Incense in The Wind

Wednesday, 24 September 2025

Temu Yongchun County Small Auspicious Clouds Jiang Zhen Agarwood

"Genuine Agarwood Powder" says my Google translation. Not sure what difference there is between this Jiang Zhen Agarwood and the Yongchun County Hainan Agarwood. I doubt if either has quality agarwood powder - they are likely to have the wood which doesn't have much or any fragrant oil. So be it.

The five tubes of Small Auspicious Clouds

There is a mild but pleasant woody aroma on the burn. To be fair, it's actually quite nice. I started this collection of Tongchun County incense with the rather rough Goose Pear, and that unconsciously flicked my attitude toward the collection to the glass half empty setting, but as I've been proceeding through them I have found them to be a notch better than I had been led to expect by that first one. This is not great incense, but to be fair, it's not bad for the price. Not really my thing - I'm not an enthusiast for mild scents, nor for wood powder as the combustible, nor for rather simple, basic scents; but these are Ok little room brighteners for not much money.

Available on Temu for around £5 for a pack of five different fragrances.

Date: Sept 2025 Score: 25

***

Good & bad Chinese incense

Temu Yongchun County Small Auspicious Clouds Osmanthus

The only other Osmanthus incense I've had is a very similar Small Cloud from Temu. There is a marine and floral perfume on the tablet. Some citrus. It smells like a modern washing up liquid. One of those "Sea Salt and Sunflowers" sort of scents. I quite like it. It's kind of ticklish and joyful and uplifting. A breezy, happy sort of scent.

The marine element from the tablet is more pronounced during the burn, and is assertive enough to overcome the smouldering cardboard note that all the others in this Yongchun Country range have had.

The five tubes of Small Auspicious Clouds

A modest but pleasant incense. Available on Temu for around £5 for a pack of five different fragrances.

Date: Sept 2025 Score: 23

***

Good & bad Chinese incense

Temu Yongchun County Small Auspicious Clouds Ambergris

Ambergris is a traditional perfume ingredient. It is produced in the stomach of a whale, and is occasionally washed ashore. Trade in ambergris is banned in some countries, such as USA and India, but is allowed in others, such as China and the UK. It has a musk aroma, though is mainly used in perfume as a fixative.

The Google translation of the ingredients indicates that this doesn't contain any actual ambergris, but, rather, a number of natural ingredients intended to replicate the scent: "Agarwood, sandalwood, frankincense, cloves, nardostachys grandiflora (spikenard)".

The five tubes of Small Auspicious Clouds

The scent on the tablet is delicately perfumed. It's like a floral scented soap, with a hint of sandalwood base notes. It's a fairly volatile aroma for a Chinese incense. Reasonably acceptable, and kinda commercial, it's not really my thing. It doesn't say quality, and it's only interesting in the sense that this is intended to be a musky sort of incense, yet comes across as prettily floral, so there's a curiosity as regards if this is the intended scent, or have they put the wrong tablets in the tube. It also presents as a synthetic room freshener or clothes conditioner scent rather than anything natural.

The scent on the burn is a blend of the synthetic florals found on the tablet and smouldering cardboard. The florals do tend to dominate over the smouldering cardboard so the end result isn't offensive. There's a hint of butterkist, which adds a moderate interest. Ho hum.

Available on Temu for around £5 for a pack of five different fragrances.

Date: Sept 2025 Score: 24

***

Good & bad Chinese incense

Temu Yongchun County Small Auspicious Clouds Hainan Agarwood

This is one of five tubes of Chinese small cloud incense from Temu, made in Yongshun County. Google translation of this tube: "A small sample of Hainan agarwood powder with five ingredients." So there is some genuine agarwood in here, but a small amount, and possibly/probably from the non-fragrant part of the wood. One of the main ingredients is sandalwood as the combustible, and as there is no actual sandalwood aroma, that is likely to be from the non-fragrant part of the wood.

