Just in time for the hotter months, Japanese incense is having a resurgence
With their softer scents and delicate balance of aromats, Japanese incense is the perfect summer alternative to perfumed candles. Here are some of our favourites.
Scented candles are all well and good, but in the summertime, incense really is the only way to go. After all, there’s something ritualistic and feel-good about lighting up a scented stick; there’s a satisfying sense of calmness and renewal that comes from watching a plume of floral smoke drift into the air.
Incense, in a word, is hot. Specifically Japanese incense, which has a much cleaner and lighter scent for summer than, say, Tibetan or Indian sticks, which veer more towards patchouli and muskier florals.
Take Le Labo, which has just launched its sultry and seductive Santal 26 scent into perfumed Japanese sticks, or Astier de Villatte, whose rarefied boxes of incense are made on the Japanese island of Awaji, and famed for a delicate scent of driftwood, resins, jasmine and immortelle. There are more options by Spanish powerhouse Loewe – scented with notes of ivy and delivered with a special terracotta vessel for burning – and by Perfumer H, who is inspired by niche smells such as ink, moss or ash. With its purple-hued Witchy Incense, Vyrao promises to impart courage and creativity, through a blend of orris, rose, frankincense, musk and nutmeg.
Incense in Ember and Verdant scents, £40 per box, by Vyrao
One of the most exciting launches of recent years, and another champion of the treasures from Awaji, is À La, a paean to Japanese crafts and culture that hones in on a zen purity that its founders, glamorous New York couple Karl Cyprien and Meg Cuna Cyprien, discovered having travelled around the country for 15 years before launching their brand.
The effect of À La is cerebral and subtle, with chic, stripped-back brown cardboard packaging tied up with string. As co-founder Kevin tells The Blend, ‘Restraint matters as much as the material. Ours is low-smoke by design, so it can sit in a home or travel with someone without taking over a room.’ He adds, ‘The intention was never a dramatic plume. It was a scent that stays close and lingers quietly.’
As for the scents, the Cypriens have created a range that is both evocative and earthy, particularly Aqualiria, which is described as like ‘hay drying in the sun’, thanks to agarwood as the main note. Kevin explains, ‘We always return to it. It has a warmth that feels almost alive, resinous and slightly animalic, closer to leather than to anything sweet.’ Yes, it seems À La is a total smoke show.
