Koya’s – Heavenwood
Steve from Incense in The Wind sent me this sample stick when we had our incense exchange. Heavenwood is one of his absolute favourites. Here’s his review from late 2021, which means the sample is now around three years old.
Steve received the sticks as samples from Koya’s. On their website, a 100g pack costs approximately €2.50 (₹225). The sticks are 9″ long and burn for about 60 minutes.
It’s interesting that Koya’s describes Heavenwood’s scent as mossy, sharp, and masculine, among other notes; I didn’t pick up on any of these, though I can at least to some degree grasp what they mean by “masculine”.
Heavenwood has a distinctly woody element framed by various other notes. I perceive the scent as powdery but also balsamic. Its softness has multiple facets, making it feel like a luxurious, velvety soft carpet.
The sweetness is lush and heavy, like forest honey, blending with some spicy-aromatic and slightly tart notes, which come together to evoke a range of associations: pipe tobacco, dried fruits, gingerbread, crème brûlée, as well as (good) bakhoor and attar. The fragrance is rich, but not cloying.
I notice subtle parallels to oud-themed incense sticks, especially Manmohak Oud; however, the two are style-wise quite different. Manmohak has a certain raw, rustic character (though not in a negative sense), whereas Heavenwood comes across as elegant and luxurious.
Heavenwood has a layered, smooth fragrance. I suspect it will appeal to most people who enjoy deep and sweet scents.
I’m glad you like it. It’s a shame that Koya’s don’t export (or that nobody is importing them).
Yeah, really.
It seems to be easier to get them in the US, but in Germany (or likely Europe in general) there’s almost no chance. I once saw an offer on Amazon for like 15€ a box. Crazy.
Eugene tells me that a trader in America who reads my blog orders the incense I give high scores, such as BG Store, Koya’s, and DBS. What I like is that he sells the incense under their original brand names rather than rebranding them.
He told me that too, yes. I’d also prefer it to see incense sold under the OG name.
The whole review blogging thing is very two-fold. I see myself as consumer-oriented. I want to help incense lovers make more informed decisions and point out resources – part of this is identifying rebrands.
“If X is not available where you live, buy Z instead.”
But of course, that also means that other businesses get aware of potential sources. That’s good for the consumer, as it creates better availability, but potentially at the cost of another business.
Of course, I don’t whish for Eugene to have his work drained. But should I act oblivious when I stumble on an obvious “twin”?
If traders read our blogs and pick for their assortments what we rave about, does it matter in the end, if we had drawn a parallel to another brand or not? If we like it, they might gonna stock it, no matter what.
The point is, if we do openly connect the dots, the consumer can choose where to buy from.
The fact that this is potentially bad for a business is caused by capitalism, it’s how this system is designed.
Koya’s have recently imported their incense here in UAE, Oman and Qatar. They’re are limited ranges and they only imported 14 of them in UAE-
Maya Supreme, Maya Supreme Sambrani, Oudh, Rasta, Loban, Pineapple, Heavenwood, Nirvana, Chandan, Meraki Oudh, Meraki Bakhoor, Meraki Heena, Meraki Oudh Supreme, Meraki and Meraki White Oudh.