into the base, but in particular having a sample of halmaddi resin has really helped to narrow down just where this works into these incenses. And overall my already high respect for the creator of these incenses has grown when I consider what the base smells like compared to the finished product. These are just works of art on every level.

So I wanted to say a few words about halmaddi resin before getting to the “back seven” nagchampas (10/8/21 – This link goes directly to US distributor Mere Cie Deux now; however, there are no specific pages for each aroma). This ingredient is particularly interesting in that the actually fresh smell of the resin itself (almost like a combination of chocolate and turpentine elements) is completely different from the smell while it’s burning, which is floral (likely that element similar to the champaka flower), slightly bitter and very balsamic. Not only is this obvious from the resin, but also from the base stick. Even on its own this a pleasant scent but what struck me is how much of a chameleon halmaddi must be since the oils that go into the incense change the nature of the relationship. Also, the Mother’s bases, while soft, aren’t gooey like the resin or many of the incenses I used to burn 15 years ago and as I intuit from the oils, there’s a really impressive level of balance and restraint here.

I wouldn’t have even recognized the base stick in the Arjava Nagchampa, which is the first of four incenses in this group that was not part of the original 12 incense sampler I received months ago. If there is a slight wildness to the halmaddi, you wouldn’t find it in this incense, which has a level of gentleness that is quite surprising. Where the descriptions of many of the other incenses list as many as 5 or 6 ingredients, there is only one specific listed here: rose. It’s interesting in that this is one of the new 14 that really stands out as being quite different, there’s an unusual herbal note at the top that is quite exotic and unique. The central scent is almost akin to some of the herbal-rose combinations found elsewhere and this all lies on a wood level that has been turned up a notch, while remaining pillowy soft. While it could be said that this is another wonderful contrast of spice and floral elements, the results aren’t quite so piquant as they are in the other scents, leading to a very sublime finish. Particularly because when I burn this I feel like I’m always trying to reach a description of the end, one that’s essentially elusive and mysterious. Like all great incenses the final notes end up as part of one’s memories.

Hansa Nagchampa is similar to the Arjava only in that it also has a fairly noticeable woodiness in the mix, but essentially this is a scent that returns to the floral/spice mix of many of these incenses. A lot of the main players in the whole line are in this one, including kewra, vetivert and lavender, but as always the addition of other ingredients modify the aromatic contour substantially. In fact, of the entire line this is perhaps the incense I find the most difficult to describe as the ingredient combos seem familiar, but the overall scent has been changed enough to be completely unique. Perhaps part of this is the golden champa scent in what I’d describe as the fourth fifth from top to bottom.  The amber here isn’t as strong as it is in the Om Nagchampa but it definitely flirts with the attention around all the floral notes and in many ways actually accentuates these notes so one feels that the florals are dominant to the spice mix in the background. And overall it’s the Kewra and Lavender that make, incrementally, the boldest statements in the mix. But in the end it’s puzzling because perhaps the best word to describe this incense is kaleidoscopic, because at any different time it’s possible to see new interactions among the ingredients. Which means in the end any static description won’t do this justice, as the base and the vetivert that tie it all together are really the only constants.

Lavanya Nagchampa really clicked with me after a couple sticks when it became obvious that the central part of the incense is very evergreen and spicy. I’ve discussed some of the incenses that contrast florals with a spice that could be roughly described in the cinnamon/clove/hot area, but this seems to get part of its spice from the use of resins as well as cedar, so that the spice note feels more green than red. Users of resin blends may have come across those that are resonantly foresty and that would be the comparison here. But it’s only a beginning and a platform because what dances on top is the jasmine and ylang ylang, and like the Arjava the results are just so delicate. It constantly strikes me that among Indian incenses, many of which can be incredibly strong and aromatic, that these are among the most refined and gentle, something only a master perfumer could gauge so perfectly. In the end it’s almost as if your aromatic senses try to convince you of its floral nature as the bewitching, rich evergreen and liqueur like background bubbles underneath, creating an almost yin/yang like paradox.

