Orkay – Namaste India – Pure Saffron

This box is from my most recent order at the Ephra World Shop, at the beginning of 2025.
Orkay is a company that actually ended up on my blacklist quite early on because the first two varieties I tried from them were seriously unbearable.
However, in 2023, Steve reviewed a number of the varieties from Orkay’s new brand Namaste India and was very positive about them. When someone on Reddit r/Incense later praised these Pure Saffron sticks highly while I was in the middle of putting together my order, I spontaneously added them to my cart.

Unlike standard incense packaging, this one has a lid that opens upwards. The closure, however, is a bit oddly made and doesn’t hold very well.
The box is 9″ or about 23cm long; the sticks, however, are only 8″ (approx. 20.5cm). It contains the usual 15g, which in this case was 13 sticks. At a price of €1.85, that comes to about €0.14 per stick.

Pure Saffron is distinctly sweet and features an opulent creaminess I could melt into, it’s so soft.
There’s an aspect to it that reminds me of Chandan (sandalwood) incense sticks. At this price point, it’s out of the question that real sandalwood or its essential oil was used, but it’s a charming sandalwood perfume, likely paired with some vanillin.

The sweetness and creaminess aren’t just like Chandan, though, and I don’t believe the combination with a saffron scent alone creates this particular character either.
Pure Saffron is more than that, more than just another Kesar Chandan incense. It has a gourmand character that reminds me of rich egg-based custards or other delicacies with lots of egg yolk—like the Lithuanian tree cake (Šakotis) my friend Povilas gave me for my birthday. 😀

The wonderful thing about Pure Saffron is that all the sweetness and softness still leave enough room for the hot spiciness of the saffron. But without its iodine-like or firecracker notes, which some people may however miss.
For me, as a lover of sweet scents, Pure Saffron is made to measure, and I think the balance in this composition is excellently achieved.

Pure Saffron is saffron incense for sweet noses. I fell in love with this scent from the very first whiff.