Nandita Original Amber Premium Masala Incense

Second review - scroll down for earlier

Machine made "masala" incense (whatever Nandita mean by "masala"). Neat and professional. Awesome scent on the stick. Totally divine. Musky and fruity and oh so yummy and pleasing to the senses. This is a scent that excites and delights and simply fills the body and mind with pleasure.  Amber is always a house style scent as there is no actual amber scent - it is a composed scent, with each perfumery or incense house creating their own idea of what an amber should smell like. I like Nandita's version. And, as is typical of the very best Indian incense houses, this is a strong, heady scent. Full of life and passion. 

A lot of oils, and possibly an unhealthy dose of "agarbatti oil" which is usually diethyl phthalate (DEP), has been used in constructing this incense, and - because it's an "amber" - a proportion (at least) of those fragrant oils would be synthetic (I don't think there is any non-synthetic amber incense). There's a degree of black smoke on lighting the stick, then it settles down into a steady burn. After trying a few positions, I find burning upright in an open space a little distance away is the best, allowing a fuller range of notes from top to base, and allowing the scent space to open up. 

This is a gorgeous scent - sweet, sticky, slightly intoxicating, perhaps a little close to satiating, though pulling just short - especially when given space. Hmm, lots of musk and dark darks, playfully balanced by fruit notes. This is a great incense. I love it.  

As of July 2024, this is the IncenseInTheWind top rated amber incense. 

Date: July 2024    Score: 46

First review

 

I like Nandita incense - what I've had has generally been good quality at very reasonable prices: a 15g pack of approx 12 sticks will usually be under £2, and deals can be had, such as from this eBay dealer of 6 packs for £5.49 with free postage (must be the same scent), or from Online London Store who do packs at £1.19, buy four get one free (plus VAT and postage).  

These are decent quality, professionally made sticks. The present as perfumed charcoal, and appear to be machine extruded. There's no melnoorva, but the sticks have a very very fine dust which comes off on my fingers when rubbed. The scent on the stick is divine. It has the aromatic qualities associated with amber (or, more appropriately, labdanum, the resin from the rock-rose which was valued by various ancient peoples in the Middle-east, including the Egyptians) plus touches of orange, brown sugar, cinnamon, and fresh earth. The scent on the burn is a little more earthy and vegetal than on the stick, less sweet and divine, and with some measure of smoke; however, it is attractive, and it informs the room pleasantly. If the fragrance on the burn matched the fragrance on the stick, this would be an awesome incense, and the score will lose some points because of the sense of disappointment that the burn scent is so considerably lesser than the promise on the stick; however, this is still a damned fine incense. 

Date: April 2024    Score: 41

***

Nandita of Mumbai

Amber