Patchouli

As an old hippy I have a great fondness for patchouli - I wore it as a perfume during my teens, later blending it three parts patchouli, two parts musk, and one part civet (a combination idea I may have got from Aleister Crowley, though altered to my own taste). Its sweet musky scent is very evocative of an interesting period of my life, and though I have not quite found the same sweet intensity in incense as I have in the essential oil, a good patchouli incense will nearly always tend to seduce me....

Patchouli is a plant. It is part of the fragrant mint family - which includes basil, marjoram, oregano, rosemary, thyme, lavender, etc.  The leaves are steam distilled to create the essential (or plant) oil that is used as the basis for the scent in perfumes and incense.  The seeds (and sometimes the plants) can be bought online in the UK, and in the US.  The leaves are an effective insect repellent, and were used to protect silks that travelled to the West along the Silk Road. Cashmere shawls from Kashmir were packed with patchouli leaves when transported to 19th century Europe, so making patchouli a fashionable perfume. It doesn't appear to have been a known incense ingredient until the 1960s when patchouli oil became popular with young Westerners on the hippy trail. As the oil is economical to make, and very effective, I wonder if patchouli incense has always been made with extracted oils rather than the plant itself. 

Patchouli is one of my favourite scents, and is a popular incense fragrance. It is rich, woody, sexy, warm, indulgent, sweet, with herbal, floral notes. Most patchouli incense tends to have those characteristics - it seems to work well. It's a useful incense adding sweet, musky, woody depth to a number of perfumes.  The patchouli plant is part of the mint family and is widely cultivated in Asia with over 12,000 farming families growing it. The active ingredient is Patchoulol, and this is now being developed synthetically with yeast, though I'm not sure how widespread is the use of synthetic patchoulol in incense. 

The scent is often called earthy, musky, sweet, like damp earth, brown, heady. It can be quite compelling and intoxicating. It is a robust, sexual, animalistic, natural, disturbing scent. When an incense replicates the scent successfully, it can be a heavenly experience - filling the room with a throbbing sensuality.

It is quite a common scent in incense - though less so for masala makers. It is found mainly in perfume-dipped incense - either as a natural essential oil, or as a chemical replicant.  Most perfume-dipped producers will have a patchouli in their range; sometimes part of a blend, but mostly just as patchouli. If there's a variety pack of cheap incense, patchouli will often be one of the scents - as with  Ganesha incense cones (score 29),  Emporium Impressions Premiere Incense Gift Pack (27),  Pan Aroma Incense Sticks (23), Stamford Exotic Collection (22), Zodiac Scents (19) - Scorpio is represented by patchouli, 100 Loose Cones eBay Mega-Mix (19), Spiritual Sky (19),  and Divine Spirit (18).

There are blends in the Stamford Aromatherapy Collection (Tulasi) with the Relaxing scent (27) containing a blend of cardamom, cedarwood and patchouli, while the Sensuality scent (22) contains a blend of ylang ylang, patchouli, and spicy nutmeg.

It can work well in perfume-dipped incense, as in SAC Patchouli cones (34),  HEM Patchouli (33) which does smell of patchouli, Mysore Sugandhi/Aargee Patchouli (33) which is crude but gives a likeable musky warmth,  and can make acceptable everyday patchouli incense, as in

SAC Patchouli sticks (29), or Karma Scents Patchouli (25). Though sometimes it's a scent in name only and the product is only useful as a toilet freshener as in Darshan Patchouli cones (15).

It is not common in masala incense, though Goloka do a Patchouli (36) which is more sandalwood than patchouli but is a warm and sensual incense nevertheless,  and Aromatika Ace Scents do a Patchouli (32) which again is more about sandalwood but is pleasant enough. Nandita do Nandita Organic Patchouli (27), which is a thin masala, and uses charcoal which burns quite sharp and hot, so is not successful.

Reviews

  * = Reviews over 5 years old, so may not be reliable

Aargee Imperial Maharaja Patchouli Fragrance
Dec 2023  -  Score: 47

   

(DBS) Monsoon Incense Patchouli (PM)

Apr 2025 - Score: 42

Help Us Green Patchouli (P)
May 2025 - Score: 42

Sai Handicraft UK Hand Rolled Pitcholi 
Dec 2023 - Score: 41

Goloka Patchouli Dhoop Cones 
Aug 2020 - Score: 41 

Satya (BNG - 2016) Patchouli (M)
Dec 2019  -  Score: 40

   

Damodardas Bhagwandas Sugandhi (DBS)
Natural Patchouli (PM)
Apr 2025 - Score: 40

Vivasvan Garden Fresh Pure Patchouli (M)
Nov 2024 -  Score: 39↑

  