In fact as you use these incenses it’s really hard to separate one masterpiece from another, but there’s something in the Om Nagchampa that has made it my fastest used incense in the whole line, I literally have trouble trying to keep from burning my stock up in a couple days. It basically presents a triangle of amber, vanilla and cassia that is simply breathtaking and close to my sense of aromatic nirvana. My idea of the perfect incense is something that manages to be dry and rich at the same time, hinting at sweetness without being cloying. The cassia in this incense is just so perfectly placed that it’s a sheer delight and the amber notes are virtually flawless. As this scent burns it becomes so sublime by the end of the stick that it manages to represent the concept of Om in a way that might evoke ain ineffable response in the user. In fact it’s even difficult to want to burn another incense after this as it leaves such a powerful energy in the air after the last elements go up in smoke. By a long shot my top incense of August and it could be a reigning favorite for a while now.

Purusha Nagchampa is another of the dominantly lavender incenses in the line, which follows the absolute success of the Ganesh Nagchampa. Mother’s uses a number of different lavenders, however, and in this case we’re seeing an English lavender at the front, a note that is probably the most dominant lavender scent in any of these incenses. But while sitting on the top, the ingredients from the base up do a lot to modify the scent. For one thing this is one of the few, if not the only incense that has a sage note, an ingredient that seems to be far more common in American incenses (specifically southeast or Native American blends). Here it’s used to modify the lavender, and the results seem to bring out some of the wilder, herbier elements the two ingredients have in common. I’m not as familiar with orris, but I suspect this has a great deal to do with the more unfamiliar middle subscents that help to give this incense its individual personality. Closer to the base, the patchouli blends with the balsamic nature of the halmaddi to help make sure the top notes don’t go overboard. In the end this is definitely on the sweeter side of the Mother’s range, but it’s got just that touch of wildness to rein it all in.

Sandalwood is a main ingredient in all these incenses but it perhaps makes its presence most known in the Sattwa Nagchampa. With kewra, lavender tuberose and vetivert in the mix, this is definitely something of a cousin to the Atma and Hansa blends, if you can imagine the biggest change to be an increase in the amount of woodiness used. The vetivert here also seems to be turned up enough to give the scent a pleasant and sharp subnote and adding this to the woods and halmaddi base helps to balance the florals without reducing the richness of the scent. Overall this is a very pretty incense with a lot of activity in the mix and it’s among the bolder scents in the line. And like its cousins, the mix seems gauged to reveal its complexity slowly over time, something a review really can’t account for without an excessively lengthy preparation period.

Continuing a number of incenses with a strong lavender element is the spicy Yajna Nagchampa. However, if some of the Mother’s scents tilt more to a floral side, this is a decidedly spicy incense with woody notes, nagarmotha oil, patchouli and oakmoss all combining to imply a spice that also reminds me of cinnamon toast. This is also a very woody incense, however the type of wood scent it reminds me most of is akin (but far superior to) Satya’s Patchouli Forest scent, with that sense of crystalline, green resin that that incense evokes. Not only is the Yajna spicy, but it’s also devilishly complex in that there seems to be a lot of elements that make up this level of the incense. The oak moss is particularly noticeable here, almost more than a subnote at times, and with the patchouli it grounds the scent as something far more earthy the fire-like. In the end as you notice all this spicy, grounded activity it makes the presence of the lavender on top such a surprise and delight.

I’ll have to admit nearly every incense in this line is at a level of intricacy that they’re very hard to do justice to in words. So many of them are like a puzzle, because I feel that in a lot of other incense lines you wouldn’t expect some of these ingredients to work together like they do and in the end appraising them is like looking at a beautiful painting and switching between the singular elements and the composite final work. I may have mentioned strongly how much I love the Om, but over time I have no doubt that I’ll switch from favorite to favorite because in the case of complex aromas like found in the Hansa or Yajna, you get the feeling that it will take at least 10 sticks to feel that you’ve got a full grip on what’s going on here. And in the end I think this is the real joy in the use of incense, that what you have has the potential to continue to surprise and elate you as changing circumstances provide the varying viewpoints to smell new facets of complex bouquets. Because in the end with this line of Mother’s Nagchampas, all 19 exquisite treasures, you have some of the finest incenses available, particularly at an affordability that is quite astonishing. And please do check out the previous article for buying options, as I suspect in less than a month’s time they should be widely available to most of our readers.

