All of the Oriental masala sticks I've reviewed have had an immediate perfume hit when taken out of the packet. The paste is always hard and dry, yet the scents have been wet and volatile, reminiscent of flora/fluxo incense, such as the original Sai Flora Fluxo. And like Sai Flora Fluxo there is something appealing about the heady intensity of the aroma on the stick, but there is a limit to that appeal. And that is certainly the case here. These sticks should come with an aroma warning: "Caution - This Aroma May Be Very Volatile. Inhale With Care." I am so hit with the volatility of this fragrance that I'm not able to get close to what the scents are.
The scent on the burn is medicinal, floral, slightly dirty, mineral, somewhat familiar and everyday, yet curiously interesting. There's some benzoin, jasmine, hint of sandalwood, and something clean and soapy. On the whole I'm just not getting this incense. We're not on the same wavelength, but I think I might get there eventually. My question is, do I want to spend more time with this incense trying to get there? And I think the answer is no.
The scent on the burn is medicinal, floral, slightly dirty, mineral, somewhat familiar and everyday, yet curiously interesting. There's some benzoin, jasmine, hint of sandalwood, and something clean and soapy. On the whole I'm just not getting this incense. We're not on the same wavelength, but I think I might get there eventually. My question is, do I want to spend more time with this incense trying to get there? And I think the answer is no.
One of their products, Naturals, might be worth checking out, Steve. Ideally, every product produced by such an established house should be remarkable. I know them — they craft their own perfumes and also produce their incense sticks in their own workshop. I guess, they should relook at their current compositions with a fresh perspective.
ReplyDeleteI am assuming these sticks are for the Indian market, where there will be more fresh air around, and where the air is heavier and moister, and the consumers are expecting a heady perfumed scent. Sometimes the Indian taste and the Western taste coincide, and - bang - you get a great and world popular incense, like Satya Nag Champa.
DeleteI'm not sure these sticks would be fully appreciated by the Western market. My appreciation of incense is more akin to the Indian taste than perhaps the norm in the West, and while I quite like them, I'm finding the naked volatility and lack of subtlety and complexity is keeping me from enjoying them on a big scale. And the more of them I burn the less I'm liking them as satiety is setting it. And then once a "glass half empty" attitude starts to set in, it becomes more difficult to relax into a fragrance and enjoy it. But there are two sticks in each sample, so I will return to them at some point and see how I feel then.