Sweet with notes of pine more than cedarwood, and suggestive of toilet cleaners, which is not the most romantic of associations to have when burning incense. The Gaura branded Absolute Cedarwood is the same incense as Primo Cedarwood, and is made by the highly respected Haridas Madhavdas family of Pune (HMS), so it's a little disappointing that the cedarwood, a favourite scent of mine, should end up being so ordinary. However, it seems that others have also been let down by some iterations of Primo incense.
This is an OK, but fairly ordinary incense. Reflecting on my experiences with cedarwood incense, and I'm wondering if the idea of cedarwood excites me more than the reality. I like the scent of cedarwood, but I'm not convinced I've yet had a proper cedarwood experience with any incense I've burned. I need perhaps to look back though my reviews and see if there have been many which have lived up to my expectations.
Actually, the more I burn it the more I get into it, and the more the cedarwood scent emerges with its subtle warmth and evocative spice.....
Date: Aug 2019 Score: 33
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| A cedarwood sampling |
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| Flora, Fluxo, and Supreme |
One of the samples I ordered from Gokula was the Cedarwood in their Connoisseur line, formerly named Absolute Cedarwood. I found this to be an excellent stick with a lovely cedarwood scent that would drift in and out of the burn, partnered with a beautiful sweet base that made me think it was made by the Madhavdas family. Then, I read your review and you mention this as well as being of the same production as the Primo Cedarwood. I think this happens with many of the best incense sourced from India. Madhavdas is one of the legendary makers that have seemingly had their hands in many upscale incense brands. Their vanilla base is famous among the aficionados. I believe I am much higher on this one than you are. For me, this is a compelling scent that I love.
ReplyDeleteFrom my notes: This stick has a powder sweet aroma which is earthy and compelling. This is a very different scent than what I had imagined. It is friendly and stays in the middle notes with a soft base pervading the burn. No campfire scent here. Pure fragrance with a whiff of high mountain cedar appearing here and there. I would also think that it contains halmaddi. This could be a Madhavdas production. I like it a lot and would buy it again.
Good comments again Ho Go. I was discussing with someone recently (was it you?), about makers like Madhavda who use the same recipe for certain scents, but will adjust the quality of the essential oil depending on the requirements of the client. Well, it's not known that they actually do adjust the quality of the oils, but that is what is speculated. My feeling is that the incense supplied by Madhavda to Goluka is the same recipe and quality as Madhavda's Primo brand - both of which sell for reasonable price. Now, then, does Madhavda up the grade of essential oils when supplying Adi-Guru in North Bushy for his Pure-Incense brand? Adi-Guru charges around three times the price that Mukunda / Mark does for his Goluka brands and for Madhavda's own Primo range. Adi-Guru does package the incense very well, and that costs a bit more - something I'm always willing to pay a bit extra for, as the packaging, for me, is part of the experience. And in my limited experience of Pure-Incense products, I do find a stronger, cleaner, more radiant fragrance.
DeleteI think it would be interesting and fun to do a side by side comparison of Primo/Goluka with Pure-Incense on the same scents.
I don't have any experience with Pure incense to draw on.
ReplyDeleteWorth checking them out as you like Madhavdas. I'm currently reviewing Triloka Hawaiian High, which I sourced from America, and while Windrose/Triloka don't spell it out clearly, it seems they also source their incense from Madhavdas: "handmade in India by our fair trade cottage industry partners, with over 150 years of family tradition." As far as I'm aware, Madhavdas is the only incense company to claim over 150 years of family tradition.
DeleteI am currently burning a Cedarwood stick from Haridas Madhavdas. The cedar blends extremely well with their halmaddi base and overall it is very pleasant. The 'problem' is that 12 sticks cost $5. Compare this to Gokula's Connoisseur line Cedarwood, which could also be produced by Madhavdas, costing £3.95/18 sticks. Guess which one I would buy again.
ReplyDeleteThere is another Cedarwood stick that you probably have not tried. It is made by Ganesha Incense based here in Thailand. It is one of their Gold line sticks and currently costs $29.95/75-80 sticks in a cardboard tube packaging. Still expensive and this also might be a Madhavdas product. HNY.
Variation in price for the same product happens in most markets, though it is particularly notable in the incense market. I'd be more comfortable with the price difference if the extra profit was being passed on to the makers, but I suspect that mostly it is not. I have been an advocate of Gokula since I first became aware of them because Mark imports decent incense and sells it at a very fair price. The main down side is the packaging - too much plastic, and not particularly attractive or interesting.
DeleteI don't know that Ganesha Incense. The only Ganesha Incense I know is the brand that was owned by the (now closed) UK importer Cha Cha Dum Dum .
DeleteIs this the company you're talking about?
DeleteGanesha Incense
People are complaining on the company's Facebook page about the prices and lack of delivery:
DeleteGanesha Incense Facebook
That doesn't look good. People sending $180, and not receiving the goods nor any acknowledgements to emails.
I found a Ganesha House in Thailand. The packaging looks very similar.
DeleteGanesha House Facebook