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Prabjhuji’s Gifts / Devotion Line / Ganga, Govinda, Hari, Jaganatha, Mayapur

September 23, 2009 at 9:01 am (Agarwood / Aloeswood / Eaglewood, Amber, Benzoin (Loban), Champa / Durbar, Champa Flower, Evergreen, Henna, Honey, Incense, India, Jasmine, Lavender, Musk, Prabhuji's Gifts, Rose, Sage, Sandalwood, Spice (Cinnamon Clove Nutmeg etc.), Vanilla)

The second group of Ramakrishnanda incenses (NOTE 10/8/21: Ramakrishnanda refers to the previous name of the line, which is now Prabhuji Gift’s Devotion line) can all be found in the Kurma variety pack, the most affordable way to sample all five of these incenses. However, I’d almost put quotes around the word variety as in the case of four of five scents here you’re talking about extremely similar incenses and the variety pack tends to confuse the similarities a bit more than the packages would on their own. That is, in the packages the similar oil strengths tend to be more vivid and defined, while the conflict in the variety package makes them a little harder to tell apart (I will say, however, that the internal packaging is intelligently done in the samplers with a separate inner packet for each of the five aromas – it’s less an issue of bleed through than a lack of aromatic concentration).

Ganga might have belonged more naturally in the previous sampler pack with the other flora incenses as it’s of the same style. It features a cinnamon, lavender and jasmine blend and like one or two other Ramakrishnanda incenses with three listed ingredients, one, the lavender, appears to be a bit lost in the mix. Perhaps this is not a surprise when cinnamon is involved, a presence that is practically dominant here, but like Gopinatha, the jasmine does manage to come through as part of the lower end of the stick’s overall scent. In the end it’ll be up to the user’s opinion whether such an unusual blend of spices and florals actually works. I like some of the drier qualities involved but there’s a part of me who thinks a tweak or two might have rendered this a classic rather than another very nice incense.

Govinda is the first of four incenses here that move the style distinctly into the champa genre. Unlike some of the better champa styles incenses we’ve seen recently imported (such as the Shroff and Bam versions), the variations here are rather par for the course and only slightly improved on the modern Shrinivas formula where the disappearance of a solid halmaddi content has given way to more sandalwood and a less notable base. Govinda’s listed ingredients are sandalwood, sage and lavender, but the overall effect doesn’t particularly surpass any average champa incense. While the sage adds a slight bit of pepper to the bouquet, the lavender is again lost (perhaps it fades quickly with age in this line) and there’s a rather strong scent of vanilla that cuts through the entire scent.

Hari lists amber and sandalwood as ingredients, but again the sandalwood ingredient more than strengthen’s the scent’s entry into modern champa style. Unusually, the amber here is somewhat dry and perhaps a bit salty, more reminiscent of true ambergris than the sweeter amber scents you tend to find in Indian masalas and it gives Hari a slight touch of the unusual. Unfortunately it really isn’t enough to set it apart from many a generic nag champa. Again it’s difficult not to estimate that there’s a limited shelf life at work here, as if the oils would be stronger very close to the initial creation date.

Jaganatha describes itself as a botanical flower blend, but again it hangs right with the other champa styles rather than the more attractive floras in the line. As such blends go, there aren’t really any stand out single subscents, rather the typical sandalwood and vanilla of the champa style stand out the most here, with a mild, slightly sweet floral oil in the mix. Unfortunately it seems to have little overall personality, perhaps yet another casualty of the sampler package (although I would say my impressions have remained the same over two sample packets).

Mayapur has been given the description of Nag Champa Supreme, although it’s a stretch to see this as some sort of supreme improvement on the Vrinda Devi, the scents only seem to slightly differ due to the oils used. At the risk of repeating myself, it’s difficult to see this as much more than a slight variation on all the durbar-like formulas in this particular variety pack, in this case it’s the typical vanilla and sandalwood mixed in with, perhaps, a slightly fruity subscent. Of the four champa scents in this variety pack I might prefer this the most, slighty, but I’d honestly be hard pressed to tell them all apart without knowing the ingredient list beforehand.

Overall, I’d recommend the Kurma variety pack (10/8/21: the sampler appears to be discontinued) as a cost conscious way of being able to sample all these scents, but I’d give the caveat that one’s opinion of these is likely to be improved by checking them out as single scents. When I first sampled these a year or two ago, I used the sessions as a buying guide to what I might like and out of this package I believe I only went on to try the Ganga on its own, so it’s a bit of a conundrum – the samplers making it difficult to distinguish the champas from one another and thus perhaps obscuring what might be better incenses on their own. Fortunately Ramakrishnanda keep the prices low enough where one might pique their curiosity to go on and try 1o packs of all of the eventually. But unfortunately, while the Ramas compete quite nicely in their flora styles, they’re certainly falling behind in the champa race.

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