This is a fun item. I got it earlier this year from OnlineLondonStore as part of their Nandita Mix and Match deal. I have been impressed with the Nandita incense I have reviewed, so wished to explore further. I had chosen the Vampire Blood from the list, but hadn't expected it to be a private label incense. The company who commissioned it are Glow Industries Inc of Ohio, USA - a distributor of smoking accessories. The address on the box is California, but it appears they sold those premises in 2014, so this appears to be old stock. The branding is Devil's Garden - and there is at least one other incense sold under that brand name: Zombie Repellent. Vampire Blood is available from various outlets, including Incense Man in the UK for £1.69, and Witches Sage in the US for $2.45.
The fun aspect of the sticks is the marketing text on the box: "Vampire Blood is harvested through an advanced process in which vampires are slowly bled. The unearthly qualities of the blood are isolated, and extracted into this premium incense... which is certified undead! Some vampires were harmed during this process... but none met true death."
It's a standard perfumed masala incense, with the same profile as other Nandita sticks. 6 inches of soft crumbly charcoal paste neatly applied to a 8 inch bamboo splint, and then coated in a perfumed brown melnoorva/masala powder. The scent is sweet, floral, fruity, red berries, moderately sharp/fresh volatility, creamy sandalwood. Very attractive - though perhaps a little too sweet and fruity for my taste. The scent on the burn is more modest and less interesting than the scent on the stick. This could be due to age. Nandita quality is generally better than this.
Though sold as a Nandita fragrance, and conforming to the same measurement and appearance of other Nandita sticks, there isn't a certainty that this is a Nandita incense. The quality, for me, isn't quite there, but these sticks are possibly ten years old or more, so perhaps they are stale. I have seen one shop describe this as being Dragon's Blood. That was my first thought. Some folks report Dragon's Blood as smelling of cherries, and there is a sort of cherry flavoured cough sweets quality about this. But it doesn't smell anything like Nandita's Dragon's Blood. So, perhaps this is not made by Nandita.....
It's a standard perfumed masala incense, with the same profile as other Nandita sticks. 6 inches of soft crumbly charcoal paste neatly applied to a 8 inch bamboo splint, and then coated in a perfumed brown melnoorva/masala powder. The scent is sweet, floral, fruity, red berries, moderately sharp/fresh volatility, creamy sandalwood. Very attractive - though perhaps a little too sweet and fruity for my taste. The scent on the burn is more modest and less interesting than the scent on the stick. This could be due to age. Nandita quality is generally better than this.
Though sold as a Nandita fragrance, and conforming to the same measurement and appearance of other Nandita sticks, there isn't a certainty that this is a Nandita incense. The quality, for me, isn't quite there, but these sticks are possibly ten years old or more, so perhaps they are stale. I have seen one shop describe this as being Dragon's Blood. That was my first thought. Some folks report Dragon's Blood as smelling of cherries, and there is a sort of cherry flavoured cough sweets quality about this. But it doesn't smell anything like Nandita's Dragon's Blood. So, perhaps this is not made by Nandita.....
Date: Nov 2024 Score: 28
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