Happy Hari – King of Myrrh

This thick stick was part of a sample set I bought in March 2022 at Padma Store. The set contains one stick per variety (a total of 13) and cost €14.95 at the time. (It has since increased by €1.)
A pack of 10g currently costs €4.25. The sticks have a burn time of 60 minutes.
Probably because of their thickness, they look like Soft Masala, but they are actually Dry Masala.

Myrrh is a resin gum and not everyone’s favourite. It has a certain bitterness, is earthy, warm, and faintly sweet; its aroma is overall rather subtle. When Myrrh is burned on charcoal, it quickly smells like burnt rubber.
Genuine Myrrh, Commiphora myrrha (there are several species of Myrrh), always has a peculiar note for me, which reminds me of fresh mushrooms. In incense sticks, I have only found this note once: Myrrh of the Green Line by BERK. I think that a lot of incense sticks are usually made with the essential oil of Myrrh, rather than the resin.

King of Myrrh has a very full, robust aroma, but it’s not too intense for my taste. The smell is sweet and aromatic. It feels soft, rich, and heavy.
I can easily detect the Myrrh character in it, but it’s very different from the smell of burned Myrrh resin on charcoal, etc. It has a distinct, tart aspect, but is not bitter. I find an earthy warmth in it.
The balsamic and sweet notes are at the forefront. My first association was Carob (aka locust bean), a savoury-sweet legume that can be eaten almost like a natural cereal bar. Its taste is aromatic-sweet and tart, and its smell can be somewhat sour.
In the recent past, I have tried Masala – Myrrh by HEM, which has a note of white chocolate for me, and since then, I have also found a hint of this in King of Myrrh. In fact, HEM‘s Myrrh feels like a low-budget version of these incense sticks. Their smell is more sugary and creamier. King of Myrrh simply has much more of the Myrrh character, but they are related.

I find King of Myrrh very interesting, and I am amazed at how pleasant I find the smell, even though I don’t actually like Myrrh resin as incense. They have made me curious to try more Myrrh incense sticks.
Currently, I don’t feel the urge to buy more of them, but I can well imagine that eventually, a pack will find its way into our house.
I think they are suitable for Myrrh lovers and sceptics alike, given you like sweet smells.