Thanks to Cymbaline, I finally got to try a sample of Norma Kamali Incense, a perfume I've heard about a lot, but never came across until now. Regular followers of my blog will probably have guessed by now that incense is one of my favourite accords in perfumery and I have tried a lot of incense-focused perfumes.
It is hard to find any detailed notes for Norma Kamali Incense. The two notes that appear most often are Frankincense and Myrrh, while labdanum gets mentioned too. The opening of Incense was a little baffling, in that it smelled quite muted and even 'oily' in a way. I'm guessing this might have been the phase when Myrrh is at its most dominant. Gradually however, the Frankincense seeps into the composition, gaining strength and poise, until at its zenith, it shines radiant and pure, undiminished by anything else. I say that, but in reality, there is something quite woody about Incense too, which compliments the perfume wonderfully, without detracting from the incense. It is quite difficult to describe Incense. In a way, it is quite linear and simple, yet it is curiously and fabulously complex in its simplicity, if that can make any sense at all.
I wondered if I would be moved and impressed by Norma Kamali Incense and I can say yes, truly I was. One would be hard-pressed to find such a glorious interpretation of Frankincense. The Myrrh is lost from the heart onward, at least to my nose and labdanum may be there, but is not especially present for me.
I think I've found my new incense holy grail.
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