ShoyeidoRiver Path Incense, 20 Sticks - Horikawa

I am highly sensitive to synthetic fragrances and can only use all natural scents. This company makes excellent quality, natural, NOT-DIPPED incense. They have an excellent reputation hand are a long established maker of fine incense. I've been using them for almost 20 years.SCENT (pre and post-burn) & SENSITIVITY(none) = EXCELLENT: The scent on these is a divine (subjective) and complex blend of earthy wood notes and hints of sweeter, round notes and delicious vanilla. I have a number of sampler packs that I had stashed away in a box for (I kid you not) over 15 years. Because Shoyeido uses woods they age well and those sticks smell super yummy - just as good as my new box. The aroma also lingers beautifully. When people enter a space I have used them in they always comment on how good it smells but never have issues with particles in the air or residual smoke. Even my asthmatic hubby can tolerate these comfortably (I never burn when he is home but other incense triggers him even after the fact. This one is fine for him. If he reacted I would stop. He has had ZERO issues with these).BURN TIME = GOOD/COMPARABLE: Some people complain about the small size. Lower quality incenses are often bigger and full of fillers and/or a stick around which the incense is packed. These have neither. They look tiny BUT they have a very similar burn time to most full length incense sticks on the market (at least the ones I've tried). Because the scent lingers in a wonderful way the scent-profile is also extended. Many incenses leave a space smelling chemically or smokey post-burn. These do not. They leave an aroma that is pleasant, lingers and evolves (like fine wine or good tea) as it slowly dissipates over time.CARE & HANDLING: Because these lack the filler-stick they are more brittle than the incense sticks many are familiar with. It is important to handle these with care. You will likely break one at some point. This is fine and you can still use it. I use the tiny holder enclosed in the box when burning full-size sticks, setting it in a little tray of sand. You can put it on any heat resistant surface but know that, as it is open on the bottom, it WILL transfer heat and can burn a surface. a small cup of sand, a sturdy stone, a sea shell, etc. are all good outer holders for the little burner. I use sand, however, because I can extend the life of my little stick by letting it born down and then popping the tiny nub out of the holder. I set it into the fine sand and relight it to get a smidge more out of my incense. This process is made easier by a pair of brass, fine-point, tweezers that I keep with my incense. You can store your incense sticks in their box or, as I do, transfer them to a traditional bamboo holder with is beautiful, functional and more sturdy than the box. Whatever you use to store them it is best to do so away from heat and light in order to preserve them (although they are super long-lived all on their own).BOX CONTENTS: The box comes with a very small ceramic square with a hole in it. This is for holding the incense while it burns since there is no filler-stick to put into a wooden holder or more common angles holder. I think this is a nice touch from Shoyeido. Of course, if you order from them again, you end up with another burner but at least they are tiny and not terribly wasteful. I'm trying to think of alternate uses for the duplicates (earrings? pendant? curtain weights?). There are, of course, the incense sticks wrapped with a single strip of paper to hold them in a bunch, and a paper with information about the company. The box closure-flap is just like any other flimsy cardboard/paper flap and won't last long with repeated opening and shutting. Nothing novel or special there. That is, so far, the only downside I can come up with.COST = WORTH EVERY PENNY: The cost is high IF you are comparing it to run-of-the-mill, grocery store, fake, filler-full, dipped and otherwise inferior incense - which this incense is not. It's like comparing a goopy ball point pen to a fine fountain pen or a sweat-mill, fast-fashion garment to something tailored out of fine linen, just for you. Do you NEED the better quality item, perhaps not. You can use the poorer and cheaper one but it will never measure up to the benefits that well made item provides. Because I have to be careful about what I'm exposed to or I risk a massive headache, nausea or other issues I have spent a lifetime of selective-scent-seeking. Twenty-one years married to a man with asthma and becoming a mother of two highly sensitive kids (one with sensory challenges and the other with allergies to what feels like everything) I am careful about what I bring into my home and expose myself and my family to. To me the cost is well worth it.I love this incense company and, in particular, this scent. I will absolutely continue ordering Shoyeido's River Path incense as long as they continue to make it and the day they stop will be a sad day for us all. I highly recommend this company and this incense scent. Enjoy!

I was at Anderson's Japanese Gardens in Illinois and the gift shop was selling the Horikawa incense. I smelled teh sticks and honest to God, it's the best smelling incense ever! It's difficult to describe the scent- a sweet and smokey flower? Almost a bit like a sweet musk? I have purchased countless incence that smells good in teh package but does not deliver when burning. Not the case with this. It's exactly the same- and really adds a feeling of warmth and relaxation to a room. I bought some to burn at my boyfriend's home and he loves it too. The price on Amazon is the best I've found- nearly $10 less than the gift shop was selling it for... for the same product.

These incense sticks are about as long as my pinky finger. However they're the best smelling incense I've ever tried, so they have me in their grip!

This incense is great it’s a sweet herbaceous woody even resinous scent that doesn’t smell like pungent smoke after it’s burnt. It’s also a little deceptive but in a good way, I’ve burnt Japanese style incense before and they’re usually 4” to 5” inches long. however this incense is about 3” inches long but believe me somehow it burns almost as long as the longer versions. Part of the reason why I got this is because I read it was a good dupe for Aesops Murasaki incense which is a whopping $43 for 33 sticks which is about $1.30 per burn while this is about $10 for about 20 sticks that’s ¢50 a burn. The scent is honestly nearly identical not surprising as they both come from the same neighborhood in Kyoto Japan. If you’re looking for a cheaper alternative to murasaki or simply an Exellent smelling stick of incense this is the one for you I will absolutely be buying again

Have been buying Shoyeido incense for decades (just realized that when I started typing - time flies and, man, I am getting old and wise!).I've bought their:- Wood chips (Aloeswood is the best of those albeit expensive);- Pressed incense (which looks lovely - shaped like flowers);- Coils;- Various scents from their various stick lines (Joy is my favorite from the MAGNIFICENT series, though HOPE is a close second these days); and- Their kneaded incense (plum being my favorite; the plum sticks, not so great).I have to say this is one of their finest. It's quite amazing - almost ethereal.I bought it because of the reviews on here; had never smelled it anywhere else. I'm glad I followed my instinct and others' reviews. It is an absolute pleasure.I used the stopwatch on my mobile phone to time the burning of one stick and it indeed took 20 minutes - for the stick I burned, the product description was accurate.Yup, it's fairly expensive as far as a transitory event goes (and none of their incense is "cheap," but you get what you pay for and it's always worth it if you're a person who likes incense) but utterly worth it.While burning it, I don't have see images of a river in my mind's eye (I live in a large city), but more a creek with the scent of rich autumn leaves accompanied by good, pure cinnamon (and I'm not a fan of cinnamon). I also see a color close to burnt umber. It's a wonderfully pleasant experience and I hope anyone who reads this is inspired to treat her-/himself to it.