Stamford Sandalwood

Second review - scroll down for earlier

I've been sent a bunch of Stamford London samples. Stamford London is the continuation of the Aargee Stamford brand, trading under the brand Stamford. The packet designs and the incense sticks are the same as when they were sold by Aargee under the Stamford name. 

I received the samples either last year or the year before. They are not fresh, though I would expect even perfumed incense to last for more than a year or two. There's a distinct home fragrance scent on the stick. Quite perfumed, though not clearly defined. Kind of mildly sweet, vaguely floral, mainly generic synthetic fragrance. The sticks are black charcoal paste on a red tipped bamboo splint - the same as when I reviewed them in 2013. Indeed, all the Stamford sticks in the sample bag look the same - so I assume that whoever makes them for Stamford, uses the red tip to indicate in-house that the sticks are for Stamford. 

The scent on the burn is moderately pleasant, though is not interesting. It's a generic room-freshener perfumed-charcoal scent. There's some woody warmth edged with coal dust, and some faint vague floral top notes. It's an OK background scent which will give some warmth to a room. Light and forget it. 

Date: Mat 2025   Score: 25

First review

Bought as part of a double special offer from buyallmeans shop on Amazon, where Stamford incense gift packs were reduced, and if four were bought together there was a further reduction, so I managed to get 24 different small boxes of between six and eight incense sticks for £10, including postage - that's around 170 sticks for £10. Bargain. The Sandalwood incense is present in the Exotic and Floral packs - and a slightly different version appears in the Moods pack as Sandalwood Meditation. A Meditation incense appears in the Aromatherapy pack where it is a blend of sandalwood, vanilla and camomile.

Stamford is the perfumed-charcoal brand for the UK distribution company Aargee. The sticks are hand rolled charcoal paste, and then dipped in a fragrance solution. The incense paste is black on a dyed red bamboo stick. The packs are intensely perfumed - I have to keep them in the plastic bag they arrived in because the sweet, slightly cloying perfume dominates the room if they are left out. The Sandalwood sticks on taking out of the box are fruity sweet, like kids sweets, but also with aromas of black tea, bergamot and dried roses. The scent when burned doesn't feel natural - it has a synthetic tang to it. Also, it doesn't remind me of sandalwood. It is hot, slightly harsh, with little of the aromas on the stick. It is fairly mild, and while it is a bit harsh, it's not an offensive aroma at all - it's quite neutral.

Overall not an impressive incense, especially from a brand that is aiming to project itself as quality.

Date: May 2013  Score: 25

***

Stamford London

Sandalwood