I don't fully subscribe to the notion that "you get what you pay for", because if you're reasonably knowledgeable and aware you can usually get the same thing for less if you look around or bargain. Anyone who pays the windscreen price of a car will simply be paying more for the same car they could have got for possibly a few thousand less if they'd bargained. Those who study incense know they can get the same incense for less if they avoid Western traders, and simply go direct to the source. Recent example - VNS Kesar Hina can be bought from VNS at 100 rupees (85p), from Padma Store for 6.85 Euros (£5.98), or from Everest Trader for $5.00 (£3.71). Same incense, same amount, very different prices. There are advantages buying from a local trader - it's more secure, you're building a relationship, and getting the benefit of someone curating the incense for you. Both those traders are highly respected and trusted, and occasionally come up with new sources that are quite fascinating. Many people (including myself as regards Padma - I've not yet bought from Everest because they are on a different continent to me) find it worth buying from them for several reasons. My point is that the very same incense can be bought for considerably less, and that paying six times more doesn't improve the incense itself, even though people may feel the extra payment is worthwhile for other reasons.

So, I don't fully subscribe to "you get what you pay for", however, there are times when paying a low amount will result in a poorer product than would otherwise be the case if you'd paid more. In the case of low prices I'm always willing to experiment because it's a small financial risk, and the rewards may be impressive. And the journey itself is often valuable in terms of what is learned. I am a little more cautious about spending £140 for 14g of incense as a blind experiment. Curious. Yes, for sure. But willing to part with that amount of money for an incense I may not like? No. Not yet anyway. Though more experiments like the Yongshun County Goose Pear increase the possibility my curiosity overcomes my prudence.

The five tubes of Small Auspicious Clouds

In the meantime, what did I think of this Hainan Agarwood? Well, despite all my quibbles above, I actually quite liked this. A perfume has been used with a pleasant albeit slight soapy floral nature, and this is strong enough to cover the aroma of smouldering wood. Not a profound or interesting incense by any means, but a modestly pleasant and lilting floral room freshener. There are some woody notes at the base, but these are not clear enough to describe as agarwood.

Available on Temu for around £5 for a pack of five different fragrances.

Date: Sept 2025 Score: 23

***

Good & bad Chinese incense

Temu Yongchun County Small Auspicious Clouds Goose Pear

Cheap as chips, but not good value. I have struggled with Asian incense, Chinese incense in particular, because of the use of wood powder as the combustible. Even though it is sandalwood that is used, for these cheap pieces it appears they use the white, unfragranced part of the wood, so when burned what is experienced is the off-smell of smouldering wood or cardboard. Added to that is the local tradition of modest fragrance. Each to their own on that, and I can see the attraction; however, combining a low fragrance with a cheap wood combustible means that inevitability the scent when burning is going to be as much (or more) smouldering wood as it is the intended fragrance.

I have had for some years a very low opinion of Chinese incense, and I don't think it was a good idea for me to buy cheap incense off Temu in attempt to explore further and change my mind. That said, some of the incense I have enjoyed, and I have seen the potential. I may one day splash out and buy some proper Chinese incense and see what happens. I am open to recommendations. But, clearly, very cheap unbranded incense from anywhere is unlikely to be representative of what a culture is capable of.

The five tubes of Small Auspicious Clouds

One of the things I have learned when burning Asian incense, Japanese and Chinese, is that the incense should be placed some distance away to reduce the possibility of the smell of the smouldering wood mingling with the scent of the fragrance. I don't know why this works, but it does. I have also learned to be patient to allow time for the fragrance to reach me. I tend to do this for all incenses now. Distance and good ventilation not only aids the fragrance appreciation, it also lowers the health risk from breathing in smoke particles.

This is now the third Goose Pear (or Goose Pear In The Tent) fragrance I have burned. I love the history of this fragrance which is seen as a royal incense, and is romantically linked to the love affair between poet and emperor Li Yu and his consort Zhou Ehuang of the Southern Tang state around 970 BC. Li Yu made the incense for his lover, and then they "met in a secluded garden and followed the fragrance under the moon". But try as I might, I can't get into these Temu renditions of the style. The fragrance is dry, simple, and closer to cardboard than anything else. When I first burned it (Temu Small Auspicious Clouds Goose Pear) I worked hard at getting at the scent, and for a while thought I had found it, and scored it high. But I suspect that was more in my mind than in reality, because in the review I mostly report the same sort of experience I get now and with the other Goose Pear (Xiang Lian Eli Zhang Zhong Xiang (Goose Pear) ). I am curious as to what score I will give that Temu Small Auspicious Clouds Goose Pear when I revisit it later this year, or early next. In the meantime I am giving this Yongchun County Goose Pear a low score, as I'm getting little pleasure from it. Which doesn't bode well for the other four Small Clouds in the set.

