One of a large collection of samples that Eugene of Bhagwan Incense sent me a couple of years ago. Eugene splits his incense shop into two brands - Bhagwan Incense, and Monsoon Incense (previously called Good Incense). The incense sold via the Monsoon brand is a lower cost than the regular Bhagwan brand, though at least one incense has been moved from the budget brand to the main brand. I'll be getting down to finishing off my reviews of both the Monsoon/Good incense and the Bhagwan branded incense this year, though it may be a while before I get to it. In the meantime, I'm lighting up this random packet from the collection.
This is a perfumed-masala stick in the flora style. It consists of what appears to be a charcoal paste, machine-extruded onto a plain, machine-cut, bamboo splint which has a red tip. The paste would likely have a variety of ingredients other than just binders and combustibles - it may have some of the stick's fragrances and fixatives. However, the bulk of the scent appear to come from fragrances added after the stick was extruded. The cold throw scent on the stick is ripe with fragrance oils, rich with diamond sharp aldehydes, and heavy with damp old leather, possibly from benzoin and/or patchouli. There is a coating of brown powder which was traditionally called melnoorva - mainly used to prevent sticks from gluing together while drying, though these days is mainly known as "masala powder" - which is generally perfumed, and is often used to give the stick a masala appearance. Rose, vanilla, aldehyde, and damp leather are the prominent notes, and it is compelling and attractive fragrance.
The scent on the burn is softer than I expected after the weight of the oils on the stick. And is quite clean - moderately smoky, but that's because I have it a little close to me - around 2-3 foot away - because the fragrance has a gentle start, and I'm impatient to get going. The accord is similar to that on the stick, which is common with incense sticks where much of the fragrance has been applied externally, so is readily available. There is a great balance between the heavier, somewhat darker tones - vanilla, leather, soft, old tobacco, and musk; with the bright florals and dazzling aldehydes - it's like beauty and the beast dancing together, spinning away, throwing off young, girly, and scintillating rays of diamond sharp jasmines and rose, with the musky, authoritative tones of aged and mouldy leather. A great combination. I love this.
This is a perfumed-masala stick in the flora style. It consists of what appears to be a charcoal paste, machine-extruded onto a plain, machine-cut, bamboo splint which has a red tip. The paste would likely have a variety of ingredients other than just binders and combustibles - it may have some of the stick's fragrances and fixatives. However, the bulk of the scent appear to come from fragrances added after the stick was extruded. The cold throw scent on the stick is ripe with fragrance oils, rich with diamond sharp aldehydes, and heavy with damp old leather, possibly from benzoin and/or patchouli. There is a coating of brown powder which was traditionally called melnoorva - mainly used to prevent sticks from gluing together while drying, though these days is mainly known as "masala powder" - which is generally perfumed, and is often used to give the stick a masala appearance. Rose, vanilla, aldehyde, and damp leather are the prominent notes, and it is compelling and attractive fragrance.
The scent on the burn is softer than I expected after the weight of the oils on the stick. And is quite clean - moderately smoky, but that's because I have it a little close to me - around 2-3 foot away - because the fragrance has a gentle start, and I'm impatient to get going. The accord is similar to that on the stick, which is common with incense sticks where much of the fragrance has been applied externally, so is readily available. There is a great balance between the heavier, somewhat darker tones - vanilla, leather, soft, old tobacco, and musk; with the bright florals and dazzling aldehydes - it's like beauty and the beast dancing together, spinning away, throwing off young, girly, and scintillating rays of diamond sharp jasmines and rose, with the musky, authoritative tones of aged and mouldy leather. A great combination. I love this.
The description on the website says: "A unique mix of Rose, Vanilla Tonka beans and Patchouli on a generous halmaddi base. Full of delicate citrusy flowers and honey", and that pretty well matches what I've experienced - though I didn't pick up any halmaddi. Which is fine for me, as I'm not a fan of the substance. I prefer frankincense as a fixative. Yeah, nice one.
Available direct from Monsoon at 2.50 Euros for 15g, plus shipping.
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