Okuno Seimeido Ginsen Kunsui

 

Okuno Seimeido was founded by Jinkoya Kyujiro in the Kyoho era, which started in 1716, so that's the date given for when the company started. The company is based in Sakai, in the Kansai region - the historic heart and cultural centre of Japan. Ginsen Kunsui, one of the original recipes by Jinkoya, was first reproduced in 1999 by Jinkoya Kujiro, the eighth generation head of Okuno Seimeido, and continues to be sold  They make several incenses with the name Kunsui, which means green fragrance. I'm puzzled by "Ginsen". I don't think it's ginseng, especially as the company call the incense "a ginsen" style. The word can be translated as "silver fountain". Unravelling incense is sometimes like playing with a wooden puzzle box.  

I have seen this incense listed as "Okuno Seimeido Ginsen Kunsui Aloeswood" and "Okuno Seimeido Ginsen Kunsui Agarwood". Though the company list it simply as "Okuno Seimeido Ginsen Kunsui", so that's how I'll present it. Aloeswood is a common American name for agarwood.

I like this incense. On the burn there's a delightful blend of fruit and soft, dark wood. It's a rich, dark fruit - like plum or fig. It's kind of neutral, but also kind of sweet - a balanced, deep, rich sweetness, like honey. It's a friendly and engaging scent. Inviting, approachable, almost irresistible; and very warm and engaging.  Over time the wood becomes the dominant fragrance - musty, mildly spicy, with notes of cedar, and a hint of pine. One stick I found to be plenty - it gave off plenty of scent with no off notes, and the approx 25 minute burn was enough. I was quite satisfied by that time, and wouldn't have wanted more. I was a little disappointed that it didn't develop much, and that the fruit notes gradually diminished. And I would have welcomed more joy, passion, light, and sweetness. Though there were sweet notes at the start, the abiding impression was of dryness. A sombre dryness. And there was a general lack of adventure or modernity about it. Even with the fruits at the start, it was mainly a fairly mono-scented, almost boring wood note. My excitement and enjoyment at the start was not what I felt at the finish. Good, clean, well made, but a little too dry, boring, and old-fashioned for my taste. Having said that, I liked it a lot, and enjoyed burning it. And I can see myself wanting to burn this at certain moments - not as a room freshener so much as something to create a focused mood. Perhaps when I want to study or concentrate. This is not an incense that is going to distract me or rouse me - this is an incense that will settle me into a serious frame of mind.  

The large box - approx 390 sticks

Available in large boxes on eBay (UK) for £63, postage free, or as a 5 stick trial pack for £2.79 plus postage. The sticks are just over five inches. The trial sticks are cleverly posted inside strips of corrugated cardboard, so they are nice and safe. I poke them out with an incense stick bamboo splint. Available in the US for $15 for 150 sticks, or $36 for the large box (approx 390 sticks). Available in Europe for 84 Euros.  

Date: March 2025  Score: 37/50

***

Japanese incense

Agarwood incense

Reviewed in USA - 2014