Machine extruded and perfumed. Nandita describe this as "Premium Masala Incense", which pushes our understanding of what a masala incense actually is. We can park the "Premium" as a standard marketing term. It has no significance - even the cheapest, crudest incenses proclaim they are "premium".
So, what does masala actually mean today? The word comes from Urdu maṣālaḥ, based on Arabic maṣāliḥ: "ingredients, materials". In cooking it became associated with a mix or blend of spices, such as masala chai, a tea flavoured with spices. It's not clear to me how the word became associated with incense, and why some incenses are termed "masala" while others are termed "perfumed", given that most incenses in India use perfumes (liquid fragrances - either essential oils or fragrance oils) be they termed perfumed or masala.
I know that ancient incense recipes contained a blend of dried, powdered, fragrant ingredients, such as this Zhao Qing Xian Gong incense recipe from the Song Dynasty. And I know that dhoop style incenses have been made in India and Asia for hundreds of years before the development of agarbathi (joss sticks/incense sticks) in Mysore around 1900, and that perfume-dipped incense was a much later development. So my assumption (there is, sadly, little documented evidence) is that the first agarbathi used the same blends of dried, powdered, fragrant ingredients as had been used for thousands of years in blended and dhoop style incense. And that the local Indian term for the dried fragrant ingredients would likely be "masala". The masala would be blended with binders, fixatives, and powdered combustible material (charcoal or wood) into a paste, which would be rolled onto a bamboo splint. The still damp sticks would then be rolled in a wood powder to prevent the finished sticks from gluing together as they dried. This powder, termed melnoorva in some sources, could be perfumed or unperfumed.
In modern times the melnoorva powder is often perfumed, and the powder itself is now often termed "masala powder". It appears to me that these days a significant number of incense makers are differentiating masala and perfumed incense by whether the perfume is put into the paste before it is attached to the stick or added later to a "blank" or "punk" unperfumed stick. Yet I have seen some well known masala incense houses (such as HMS) pour perfume onto finished sticks. Perhaps this later perfume addition is similar to the modern use of the "masala powder": to give the customer an immediate hit of scent - what is known in candle making as the "cool throw" (to give instant appeal).
Matters become even more tricky when considering machine extruded masala sticks. There is no "masala powder" on this stick. This stick looks, presents, and smells no different to any perfumed or perfume-dipped stick. So what, exactly, makes this a "Premium Masala Incense"? My assumption is that the perfume was added to the paste before it was extruded by the machine. But when I smell the stick there is a fairly heady fragrance, which suggests that some perfume was added after the stick was made. Does that mean that this stick had perfume put in the paste, and perfume added to the finished stick? Perhaps different fragrance formulations? Whatever....
I like the scent on the stick. It's quite cool, sturdy, medicinal. There's a woody, spicy warmth - a hint of iodine, mineral, marine notes along with some faint sweet florals - lily and rose. It's not a wow scent, but it is grounded and satisfactory. And, yes, I would associate it with saffron.
So, what does masala actually mean today? The word comes from Urdu maṣālaḥ, based on Arabic maṣāliḥ: "ingredients, materials". In cooking it became associated with a mix or blend of spices, such as masala chai, a tea flavoured with spices. It's not clear to me how the word became associated with incense, and why some incenses are termed "masala" while others are termed "perfumed", given that most incenses in India use perfumes (liquid fragrances - either essential oils or fragrance oils) be they termed perfumed or masala.
I know that ancient incense recipes contained a blend of dried, powdered, fragrant ingredients, such as this Zhao Qing Xian Gong incense recipe from the Song Dynasty. And I know that dhoop style incenses have been made in India and Asia for hundreds of years before the development of agarbathi (joss sticks/incense sticks) in Mysore around 1900, and that perfume-dipped incense was a much later development. So my assumption (there is, sadly, little documented evidence) is that the first agarbathi used the same blends of dried, powdered, fragrant ingredients as had been used for thousands of years in blended and dhoop style incense. And that the local Indian term for the dried fragrant ingredients would likely be "masala". The masala would be blended with binders, fixatives, and powdered combustible material (charcoal or wood) into a paste, which would be rolled onto a bamboo splint. The still damp sticks would then be rolled in a wood powder to prevent the finished sticks from gluing together as they dried. This powder, termed melnoorva in some sources, could be perfumed or unperfumed.
In modern times the melnoorva powder is often perfumed, and the powder itself is now often termed "masala powder". It appears to me that these days a significant number of incense makers are differentiating masala and perfumed incense by whether the perfume is put into the paste before it is attached to the stick or added later to a "blank" or "punk" unperfumed stick. Yet I have seen some well known masala incense houses (such as HMS) pour perfume onto finished sticks. Perhaps this later perfume addition is similar to the modern use of the "masala powder": to give the customer an immediate hit of scent - what is known in candle making as the "cool throw" (to give instant appeal).
Matters become even more tricky when considering machine extruded masala sticks. There is no "masala powder" on this stick. This stick looks, presents, and smells no different to any perfumed or perfume-dipped stick. So what, exactly, makes this a "Premium Masala Incense"? My assumption is that the perfume was added to the paste before it was extruded by the machine. But when I smell the stick there is a fairly heady fragrance, which suggests that some perfume was added after the stick was made. Does that mean that this stick had perfume put in the paste, and perfume added to the finished stick? Perhaps different fragrance formulations? Whatever....
I like the scent on the stick. It's quite cool, sturdy, medicinal. There's a woody, spicy warmth - a hint of iodine, mineral, marine notes along with some faint sweet florals - lily and rose. It's not a wow scent, but it is grounded and satisfactory. And, yes, I would associate it with saffron.
The scent on the burn is even better. The saffron is here, and so is the sandalwood, and the two scents combine well together. Indeed, they produce a very unified accord that feels like a natural single scent, though more sandalwood than saffron. It's like, well, a saffrony sandalwood. Quite delicious. The scent is warm, gentle, engaging, and very welcome. There's no aggressive tones, and no disagreeable off-notes. There's just a sense of harmony, and calm, and under-stated beauty. The scent deliciously informs this and neighbouring rooms. It's not so heady that it penetrates the whole house, but it is certainly noticeable for a fair distance. And it leaves a sweet, pleasant, warm, woody note for some hours. I like this. It is perhaps a little mainstream, and a little, well, perfumed and commercial, but it is a damn fine room freshener. Well made, and excellent value for money.
Date: Jan 2025 Score: 39
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