Available on Temu for around £5 for a pack of five different fragrances.

Date: Sept 2025 Score: 17

***

Good & bad Chinese incense

Sri Sakthi Aromatic / Ecstasy

Sri Sakthi Aromatic of Chennai in Tamil Nadu are a relatively new incense house, starting up in 2004. Their main product is a sambrani cup sold under the name Sai Shree. Since around 2016 they have been using the brand name Ecstasy. They have a small selection of cones and sticks.

Tamil Nadu is the region where Pondicherry incense is made, and where there is a tradition of using the tree resin that is left after the fragrant oils have been extracted. That is not the case here. These cones have been made out of some wood powders and then dipped in a scent that has been well diluted with something like DEP. I think I would like them a little more if they were using resin waste.

Reviews

Sri Sakthi Ecstasy Lavender (P)
Sep 2025 - Score: 20

Sri Sakthi Ecstasy Kewda (P)
Sep 2025 - Score: 19

Sri Sakthi Ecstasy Jasmine (P)
Sep 2025 - Score: 15

Reviews: 3

Top score: 20

Low score: 15

Average: 18

Conclusion: I've not enjoyed the Ecstasy cones. That doesn't necessarily mean that all other products from Sri Ecstasy will be the same low and uninteresting quality, but I'm not encouraged to explore any further.

***

The Best Incense Makers

Tuesday, 23 September 2025

Sri Sakthi Ecstasy Kewda

I've not come upon kewda (or pandanus) often as an incense fragrance - indeed, as any kind of perfume (though it is used in some). And when I have come across it I've not been hugely impressed. This cone has a tropical citrus quality leaning toward pineapple, though also with a sense of coconut and sawdust and cardboard. It is a synthetic, powdery yet volatile aroma.

Much of the scent on the cone is carried forward in the scent on the burn, though as with the other two cones from Sri Sakthi, and as with most incense that uses wood powder rather than charcoal, the scent from the fragrance is mixed with the scent of smouldering wood or paper even when the cone is placed at an extreme distance away from me.

I've not enjoyed these Ecstasy cones. That doesn't necessarily mean that all other products from Sri Ecstasy will be the same low and uninteresting quality, but I'm not encouraged to explore any further.

Date: Sept 2025 Score: 19

***

Sri Sakthi / Ecstasy

Ketaki / Kewda / Screwpine

Sri Sakthi Ecstasy Lavender

I like this more than the company's Jasmine, but that's because I like lavender more than I like jasmine. But even though I like the smell of lavender more than I like the smell of jasmine, I like it fresh. I love the smell of fresh lavender - we grow it in the front and back garden. I'm less keen on it as a perfume or an incense. And though this has interesting herbal qualities, when burned it has the same issues as the other Sri Sakthi cone in that it is made from wood powder, which really doesn't work for me, as I don't like the intrusion of the smell of smouldering wood powder. Ho hum.

Date: Sept 2025 Score: 20

***

Sri Sakthi / Ecstasy

Best of Lavender

Sri Sakthi Ecstasy Jasmine

I have three boxes of crude incense codes sold under the brand name Ecstasy by Sri Sakthi Aromatic of Chennai in Tamil Nadu. Sri Sakthi are a relatively new incense house, starting up in 2004. Tamil Nadu is the region where Pondicherry incense is made, and where there is a tradition of using the tree resin that is left after the fragrant oils have been extracted. That is not the case here. These cones have been made out of some wood powders and then dipped in a scent that has been well diluted with something like DEP. I think I would like them a little more if they were using resin waste.

There is a sharp tang on the cones of synthetic scent, which could be as much cat's pee and shoe conditioner as jasmine, though there's also a curious hint of sweet caramel. The scent on the burn is, all in all, not that bad. It's jasmine, so it's not going to excite me, but at least it sort of vaguely points in the right direction. There is, of course, for me, off notes from the smouldering wood, but no more than is typical for cheap Chinese incense.

This is very much stuff that we'll be using in the outhouse rather than the main house.

Date: Sept 2025 Score: 15

***

Sri Sakthi / Ecstasy

Best jasmine incense

Monday, 22 September 2025

Baykeri's Shivranjani

This was a gift from Julian who is starting up as a UK based trader. He popped round to discuss incense, and left this which he has fond memories of from the days when he was out in India as a younger man.

