HEM have acquired a somewhat negative reputation among some Westerners. But as far as perfumed incense goes, HEM are OK. Not great, but not bad either. There are some scents which I like less than others, and there are few HEM perfumed incenses that really rock my world (though I do still enjoy HEM Frankincense-Myrrh after repeat visits), but on the whole they make decent everyday perfumed incense at a fair price (and some pretty decent masala incense). We tend to buy job lots of HEM cones off Amazon or eBay, and use them as low cost room fresheners in the toilet. We don't use them for aromatherapy or meditation or anything sophisticated. Like we don't use toilet paper for writing love letters. There are many incense companies who make worse than HEM. Practically all Chinese and Vietnamese and most Thailand incense is worse. The German companies, Knox and Crottendorfer make less attractive and more expensive cones. HEM do what they do - low cost, everyday room freshener incense - and do it OK.
This is a fair example of what they do. One of a number of incense copies of the 1977 perfume by Yves Saint Laurent. It is warm, spicy, floral, with notes of violets, carnations, black pepper, Earl Grey or Lady Grey tea, vanilla, and musk. It works. Job done. It's not original or exquisite or anything like that, but it pleasantly fragrances a room, and covers up poor odours. I don't know what proportion of DPG or DEP HEM use, but it feels less than average. Certainly less than that which is used in a number of Flora incenses, or used in the crude Pushkar incenses that have surprisingly gained some attention in the West. I am not a HEM fan by any means, but I do think the contempt that some people hold for them is seriously misplaced. Save some of that for a monolith like Zed Black.
The music for this scent is Link Wray's "Rumble" played by Jimmy Page.
This is a fair example of what they do. One of a number of incense copies of the 1977 perfume by Yves Saint Laurent. It is warm, spicy, floral, with notes of violets, carnations, black pepper, Earl Grey or Lady Grey tea, vanilla, and musk. It works. Job done. It's not original or exquisite or anything like that, but it pleasantly fragrances a room, and covers up poor odours. I don't know what proportion of DPG or DEP HEM use, but it feels less than average. Certainly less than that which is used in a number of Flora incenses, or used in the crude Pushkar incenses that have surprisingly gained some attention in the West. I am not a HEM fan by any means, but I do think the contempt that some people hold for them is seriously misplaced. Save some of that for a monolith like Zed Black.
The music for this scent is Link Wray's "Rumble" played by Jimmy Page.
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