(HMS) Blue Pearl Lavender

  

Second review - scroll down for earlier

A fresh pack, a fresh year, and perhaps a fresh attitude. I've just reviewed again Blue Pearl Sandalwood, and found it an unremarkable everyday room-freshener perfumed-charcoal stick. But this Lavender is very different. The appearance is similar, and the Lavender appears to be the same thing as the Sandalwood. But once the packet is opened so the difference is made clear. At least for me - your mileage may vary. It's a glorious sweet scent - caramel, vanilla, sugar mice, Parma Violets, dry ice. Very enticing. There's probably some lavender in there as well, certainly there's some sense of florals and herbs, but mainly it's a cool rush of sweetness. I like sweet. That's my huckleberry. Yes, I like it balanced with something darker, but given the choice between dry and bitter or rich and sweet, I'm more likely to reach for the rich and sweet. Though when it comes to food, I'm more of a savoury lover. There are few absolutes in this world. 

The scent on the burn is modest and a little muddled - there's coal smoke notes mingled with the fragrance. Caramel and vanilla are prominent, though I could be persuaded that lavender is present. On the whole it's a moderately pleasant scent. It does not fulfil the promise of the scent on the stick, which is a common finding for perfumed incense, but it is an acceptable low end everyday room freshener. 

I'm OK with this, but not finding it as delightful as I did two years ago.  

Date: May 2025   Score: 30

First review

I was excited by the Blue Pearl brand's Classic Champa, a masala style incense with delightful scents which I reviewed in Jan last year (2022). I then ordered a bunch of different scents, and was a little disappointed that what arrived was pretty much standard bargain basement style perfumed charcoal incense such as their below par Sandalwood, though there was also some moderately decent perfumed-masala such as the Patchouli.  A combination of Blue Pearl being a private label, albeit being a charity (raising money and awareness for the Syda Foundation ) rather than a commercial set up, that the incense fragrances had a lack of ambition (single scent mainstream), and that the quality was clearly variable (presumably though sourcing from different makers), made me lose interest in the brand. 

This perfumed-charcoal Lavender, though, has caught my attention. The sticks are 8 inches long with 6 inches of charcoal paste hand rolled very neatly onto a plain machine-cut bamboo splint and then dipped in a rather elegant perfume. It burns for a satisfactory 50 minutes. There is some volatility on the stick, and the scent is rather perfumed and moderately heady, with touches of cool menthol, and a good awareness of lavender. The volatility is a little sharp and off-putting,  though the calming qualities of the lavender, combined with its pleasant sweet floral allure, overcomes that negativity, and offers a promise that can't be ignored. 

On the burn the fragrance opens up, and without the cool menthol volatility a sweetness develops, supporting and enriching the lavender and bringing in elements of vanilla, white chocolate, with moderate touches of semi-sharp fruit such as raspberry. It's herbal more than floral, and the lavender feels more like a perfume than real lavender. However, it's an engaging combination of scents that inform the room without overwhelming, and delight the senses. There's enough variety and change in the scent to keep the interest. This is not quite a heavenly incense - the perfume feels a little bare, lacking some of the richness and depth that can come from a quality masala - but is immediate and very pleasing. We like it. 

 
Date: Sept 2023    Score: 37 

***

Haridas Madhavdas Sugandhi

Blue Pearl

Best of Lavender

Reviewed on Rauchfahne

***

See also:

HMS Ab Lavender sold by
Sacred Boutique / KrishnaShopping.Com
March 2024 - Score: 24 

HMS Bhagwan Incense Lavender Bliss (P)
Nov 2023 - Score: 28