Car freshener gingerbread - hugely synthetic, warm, slightly sweet, warm worn leather, honey, hints of curry (which seems to be a common element to these Knox cones), and faint sweet ginger. Yeah, it's a modest, simple, synthetic, but pleasant scent. I'd like it to have more kick and character, but the fragrance is pleasant.
The scent on the burn is modest, and soon over (gone in less than 8 minutes), but echoes darkly the fragrance on the cone. Wood, burnt toast and coffee, smouldering paper, faint ginger and burnt herbs. It's modest, but as it delves into the darker, more interesting fragrance areas, it holds an appeal for me. Scents are personal, what I like you may not like, so my blog posts are not recommendations, they are records of my interactions with incense around the world. This is a crap incense. But I like it, because I like the dark places. I might burn a better quality rose or jasmine incense, and it passes me by. But this black hand filth holds a dark appeal for me.
The scent on the burn is modest, and soon over (gone in less than 8 minutes), but echoes darkly the fragrance on the cone. Wood, burnt toast and coffee, smouldering paper, faint ginger and burnt herbs. It's modest, but as it delves into the darker, more interesting fragrance areas, it holds an appeal for me. Scents are personal, what I like you may not like, so my blog posts are not recommendations, they are records of my interactions with incense around the world. This is a crap incense. But I like it, because I like the dark places. I might burn a better quality rose or jasmine incense, and it passes me by. But this black hand filth holds a dark appeal for me.
Very interesting review; I recently ordered the Rammstein incense (https://www.rammsteinshop.us/en/catalog/incense-candles-rammstein.html) to review out of sheer curiosity; I believe that they are manufactured by KNOX, so I have been looking for reviews on the brand to know what I'm in for. Lately I have been wanting to explore some of the cheaper stuff I enjoyed years ago (I remember some strawberry cones I quite liked, for instance) so it's good to have a reminder that there is something nice to be found in some of these cheaper incenses even after you become accustomed to higher quality stuff.
ReplyDeleteHaving looked at your link, it does say they are made by Knox. What you're likely to get is a very small, light, wood powder based cone made in a mould, and then dunked in a light fragrance solution. The cone will be finished in less than 8 minutes, and during that time will give off a modest scent which will be intruded by the smell of the smouldering wood powder. It will be genuinely low quality stuff, and not value for money. But you may like the scent.
DeleteI've just looked at your blog. Some interesting thoughts there!
DeleteThanks! I had a feeling the cones weren't going to be stunning judging by the product picture alone, but my curiosity got the better of me. I also suspected Knox' stuff probably wasn't up to much when I searched on Irene's blog and failed to find a sigle mention! Keen to give them a go though.
DeleteIrene does review bad stuff, but from what she says, I gather that she won't spend her money on what she knows is bad stuff just to review it, and I respect that approach. Knox is not often available here in the UK, and it is well known, so I was keen to explore further, even though I had my doubts from my previous brief experience. Having now given them a good go, I won't be spending my money on any more Knox, that's for sure!
DeleteLet us know how you get on. Drop a link to your blog after you've reviewed them.
DeleteI finally got around to it: https://nathanupchurch.com/blog/rammstein-incense-cones/
DeleteThat's a well written and engaging review. Nice one. Here's a clickable link:
DeleteRammstein Incense Cones: A Review By Nathan Upchurch
It seems you got fresher cones than me, and/or Rammstein specified stronger oils than average. There are a number of incenses which have a big hit of scent when the packet is opened, but which is not really there when burned. When reading about the making of fragranced candles I came upon the terms "cool throw" and "warm throw". I found that helpful. It seems that it is quite common for candle makers to design the candle so it has an immediate appeal unlit on the shelf, which attracts people to buy. And then a more interesting and satisfying scent when lit to encourage people to repeat order. Some incense makers have told me they do the same thing. And some sticks, such as Wild Berry, are designed to have a huge shelf appeal, and for the sticks to actually be left exposed in jars on the shelf to attract customers.
DeleteIn addition to this I have noted that incense made with oils/perfumes (natural or synthetic) will release top notes quite easily when cold and unlit, but these top notes are consumed quickly when heated, while base notes come to the fore when heated, because they are heavier and slower. So the cool scent is often not the same as the burn scent. And it seems that is what you experienced.
The burning paper scent I tend to associate with incense that uses wood powder. Charcoal doesn't have a scent. I double checked by getting out a Knox cone and trying to open it and crush it to see if there was charcoal, and the quality of it, but no - it is solid like those boards made out of glue and wood powder. And I checked back with what Knox say, and it is wood powder they use. I mention it and have links in my Knox overview:
Knox incense
Charcoal tends to get disparaged on some incense forums and blogs, and I'm not clear as to why this is. I suspect it is because people have bought and burned some bargain basement perfumed-charcoal sticks, and have blamed the charcoal rather than the quality of the perfume. When folks burn resin, it's charcoal they use as the flammable rather than wood powder. This is because charcoal has no scent. Well, there are cheaper charcoals which may be be contaminated by filth and ash and unburned woods. The best charcoals have no contamination. A good test of the quality of charcoal is to rub a small amount on the back of your hand. If it rubs smooth it is the good stuff. It it rubs gritty, then it is not pure.
DeleteI think the Knox sticks would smell better on the burn is they used charcoal rather than wood.
I am interested in their claim that the shelf life of a Knox cone is indefinite. I wonder if that's because they use wood powder rather than charcoal. Perhaps the advantage of wood powder is that it seals in the perfume. We know that charcoal is porous, so air can move through it. But those Knox cones are hard like solid wood. There is no space for the movement of air.
Hmmm. When I first read their claim, I kinda expanded it to all incense, and I wondered why some perfumed incenses I reviewed had appeared to diminish over time. But it must only apply to wood powder incense. At least, wood powder incense which is tightly compressed like the Knox cones are.
I've put a link to your blog on My Blog List, which appears at the bottom of every page.
DeleteRammstein icense. Oh gosh. Incense really is the new coffee. 🤦
ReplyDeleteI totally wold spend money on crap out of curiosity and to challenge my beliefs if I had a budget for that. (And a smaller backlog lol)
I think, as a German incense blog, I have to check out KNOX one day.
I have some Crottendorfer which I shall review next month.
DeleteCheers; glad you enjoyed it! The color, scent, ember behavior, and amount and color of the smoke makes me strongly suspect that the cones I received have a significant amount of charcoal, but I'm certainly not against its use. I have always detected a charcoal-note from incense containing it (except in very small quantities), including Japanese low-smoke and deodorizing type sticks. I also know that some high end sticks containing very high quality agarwood are simply not possible without charcoal.
ReplyDeleteThe way the ash behaves in these cones indicates something else too; it holds together strongly and almost melts and bubbles when you apply the flame of a torch. At any rate, I was expecting something far worse than I received, so I'm fairly delighted haha.
Thanks for adding my blog link by the way; I have yours on my blog roll as well!
It's a constant mystery regarding what ingredients go into incense sticks and cones!
DeleteIt's good that you enjoyed them. My experience has been that the quality of the manufacture is less important than the type of scent. I can enjoy really poorly made incense that smells of patchouli, while I would struggle with the world's best made incense that smells of cat shit.