One of the perks of selling incense is the free samples from manufacturers and distributors that arrive in my mailbox from time to time. On Friday I received a sample of Gonesh Sandalwood from Genieco’s “Extra Rich” collection. I love the scent of Sandalwood but had never tried Gonesh’s version so I thought it would be a good idea to record my first impressions here.
I have to admit that the moment I opened the inner package, the first thought that came to my mind was “delicious”. It’s unmistakably sandalwood, and yet somehow more sultry and a little less spicy before ignition than other offerings. I was a bit annoyed by the fact that the wands come in two packs of ten secured with paper tape on the incense portion of the wand as well as the wand itself. Of course, I realize it has nothing to do with the scent itself and there’s probably a very good reason Genieco chooses to package them this way, but I like being able to pop a stick without having to worry about a thing. of belay devices.
When I review an incense stick, I always burn it upright in a small bowl of sand rather than a box-type or canister-style burner. I feel it is the best representation of the aroma, free of oils that were left on the burner previously or burning hotter due to the horizontal position. So, with the stick safely in the upright position, I proceeded to light it. I wonder, of course, if it would be very different from powering up a punk or pulp based stick, as I’ve had that problem in the past with other carbon based sticks. Fortunately, lighting the stick was no problem and within moments the warm fragrance of sandalwood began to permeate the air.
If my first thought was “delicious” upon initially opening the package, my first thoughts upon smelling the smoke were (strangely) Al Stewart’s “Year of The Cat” and a music store I frequented in the late 1970s that also He sold incense and accessories. Scent has a powerful effect on memory and while I can’t explain why those two things would be the first things I thought of, it did nothing to detract from the positively wonderful scent that now fills my test area.
The aroma is warm, sensual and with a slight spicy note right at the end that makes this the most pleasant sandalwood incense I have tried so far. It makes me think of warm places and soft blankets. Summer nights and (inexplicably) well-dressed society women. I can only speculate as to why it would remind me of the latter. I think I’m stereotyping because more expensive perfumes (the kind wealthy women are likely to wear) have less alcohol and other “sharp” scents associated with them, just like this incense has virtually no “sharp” scent associated with it.
I find the scent to be warm, comforting, and easy to daydream about. I am not sure I would choose this incense to meditate, since it removes my memory of smells a lot. Perhaps after having experienced it more than once it would be easier to keep those memories from distracting me while sitting in Zazen.
For now I have four sticks sitting unlit and upright in a bowl of sand on my desk. It makes an absolutely wonderful potpourri and could easily be inserted into a flower arrangement by people more creative than myself. Overall, I think it’s a wonderful incense and any debate I’ve ever heard about charcoal vs. pulp sticks is over. As hard as I tried, I couldn’t detect any unpleasant notes from the charcoal in this particular stick.
So I will be using this incense a lot more in the future and I hope this little review encourages you to give it a try. Especially if you are a fan of sandalwood. I think you will be very satisfied and delighted with it.