Bikou Kobunboku Incense (About 190 sticks)

Incense weight: 85 grams
Number of sticks: Approximately 190 short sticks. This may vary slightly though as the quantity of incense is based upon weight, not the number of sticks
Stick length: Approx 13 cms
Burn time per stick: Just over half an hour per stick
Manufacturer: Baieido, Japan

Baieido says: Bikou means : "Delicate incense" Bikou Kobunboku is a subtler version of the traditional Kobunboku formula. Very soft and fresh, with just a hint of cassia and other Chinese herbs with both sandalwood and aloeswood.

Bikou comes in two types, regular and less-smoke. Smoother and softer is the way we describe this Kobunboku formula.

About sandalwood: An evergreen tree of the Santalaceae family found predominantly in India. Within India, the area by the southwest coast known as the Mysore region is referred to as Sandalwood City, and this is regulated by the Indian government. It is extremely famous for its production of superior quality Sandalwood as well as its high price. The heartwood of the Sandalwood tree has been valued from ancient times for carving Buddhist statues and ritual objects. Its aroma is proclaimed of in ancient works as; 'pure, powerful, emanating tranquility, when burnt it is superior to other incense aromas.'

"This Bikou Kobunboku incense comes from the Kobunboku range (their best selling range) from the Japanese incense manufacturer Baieido. It brings in some of the original formula used with the Original Kobunboku, which we sell, and brings in some cassia (cinnamon family) and aloeswood. It also sets out to have less smoke than the original. I did a comparison and would say that it gives off about a third of the amount of normal smoke. The incense stick is a tiny bit thicker than normal.

To review this incense I compared it to the Original Kobunboku, which was a touch more floral and more gentle and I also compared it to the heavily cinnamon-influenced Sawayaka Incense, which was more spicy and male with a pleasant “burnt” aspect. After burning Sawayaka and going back to the Bikou Kobunboku I found the more subtle floral sweetness of this particular incense more noticeable. It has a nice balance of “relax” and “uplift”.

It seems to me that Original Kobunboku has a mass appeal, which is why it is so popular. This product is like a cousin of the original that has the appeal for some of less smoke and brings in a slightly more edgy male aspect, ideal for meditation I would say. I tend to feel that cinnamon has a bit less mass appeal, and more a specialist appeal than say the more floral incences. Bikou to me retains some of the subtle floral aspects of the original while bringing in a bit more spicy vibrant energy." - Brett