Vijayshree – Golden Nag Mantra

Bought on special offer at Spiru.de. Regular price: €1.49 for 15g, approx. 15 pieces, so 10ct per stick.

The sticks smell tangy and fresh out of the package; they are spicy, zesty, almost hot and also slightly soapy.
For me, they sparked a strong association with wu-wei-zi, better known as schisandra. A climbing plant whose berries are used in traditional Chinese medicine, and combine all 5 flavours. However, I don’t mean the berries here. We have the plant in our garden and when I pulled out dry branches I noticed its intense scent that seems to come from the bark. I would describe it as intensely lemony, with a fresh, peppery-spicy note and a slightly resinous aspect. That’s how these sticks smell to me.
Szechuan pepper is vagally reminiscent also, but it’s darker, somewhat more tart and the ranking of the notes is more tart-preppy-citrusy, it’s the other way around, so to speak. As an example, Haramy Elemi (Canarium madagascariensis) smells a bit like Szechuan pepper to me. 
With Nag Mantra, one of my first thoughts was star anise, which, interestingly, later turned out to be a relative of wu-wei-zi.
It’s an intense smell, difficult to not pay attention to. So it’s not really for the background, but it’s ideal for bringing a breath of fresh air into rooms; there’s something invigorating and energetic about it and I really like the smell. Rating: 3.7
The after smell is also spicy, fresh and resinous, but not too intense and long-lasting.

A Redditor (u/Chris_Burns, who also recommended Golden Buddha and Nag Temple) warns that they’re a little soapy. I understand what he means, but I don’t actually find them soapy. Other noses may agree with him, though.
The description at Ephra World Shop seems as if they were talking about something entirely different: “A sweet, grassy, ​​delicately spicy and resinous scent. Wooden with a little spice.” – Can perceptions really drift that far apart, or has the recipe been changed, perhaps?