I've not yet explored much Japanese incense; but what I have experienced hasn't encouraged me to explore further. I find Japanese incense to be quite dry and sombre, and with such a mild scent that it is easily overlooked, yet the price is generally quite high. I recently noticed on eBay, some sellers offering samples of Japanese incense, so I got in touch with one of them, and ordered a bunch, which kept the shipping cost low.
This sample pack was very well packaged by slipping the sticks inside corrugated cardboard. There are five sticks which cost me £1.79, though this has now (as of Feb 2025) increased to £2.58. Shoyeido are rare among Japanese incense companies in that they do sample packs, though not in the UK - they have to be imported from the US, and even then they only have one stick per fragrance, while this eBay seller provides five sticks.
This Kyozakura (Kyo is short for Kyoto, the ancient capital of Japan, while zakura is cherry blossom - and Kyoto is famous for its cherry blossom in the spring) is part of a range that Shoyeido call Daily Incense. The Japanese do not consume incense everyday the way that Indians do. It is generally reserved for special occasions, and only used by a small proportion of the population. This makes it difficult for Japanese incense companies to lower costs through scaling up; and so inhibits an expansion of their market. Creating a range for everyday use is good marketing.
There is a pleasant cherry note in this incense. Along with a scorched plum or raisin. Some faint sandalwood which toys with hinting at burnt paper, but doesn't quite get there. I'm impressed at the strength of the fragrance from such little sticks. Mildly sweet. There's a curious curry, fenugreek or cumin note hovering over it all - both on the stick and in the burn. And I've done a "curry" search in my blog, and found that a curry note is, for me, a fairly common experience with Shoyeido incense.
The cherry note was fairly short lived, and after that first impact my mind was more focused on other elements - some natural licorice, some bay leaves, and that fenugreek. If I stopped focusing, and let my mind go neutral and wander away, I could pick up sweet cherry, but only at a glance, whereas initially it was more insistent. After the burn is over, there is a mild sense of cherry in the air, but somewhat elusive - the main note in the air is a sort of vague woody pungency. I liked that moment of cherry at the start, and in general I liked the incense as it burned, but it didn't lift me much, and is not an incense I would reach for. But it's a fun incense to review.
Date: Feb 2025 Score: 28
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| Kyazakura |
This Kyozakura (Kyo is short for Kyoto, the ancient capital of Japan, while zakura is cherry blossom - and Kyoto is famous for its cherry blossom in the spring) is part of a range that Shoyeido call Daily Incense. The Japanese do not consume incense everyday the way that Indians do. It is generally reserved for special occasions, and only used by a small proportion of the population. This makes it difficult for Japanese incense companies to lower costs through scaling up; and so inhibits an expansion of their market. Creating a range for everyday use is good marketing.
There is a pleasant cherry note in this incense. Along with a scorched plum or raisin. Some faint sandalwood which toys with hinting at burnt paper, but doesn't quite get there. I'm impressed at the strength of the fragrance from such little sticks. Mildly sweet. There's a curious curry, fenugreek or cumin note hovering over it all - both on the stick and in the burn. And I've done a "curry" search in my blog, and found that a curry note is, for me, a fairly common experience with Shoyeido incense.
The cherry note was fairly short lived, and after that first impact my mind was more focused on other elements - some natural licorice, some bay leaves, and that fenugreek. If I stopped focusing, and let my mind go neutral and wander away, I could pick up sweet cherry, but only at a glance, whereas initially it was more insistent. After the burn is over, there is a mild sense of cherry in the air, but somewhat elusive - the main note in the air is a sort of vague woody pungency. I liked that moment of cherry at the start, and in general I liked the incense as it burned, but it didn't lift me much, and is not an incense I would reach for. But it's a fun incense to review.
Date: Feb 2025 Score: 28
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This is one of my favorite Shoyeido dailies. My understanding is that most Japanese incense-makers have a range for daily use; incense in this category is called mainichikoh. I believe that the key ingredient in this stick may be Turkey Rhubarb, Rheum Officinale, which, to my knowledge, is an ingredient traditionally used in Chinese incense making. The root has a mustard-like sourness before it is burned. I haven't tried a burn test with the powder yet, so I can't speak on how it is in the burn.
ReplyDeleteMore on categories: https://kikohincense.com/blogs/news/japanese-incense-101-economical-vs-premium
DeleteOh my gosh, that Turkey Rhubarb is part of the knotweed family!
DeleteKnotweed is a huge problem in my home town of Swansea. By gosh, it's a terror - it can't be destroyed by normal means (fire, weedkiller, or conventional digging out), and it has the means to destroy roads and buildings.
When I was a kid, there was a huge patch growing in the churchyard near our house, and my sister and I used to cut it into strips and sell it door to door as rhubarb!
Here's a bit of info about it: Japanese Knotweed
DeleteI think it would make economical sense to have a "daily" or "economical" or "popular" incense in order to encourage more customers. And, natch, such incense would be a company's best seller! And it would also make more sense for the everyday incenses to be bolder and more modern. I'm not a huge fan of mono-scented incense (and, other than for convenience, also wonder what really is the point - why not burn the pure incense rather than pay more to burn it in a stick form where it has been blended with wood paste and binders and other gunk?), so the everyday stuff which tends to use blends, I suspect is going to be more to my liking.
DeleteAnyway. I'm looking forward to exploring more of the Japanese incenses I have.