Ispalla Incense Peru Palo Santo & Rosemary

 

Bought from the excellent German online incense store Ephra World, who offer it at 3.25 Euros for a square pack of 10 sticks.  I was tempted because it presents as an incense made in Peru, and I've not experienced any incense made in Peru. Peru, of course, is notable in the incense world as one of the sources for Palo Santo wood, which comes from the South American tree Bursera graveolens. 

There's a mild warm and pleasant scent on the stick which reminds me of honey flavoured Ready Brek (I don't think they make the honey flavour any more - or am I thinking of Golden Syrup flavour? - I've just checked, and they used to make both honey and Golden Syrup flavours). It's quite an oaty smell. The stick is quite lumpy and crudely made, which gives it a certain charm, an artisan charm, if you like, as if this was home made. There is too much saltpetre / potassium nitrate in the mix, resulting in indoor fireworks sparks and puffs of smoke, which is kinda interesting and oddly attractive, though certainly not what you'd expect. There are various health concerns regarding potassium nitrate, though it is widely used in various cultures as a food ingredient, and is very common in certain processed meats. I think if you're eating processed meat you're unlikely to care about the health hazards of potassium nitrate - processed meat is as far down the scale of healthy food as you're likely to get, and I doubt if there's anyone adult and literate whose not aware of that. 

Anyway, back to the Puff the Magic Dragon incense stick. I like the scent of the palo santo, but the scent is merged and blurred with Bad Stuff coming outa that stick. Burnt wool. Mouldy biscuits. Rancid bacon. Dirt and dust and filth you don't want to inhale. There's a struggle going on between the Good and the Bad, and it's not always clear who is winning, but on the whole this is not an incense you should be burning indoors without plenty of ventilation and fresh water. I don't hate it. I like the palo santo scent, and while I wander to and to like a supermarket trolley about the puffing dragon, I do think it's something a bit interesting and different. The Bad Stuff is a nuisance, but it doesn't destroy this completely. It's not an incense I'm going to be burning much, but it's certainly quirky and interesting enough to burn outside in the summer when having a picnic or a garden barbeque.  

This stick reminds me of  New Age Imports Artisan Five Elements Incense, which I reviewed in March 2022, and scored it 41 (top end of Something a Little Bit Special). 

Date: Feb 2024   Score: 21 

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Incense Around the World