Satya (Mumbai) Patchouli Forest (M)
Aug 2019 - Score: 38

  

Elbenzauber Patchouli 
Jan 2024 - Score: 38

   

(HMS) Bhagwan Incense Patchouli (PM)
March 2024 - Score: 37 

(HMS) Temple of Incense Patchouli Woods (PM)
Jan 2025 - Score: 37

  

Om Brand Trishala Patchouli (P)
Feb 2024 - Score: 37

Aargee Patchouli (P)
May 2019  - Score: 37

  

Namaste India Pure Patchouli (M)
Nov 2023 - Score: 36

Goloka Patchouli 
Nov 2015 - Score: 36*

Satya (BNG) Patchouli (M)
Aug 2019 - Score: 35 

   

HEM Patchouli Masala incense (PM)
Oct 2024 - Score: 34

SAC Patchouli (cones)
Aug 2018 - Score: 34*

Tulasi Patchouli Masala Incense (M)
Sept 2021  -  Score: 33

Blue Pearl Patchouli

Dec 2022  -  Score: 33

  

Hari Darshan Patchouli Incense Cones (P)

April 2022 - Score: 33

Aargee Patchouli tube series
March 2015 - Score: 33*

Goloka Nature's Patchouli (M)

Mar 2025 - Score: 32↑ 

HEM Patchouli
May 2024 - Score: 32↑↓

Aromatika Ace Scents Patchouli

Aug 2015 - Score: 32*

The Mother's Fragrances Patchouli (M)
Sep 2025 - Score: 31

Sifcon Patchouli Incense Sticks (P)
Oct 2021 -  Score: 31

Gokula / Primo Connoisseur Patchouli /
Gaura Super Patchouli Incense Sticks
Nov 2021 -   Score: 30 

  

Bhagvati Ppure Nagchampa Patchouli
May 2017   Score: 30*

 

Aasha Aromatics Patchouli (P)
Oct 2018  - Score: 30*

SAC Patchouli (sticks)
March 2017  Score: 29* 

 

Vinasons (VNS) Neo Patchouli (PM)
Sep 2025 - Score: 28↓ 

Aromatika Patchouli Incense Cones

Jan 2021 - Score: 27

Mausum Patchouli (P)
Nov 2023 - Score: 27

HEM Precious Patchouli cones (P)
Jun 2025 - Score: 27

Nandita Hemp Patchouli (PM)
Nov 2024 - Score: 25

Sifcon Karma Scents Patchouli (P)
June 2017  Score: 25*

Ekom Patchouli

Oct 2023   Score:  23

Aromandise Haute Tradition
Tender Patchouli (M - Mar 2025): 23

Stamford Patchouli (P)
Jun 2025 - Score: 20

Nandita Organic/Original Patchouli (PM)
Jan 2025 - Score: 19↓ [Average: 23]  

 

Phool Patchouli Luxury incense Sticks

Nov 2023  -  Score: 15

 

 Darshan Patchouli cones 

July 2018  - Score: 15*

Reviews: 43

Top five average: 41 
Highest score: 47
Lowest score: 15
Average: 32

***

 What's The Best Incense In The World?

Different Scents

Mahendra Gulabi Collection Rose

I was burning some Mahendra Gulabi a few weeks ago, and I got curious as to where I bought it. Not that I thought it was a good incense, I was simply curious. I couldn't find the exact box, but I did note that Mahendra had expanded upon the brand, and were now doing a Gulabi Collection range which ReallyRelaxing were selling at a reduced price. So I grabbed the Rose and the Lavender to see what they burned like. Of course, I then got distracted, and they were put aside. I burned some Hari Om Divine Incense Gulab again the other night, and that reminded me of this Mahendra Gulabi.  Gulab is Hindi for rose, so is a common name for rose incense. Most Indian rose incense tends to be highly perfumed and quite heady. It's usually a perfume-dipped incense, but there are some masala versions, such as the very beautiful Goloka Nature's Rose.   This Mahendra Gulabi Collection Rose falls into the usual format for a perfume-dipped rose incense, though is much softer, and a few other things going on, such as little hints of citrus.  Though there are some differences it is very similar to the base Mahendra Gulabi, and may simply be the same incense, just updated a bit.

You get a lot for your money - there's 25g in the packet which would mean an average of 25 sticks. The sticks are a little shorter than average, though I like that, as I generally don't like to have the same incense burning for a long time. Short and sweet suits me. And it gives me the option of burning another one if I want. It's an OK everyday incense. Perfumed. A bit old fashioned. But it works for me as a pleasant room freshener.

Date: July 2018   Score: 23

***

Mahendra Betco - Best of

Best rose incense