I was curious as to how an incense based on a soft white cheese would smell, and even more curious when I got the sticks out of the packet to find they have a sweet, sherbet, rose or Turkish delight scent. A quick Google, and it turns out that paneer (or panneer) is a popular rose water flavoured pop (soda) in South India, which is sometimes used to spray over wedding guests. Great fun!
The scent on the stick is delightful, and feels refreshingly modern. It is a light rose rather than the usual heavy Damask rose typical of traditional and/or mainstream incense houses. There are interesting vague savoury notes, as well as the usual sandalwood. Overall, a very promising and somewhat intriguing scent on the stick.
I have a new way now of setting up the scent on the burn for reviewing. I smudge the area around me. When not reviewing, I frequently smudge the house with incense - sometimes using one, but often several sticks. I will light several sticks, and then walk around the house, smudging in corners, playing with the smoke - making smoke circles or swirls, leaving sticks in key rooms. This fully informs the house, and gives a good sense of the scent. Yet, somehow when reviewing it has become my habit to light a stick on my desk and then make notes as it burns. This is not actually the way I use incense, so it has struck me that it's odd that I have developed this habit for reviewing.
Anyway, after smudging, I then place the stick in a traditional 20 degree angle wooden incense holder on the table behind me, which is in the centre of the room. This gives space and air to the scent, and allows the lighter notes to travel and thrive, while the heavier notes remain close to the holder. I tend to prefer the heavier notes, though I love the balance and delight offered by the lighter notes. One key thing is that most of the off notes generated by joss sticks, such as the scorching wood scent, is less apparent the further away from the burning stick I am. If I turn around I am closer to the burning stick, so I can get a mix of scents.
I like this stick when first lit. It has a gentle mix of light floral rose and soft, low level sandalwood. There are light metallic notes, such that I note when it rains after a long period of heat, which bridges the sandalwood and the rose. It doesn't overwhelm me. Like much of the dry Shroff I find it a little dry and austere, a little formal, and underwhelming. I relish passion and richness in my incense, as well as unique scents. This, while not being unique, is a little more interesting than the usual Shroff with the playful delicacy of the rose, though the sandalwood tends to dominate on the burn, building up over time. A short burn with this Paneer is, for me, more rewarding than a long one. The scent on the stick is captivating and beautiful, and I wish that could be obtained and sustained on the burn. The scent is fairly light and beautiful initially becomes rather heavy and woody as the burn goes on.
Anyway, after smudging, I then place the stick in a traditional 20 degree angle wooden incense holder on the table behind me, which is in the centre of the room. This gives space and air to the scent, and allows the lighter notes to travel and thrive, while the heavier notes remain close to the holder. I tend to prefer the heavier notes, though I love the balance and delight offered by the lighter notes. One key thing is that most of the off notes generated by joss sticks, such as the scorching wood scent, is less apparent the further away from the burning stick I am. If I turn around I am closer to the burning stick, so I can get a mix of scents.
I like this stick when first lit. It has a gentle mix of light floral rose and soft, low level sandalwood. There are light metallic notes, such that I note when it rains after a long period of heat, which bridges the sandalwood and the rose. It doesn't overwhelm me. Like much of the dry Shroff I find it a little dry and austere, a little formal, and underwhelming. I relish passion and richness in my incense, as well as unique scents. This, while not being unique, is a little more interesting than the usual Shroff with the playful delicacy of the rose, though the sandalwood tends to dominate on the burn, building up over time. A short burn with this Paneer is, for me, more rewarding than a long one. The scent on the stick is captivating and beautiful, and I wish that could be obtained and sustained on the burn. The scent is fairly light and beautiful initially becomes rather heavy and woody as the burn goes on.
After reading Irene's review on Rauchfahne I was struck by her comment that this stick reminded her of the scent of ironing. I wonder if that is similar to my scent of rain on a hot day.
Date: June 2024 Score: 28
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| Shroff Incense |
> After reading Irene's review on Rauchfahne I was struck by her comment that this stick reminded her of the scent of ironing. I wonder if that is similar to my rain on a hot day.
ReplyDeleteThis is super interesting! I had never made that connection, but there might be actually a similarity.
I wondered if it was to do with water heating up quickly and releasing negative ions and certain impurities. Negative ions don't have a scent, but act on the body, releasing serotonin which makes us feel happy and alert and loosens and opens our body up. The impurities in the water impacted by that sudden heat might have a metallic tinge to them.
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