Oliban

Grisens

Phaedon 2011

First thought: Coconut.
Second thought: Artificial coconut-honey aroma
Third thought: There had to be at least one…. After all, not every incense scent from the beautiful package by Ergreifend (thank you very much!) can be a hit. How similar our tastes sometimes are can remain delightful, it doesn’t have to be disturbing.

Thus: I like Oliban less. The gentle sandiness that I soon identify also feels too synthetic to me. Perhaps it’s not just the openly mentioned Ambroxan that is involved. Be that as it may, I find this appearance more disturbing than delightful once again. However, I do enjoy my occasional impression of a pine idea. It’s a pity that it is limited to the specific.

As the scent progresses, it hardly changes. Alongside the wood, a honeyed, softly spicy incense note remains for hours. I usually like such a note, after all, Rundholz 03.Apr.1968, one of my absolute favorites, has a similar honey-orientation; only Oliban fails to leave behind what I consider an overly artificial aspect.

The scent reaches its finest phase in the second half, then the synthetic undertone and sweetness recede a bit, and Oliban brightens up with woodiness, the smoke becomes sharper. Of course, this is merely nuances and is only enough for me personally for a slightly better overall impression. Somehow, the whole thing now reminds me of Carbone & Co, just a bit sharper. By the fifth or sixth hour, I would have guessed Immortelle, by the way. Surprising in the previous context, but not unwelcome.

Already after two hours, the scent is very close to the skin. Nevertheless, it remains reliably present for a day, so the restraint is likely intentional. A test tip for fans of softly sweet incense scents or perhaps just for Carbone fans. I’ll pass.