Nobody was distilling it

Posted by Robin on 17 August 2019 5 Comments

[Trygve] Harris first came to Oman in 2006 to source frankincense for her aromatic essential oil store in New York. “But even in Oman, I could only get Somalia oil, not higher-quality Omani oil. Nobody was distilling it for sale back then. Not even Amouage!” she recalled, speaking of Oman’s top perfume company, which specialises in producing luxury frankincense fragrances (a 100ml bottle of Amouage perfume with frankincense base notes costs £283).

In 2011, she relocated to Salalah, Dhofar’s capital, and set up Enfleurage.

— From Oman's Ancient Biblical Scent, a profile of Omani frankincense at BBC Travel. (And see also, part 1 and 2 of our profile of Harris.)

The daily lemming

Posted by Robin on 3 August 2019 7 Comments

Black Fig Satori Incense from Skeem: "Black Fig is a sweet honey fruit scent mixed with musky amber. Our Satori incense bottle features 100 sticks of high-quality, Japanese, bambooless incense and has an engraved wood lid with an inset grommet designed to hold your incense stick while burning. Burn to help clear the mind and infuse any room with a soft fragrance." $34.

The daily lemming

Posted by Robin on 15 July 2019 4 Comments

The newest Astier de Villatte incense flavor: Porte des Lilas. "A dream of times past: next stop, Porte des Lilas. At the exit of the Paris Métro 20s metro station, the stairs bring travellers to alleys neatly bordered by pretty little houses, with mauve lilacs overflowing their garden fences, mixed here and there with puffs of rose and jasmine. A hearty serving of 125 sticks in a comely blue box that is the finishing touch in many a chic room. Created in collaboration with Françoise Caron and made in Awaji, Japan - home of the best incense in the world thanks to its favorable climate, made in a thousand year old tradition handed down from father to son." $50 at Catbird (and they don't have them, but the scent does also come in a candle and perfumed eraser).

Prayers toward the heavens

Posted by Robin on 3 July 2019 2 Comments

Frankincense, one of three fabled gifts the wise men brought to honor Jesus, has been used for millennia as an incense in cooking and religious ceremonies. In Catholic churches today, the tendrils of smoke rising from burning frankincense are thought to carry prayers toward the heavens. Now, the earthy smell that evokes memories of spiritual communion for so many is under threat: Human activity is predicted to cause a 50% decline in frankincense harvests over the next 20 years, according to new research.

— Read more at World’s supply of frankincense could go up in smoke at Science.