Happy Hari / Kings of Incense Queen of Lotus

 

Second review - scroll down for earlier

I am just rummaging in my drawers, and I find this long forgotten pack of Queen of Lotus. I remember burning these sticks back in 2016 and loving them. And then, inspired by Lesley's review of this incense, I remember writing a well researched piece on the sticks, and then losing it all. I eventually got round to writing a review in late 2017, when I only had two sticks left. Not wanting to lose this scent, I only part burned one stick. I'm now finishing the part-burned stick, and then sending the remaining stick to someone who I think will truly appreciate it. 

This is a generous fragrant charcoal paste, machine extruded onto a machine cut undyed bamboo splint, and then rolled in a wood based and fragrant finishing powder (or melnoorva). Essential oils are present, and there's no sense of solvent, so the essential oil is unlikely to be cut with "agarbatti oil" -  which is usually diethyl phthalate (DEP). 

The scent on the stick, and on the burn has faded with time, so this is now a very soft and subtle incense, rather than the lush experience I had back in 2016/17, but the ingredients are still there - there is still a sweetness, touches of vanilla, of magnolia, of soft, sweet lemon, almost like sherbet dabs (now called Dip Dabs), and underneath that a soft sweet musk just gently laced with patchouli.  

If scoring it now, to be honest I would score it lower. More like the mid 30s than the mid 40s. Perhaps a tad higher - mid to high 30s. But I'm not going to adjust the score down. I'll call it at 38, but leave it in place on my board at 45. This is a classic Paul Eagle incense. Be nice to know where he sourced this from. There are clues in the stick manufacture for those who know where to look. Ah, there are delightful little wafts of this fragrance drifting over me now and then. No, I couldn't - even now, with this stick being something like six years old, score this less than in the 40s. Delightful little thing. 

Date: Feb 2022   Score: 40 

First review

I have a bit of a history with this incense. When Paul sent me some samples in January last year (2016), I burned a number of them, and this was the first that really caught my attention (I hadn't at that time burned the Oudh).  I was much taken with it, and spent some time researching into the ingredients of the lotus flower, and what perfumers and incense makers use to try to recreate that flower's elusive scent. One of the ingredients, I recall, is commonly used in skin creams - and the aroma of skin cream is something that Lesley noted in her review on her incense blog. Reading her review in conjunction with my own research led me to research further into this ingredient, and I fed my findings into my review. And then I had a computer glitch. And everything was lost. I was a little dismayed to say the least, and decided to put rewriting the review to one side for a while until I recovered the energy and enthusiasm to do the research again. Well, with one thing and another it wasn't until toward the end of 2016 that I decided I would look into reviewing this incense and other Happy Hari incense again. And shortly after I started doing that I found out that Paul had ceased trading as Happy Hari, and then, that he took his own life on Christmas Day 2016.

I burn this incense, and I think of Paul. And also of Lesley, who is no longer active on her website.

So there is personal history and some sadness attached to this incense. But the incense is actually quite beautiful, and it transcends those personal feelings. It is a rich, lush, creamy, sweet aroma. The paste is applied by a semi-automatic machine, operated by the woman who used to hand roll the same incense. The stick then gets a final dusting of fine powder. The scent is buttery, rich, and fragrant, with a hint of civet, lemon, and fresh kidneys. The floral core comes later, and is magnolia and dense white fluffy petals. The warmth of musk keeps returning.

This is a great scent.

Take care, Paul, wherever your soul is resting right now......


Date: Aug 2017   Score: 45

***

Best floral incense

Happy Hari Incense