It is a mild and pleasant incense with a delicate floral perfume suggestive of lotus or hand cream, quite feminine, with touches of sherbet and candy sugar. It was developed in 1970 by Sidharth Baykeri in Mumbai as a spiritual incense with a focus on Shiva. The name, Shivranjani, means "entertains or pleases Shiva", and is used both as a personal name and as an Indian musical scale. It was launched during the annual Maha Shivarati festival with a blessing by Sathya Sai Baba. As such this incense holds auspicious associations for followers of Sathya Sai Baba and Hindus in general. Baykeri's incense house makes a range of other incenses; however, Shivranjani remains their flagship product.

Sathya Sai Baba blessing the incense in 1973

It is a pleasant and likeable incense with an auspicious history. Perhaps a little mild, feminine, and familiar for my taste, though there are scratchy woody notes to provide some balance and interest. It's an OK incense that I can see having a wide appeal.

Available in India from Shrivanjani at 300 Rupees for 6 20g packs, in the US from eBay at $15.54 for 2 15g packs or £1.75 for a 10g pack at The Ayurvedic Institute, and in the UK from eBay at £7.54 for 3 20g packs.

Date: Sept 2025 Score: 33

***

Incense reviews ranked

Sunday, 21 September 2025

Vinasons (VNS) Kesar Hina (Saffron Henna)

In my observations I notice that saffron (Kesar) and henna (Hina) are only occasionally used in Indian incense, usually by the older, more traditional incense houses, such as Vinasons (founded in Pune in 1883). The scents are very pleasant - both of them floral and spicy and fairly complex; I'd like to see more use of such scents. I'd rather more saffron and henna than yet another rose or jasmine or sandalwood. There's only so much of those scents one can take. It's nice to come upon something not just a little different, but also interesting and attractive.

This is the first time I've experienced them blended together, and I'm curious as to what the result will be.

My packet is one of the ink blob samples that Shreyas of VNS sent to me - it is just readable as Kesar Hina. The incense normally comes in a standard masala pack, shown above - fairly plain, with soft neutral colouring that hints at henna and saffron. The sticks are a hand rolled dry masala which have a fairly powerful floral accented cologne perfume on the surface along with a volatile note of petrol and tobacco. Though perfumey, it is quite a beguiling scent; the sweet floral notes are balanced with notes of tree bark, autumnal leaves, and damp earth. Bloody good actually.

The scent from the stick - placed at the far end of the room, and with front and back doors open to provide plenty of ventilation, is quite exquisite. Floral, spicy, musky, sweet, earthy. Delicious. There's an engaging warmth about this that is almost an embrace. Woods and florals are such a successful blend, and seem to be at the heart of much great Indian incense (and, indeed, many perfumes in general). Nag Champa, of course, being a classic blend of wood and floral.

Though heady, the incense is quite soft and delicate. The wood base is certainly woody and a little scratchy, but the florals are light, delicate, citric, with a fragile and nuanced sense of resin, the lemony critics hinting at frankincense. I do like this one a lot. It's right up there amongst my favourite incenses, and while the delicate florals / earthy woods combination is based on a familiar incense theme, it is scintillatingly fresh and new and different enough to keep me fully engaged and interested.

Kesar Hina is available from VNS at 100 rupees (85p) for 20g, from Padma Store for 6.85 Euros, and from Everest Trader for $5.00. (If you live outside India, to buy from VNS you need to contact Shreyas Sugandhi at vns@vnsons.com). This is what the incense would be if it were music.

Date: Sept 2025 Score: 47

***

Vithaldas Narayandas & Sons
Vinasons

Henna

Saffron

Reviewed in USA

Henna

Henna is a red dye made from the leaves of the Henna Tree (Lawsonia inermis). It is used to colour the hair, and to create intricate and beautiful temporary tattoos - usually on the hands. Henna powder which is used for the dye doesn't have a great scent - it is slightly bitter, and is often blended with essential oils to make it more pleasant while being used. The flower of the Henna Tree does have an attractive scent, considered to be sweet, delicate, and floral, with suggestions of tea. Oils made from the flowers are occasionally used in perfumes and incense.

Reviews