Banjara Ritual Resin On Stick Cinnamon

 

Incense made in Bangalore, India by R M Enterprises who trade under the name Banjara.  The incense is in the increasingly popular and trending resin-on-a-stick (ROAS) style started by Fred Soll in New Mexico, and now being made in California and across South America, often promoted using Native North and South American cultures - as is the case here. I like when different incense cultures inspire each other. The American incenses are using the indigenous scents of their ancestors - sage and copal, etc, but doing so in the India style of the stick with a core. These India incenses are taking the American ROAS idea, and building on it with the skills and experience of generations of incense stick makers. My qualm is in the use of Native American cultural iconography to sell the incense, and copying some of the packaging ideas used in America. Be proud of your own culture, or be neutral. 

These Cinnamon sticks look somewhat less like most of the ROAS I have got from California and South America. It looks more like a fat masala or flora stick, albeit with a chunkier, more solid wood core than the usual bamboo. The paste can be crumbled into a fine dust in the hand, and appears to be composed of charcoal and wood powder. There is a mild resinous scent on the stick with some sweet overtones, and a dry spicy core of cinnamon and menthol. There may be some benzoin in here as well. 

The scent on the burn is mildly resinous, gently spicy, hints of menthol, somewhat dry, and  somehow empty. It's like an underpowered and indifferent resin on an underheated burner. There are sweet notes, and it is not unattractive - it just isn't doing much for me. 

Date: April 2025    Score:  27

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Banjara Incense

Best cinnamon incense