Incense In The Wind

Radiating Incense In The Wind - a painting by Hai Linh Le

Saturday 4 November 2023

BIC Panchavati Golden Eagle Premium Hand Rolled Incense Sticks

 


In February this year (2023) BIC sent me a box of samples to review. They had noted that I very much enjoyed their Panchavati and Shivam dhoop sticks. The samples are from across their range - so there are square boxes, hex boxes, and zipper pouches of everyday perfumed incense, as well as luxury box incense, masala incense, and these premium box perfumed-charcoal sticks. I've been slowly making my way through the box of samples. BIC appear to be a decent incense house, producing value for money everyday incense, plus some OK mid range stuff. The Panchavati is clearly their top product, and they are understandably branding much of their incense under the Panchavti name, and their website is called panchavati.com

This Golden Eagle is in an oblong box - which appears to be the standard box size and shape these days, commonly associated with Satya and Goloka.  The standard box does seem to sit between the luxury boxes and the hex boxes, suggesting a decent quality everyday incense. And this Golden Eagle, part of an "Aroma Therapy" series, though a rather scruffy and inconsistent hand-rolled charcoal on flimsy and rough cut bamboo splints, does strike me as a fairly decent everyday scent. Rather attractive. Somewhat better smelling than the stick appearance would suggest. As seen in the picture above, the sticks are bent and misshapen, and when placed in my holder, they droop. But the scent on the burn is surprisingly compelling. 

The sticks are scruffy perfumed charcoal. 9 inches long with 7 inches of hand-rolled paste on rough cut bamboo splints with red dyed tips. They burn for around 60 minutes. The scent on the stick is chemical, volatile, pine disinfectant, not promising. The burn is reasonably steady, producing a medium column of blue grey smoke. The scent is gentle and attractive - warming and informing the room in a discrete manner.  When wafted the scent is bolder, and is revealed as dark and musky - amber and patchouli notes, with a woody warmth and depth, and touches of honey. This is a reassuring scent - calming and sensual. It's my sort of scent. Rich, sweet, and touching on glorious. There's elements here that put me in mind of bakhoor. Yes,  I really like this. BIC have their own in-house research and development perfumery team - I think the team have done well here. A good perfume. Sensual, sexy, musky, and could be feminine or masculine, though I tend to associate woody, musky scents with masculine, though I love it when women wear musk.  

The weakness in the scent is that it doesn't have balancing top notes to create further depth and interest. It states its intent, and then remains there. So, it's not an exciting or interesting or different scent, but as a woody, musky scent, this is a damned good 'un, and is the best perfumed incense I've burned this year. 


Date: Nov 2023   Score:  39 
***

BIC / Panchavati


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