Incense of the Day

[Dan]

First sinking batch

Sinking Malinau, Sinking Brunei and Sinking Tarakan(Kinam version) have this issue ...

The resin content is very high in these.

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[Oudamberlove]

Homemade Indonesian stick

I used the last bit of it, and can’t wait to make another batch....improved version.

Something about the Nippon Kodo Indonesian Kizami that is addicting. Funny......because the first time I tried this wood, I wasn’t impressed, that reminds me of IO Walla Patta sticks, they didn’t impress me at the start, but now they’re solid good

 

[Oudamberlove]

Update:

Just finished making more Indonesian sticks.

A finer grind, seived, with a pinch of makko and tragacanth gum, but still incurred extrusion problems.

Made another batch with a pinch of makko and some guar gum.....bingo!!
Very smooth extrusion!!

So I did a side by side comparison....
took some tragacanth and some guar gum, added water, then put the goo in between my fingers so I can feel how slimy, and how sticky they get. They were both equally sticky, but the guar guam was very much more slimy/slippery.

Then I smelled the goo....
guar gum had a very mild neutral smell,
while the tragacanth gum smelled a little like smoked salmon😕
So I threw the tragacanth into the garbage.

Now I just have to find the ideal proportionn of guar gum.

 

[Andrew Salkin]

Update:

Just finished making more Indonesian sticks.

A finer grind, seived, with a pinch of makko and tragacanth gum, but still incurred extrusion problems.

Made another batch with a pinch of makko and some guar gum.....bingo!!
Very smooth extrusion!!

So I did a side by side comparison....
took some tragacanth and some guar gum, added water, then put the goo in between my fingers so I can feel how slimy, and how sticky they get. They were both equally sticky, but the guar guam was very much more slimy/slippery.

Then I smelled the goo....
guar gum had a very mild neutral smell,
while the tragacanth gum smelled a little like smoked salmon😕
So I threw the tragacanth into the garbage.

Now I just have to find the ideal proportionn of guar gum.

Can you share?! Whenever I extrude. The second I press on the plunger, all the water in the mixture just gets pressed out and I'm left with a super dried out cylinder of expensive ground up mush!

Proportions - even ballpark would be awesome!

What's what guar gum do?

Also - what is your strategy to keep them straight while drying?

 

[Oudamberlove]

Can you share?! Whenever I extrude. The second I press on the plunger, all the water in the mixture just gets pressed out and I'm left with a super dried out cylinder of expensive ground up mush!

Proportions - even ballpark would be awesome!

What's what guar gum do?

Also - what is your strategy to keep them straight while drying?

Exactly! Same here, only the liquid squishes out, leaving the mush stuck inside. At first I thought that I needed to grind the wood finer...which I did...but same thing again, then I let the dough sit for a while, thinking that the wood needed time to soak up the moisture, but that didn’t help. Tragacanth gum is not slippery enough, but guar gum is the best. Of course, you could just increase the makko instead of adding gum, but then it will be mostly a makko stick🙁
I think I used 5% guar gum this time, and that may have been too much, the sticks were plump and are now drying to a skinny. I haven’t experimented with methods to keep them straight while drying either.

I saw a YouTube video from Shoyeido, how they place the sticks beside each other on flat board, then as they dry, they move them closer some more.

 

[Oudamberlove]

Update:
I think I used too much guar gum.
I also think that I should weigh my ingredients next time, so when I find the right combination, I can replicate it more precisely


Update on update:
The sticks with too much guar gum became really hard, so I ground them up and added a lot more agarwood with a tiny bit of makko. Next time, very minimal guar gum.

 

[Oudamberlove]

Gyokushodo Kumo No Sho

I get the agarwood and operculum upfront,
then I’m treated to a birthday cake (vanilla cake with sweet creamy icing plus some fruity confetti on top)

 

[Oudamberlove]

Baieido Koh En
The spice and herbs encompass the agarwood,
but you feel the agarwood anyhow.

 

[Oudamberlove]

Homemade Borneo stick

It’s a real pleasure to enjoy a wood both ways,
heated on the subitism and burnt on a stick

 

[Taesik Yun]

TMC Holy land grade 2. I haven't burned it at least 3 months.
Oh boy, this stuff is so pungent! it's so unique and mysterious.
so musky, floral, and animalic. what a mind-boggling incense!

 

[Oudamberlove]

Kida Jinseido Ikuhokoh

Sometimes I wonder if it contains
Chen Pi (dried citrus peel)

Exotic aroma.

 

[Himanshu Sharma]

Samadhi from Dr. Incense this morning. I needed something like that today.
It puts you in a zone.
True Bliss

 

[Dan]

KZ Malinau Heartwood

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[Oudamberlove]

Yamadamatsu Shuju Kyara

It’s like a kyara roast.

I see Japan Incense has some available, but the price has skyrocketed 🙁

 

[Oudamberlove]

Latest homemade batch
Yamadamatsu sandalwood powder
combined with hyraceum.

Superb stick!

 

[Dan]

ASO - 5 Rivers (don't think there can be a better Hindi incense)

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[Himanshu Sharma]

'In the Agar woods' by Ken Cannata this morning.
I love the airy woody oud whiffs coming from this stick.

Does anybody know which type of Agarwood he uses in the blend ? I would love to smell that wood alone on a heater.

 

[Oudamberlove]

'In the Agar woods' by Ken Cannata this morning.
I love the airy woody oud whiffs coming from this stick.

Does anybody know which type of Agarwood he uses in the blend ? I would love to smell that wood alone on a heater.

In The Agarwoods contains Burmese, Ambon, and Philippine Mindanao. I do not have this stick, but I have tried his Ambon stick, but I cannot guess which wood is giving you the “airy woody oud whiffs”. I do find Burmese oud oils to be quite oudy.

 

[Oudamberlove]

Baieido Jinkoh Kokoh

Spice and medicine,
seemingly therapeutic

 

[Oudamberlove]

Animalic Stick medley
Two whiffs each of :
Hyraceum
Deer Musk
Castoreum
Ambergris
Civet
Actually, that’s part of my daily routine,
and often times I sneak an extra whiff or two😀