Warm, balsamic, slightly sweet incense bricks, 15 to a box. Beside them lies a terracotta holder that you stand the brick in when you burn it. The slim 7.5 × 14.5 cm box is a rosy brown, with a drawing of amber-coloured resin on the lid. Made in India.
The “frankincense of Java”
Benzoin is the resin of styrax trees and is gathered in Southeast Asia. Its name comes from the Arabic for “frankincense of Java”. For centuries it has gone into church incense blends, and many people compare its scent to vanilla. It is sometimes also called gum benzoin.
Compared with plain frankincense, these bricks smell rounder and sweeter. If you like resin scents but lean towards the sweeter side, start with this one.
Pale beige and slightly grainy, the bricks are made of pressed incense paste. There is no wooden stick inside, so only a little ash is left in the holder after burning.
One brick at a time
Burn one brick at a time. Stand it in the hole in the middle of the holder, light the top and blow out the flame after a few seconds. It then smoulders, and the smoke rises slowly.
Set the holder on a heat-resistant surface, in a well-ventilated room and away from anything flammable, and do not leave it unattended. Do not breathe in the smoke directly, and keep it out of reach of children and pets.
What the sliding box holds
The pull-out tray holds 15 bricks in three rows, with the holder at the end. Made of fired clay with a hole in the centre, the holder can be used again and again, and the remaining bricks stay with it in the box.