Incensi (1997)
by Lorenzo Villoresi

like Uomo, Incensi has a sparkling, mineral like quality to it. i cannot detect cinnamon as a prominent note in it.. what i interpret is - sparkling accord of greens and elemi(as used in Oscar by OdlR)..nice mix of spices and resins with a ginger ale like quality to it. however, the ginger too is not prominent, but adds to the sparkling quality of it. by mids it settles to a lovely/powdery accord of Incense..it's blended pretty well and the accords have a certain depth. it stays fresh in a dark, mysterious way.. all in all, it's some how related to Uomo in it's overall feel and is a unique take on incense.

It’s strange to me that Villoresi, who typically draws his olfactory paintings in surrealisticly, neonly olfactory strokes, has created an incense fragrance that is so forgettable because of the subtly of its incense. The first time I tested it, I immediately experienced the typical Villoresi explosion, but this disappeared in subsequent testings to be replaced by a balanced green / citrus accord overshadowed by the mild resinousness of incense and myrrh. With even further testing, the opening I get is a balanced green / citrus accord with a stronger overlay of the cinnamon / benzoin. The reluctant resinousness of labdanum, myrrh, and incense has faded almost completely and the spicy cinnamon note has moved into prominence. Ten or fifteen minutes after the opening, Incensi has become a mild cinnamon fragrance. I can understand the attempt to minimize the incense because I believe that it often is a difficult note to wear, but to replace it with cinnamon is not the best direction to go IMHO. If I try hard, I can smell the incense under the cinnamon, but cinnamon is the only note I get by sillage for most of the life of the fragrance. Even the base’s opoponax and sandalwood don’t come through very strongly on my skin. I pick up a bit of a powdery resinousness in the base that never achieves more than a pleasant skin scent. Incensi has weak sillage after the first half hour.

The first few times I tested this I loved it and thought it would become one of my favorite incenses because I thought it was a beautifully subtle incense that would be a close and comfortable wear. With further testing I gradually lost the incense and gained the cinnamon and I have become correspondingly disinterested. It’s unusual that I am not impressed by a Villoresi fragrance, but this one just doesn’t do it for me. I hope that I remember this as a lesson in the importance of giving a fragrance a lot of testing before purchasing. I originally believed that this would be a for sure purchase, but it turned out to not be for me.

Additional fragrance notes: (top) apple, lemon, bergamot; (mid) mimosa, pepper; (base) opopanax, sandalwood. From the Villoresi site.
Incensi is interesting. It has resinous incense notes at each level, yet it is not an incense-heavy or dryly resinous scent. Its final effect is cool, contemplative, slightly detached or even melancholy. In other words, you are not in a daytime church service experiencing chanting, colorful vestments and smoky incense. Rather, you have wandered into a cool and silent cathedral in the evening. Ghosts of prayers and incense linger and outside, there is silvery-cool moonlight.
With that impressionistic image, I’ll analyze the scent. It has a great galbanum opening. There are those spicy-green celery leaf and dusty stones notes which I associate with galbanum. To me this is a very attractive stage. Then it changes to a gentle spice accord, with a bit of powder. I find the spices to be subtle, a seamless mélange rather than clearly identifiable cinnamon or pepper. The dry-down becomes cool and powdery. The myrrh adds a slightly sweet, softly aromatic and perfumed note. Normally I don’t like powder but this has a haunting restraint that works for me. Wearing this on a warm day gives a cool sensation. I like it, it is different.

Incensi does not start out promising. The topnotes are a harsh, scrambled brew of soapy (unlisted) lavender, bitter greens and spices, and it takes several minutes for the scent to sort itself out. Once it does, it lays down a warm cinnamon, woody incense, and benzoin accord that's as smooth and serene as the opening is hectic. Ginger lurks quietly in the background, but it's much quieter here than in Bvlgari's ginger bomb Blv. It's to Villoresi's credit that the ginger, cinnamon, and benzoin don't turn Incensi into a comfort food desert. I believe that it's the firm and mildly astringent combination of myrrh and labdanum that does the trick.

The leathery labdanum note blooms as Incensi evolves, but the sweet spices and a powdery-soapy undercurrent prevent it from behaving like a "leather" scent. Cinnamon becomes more and more dominant the longer I wear Incensi, but it never manages to overwhelm the incense at the foundation. The scent lasts reasonably well and projects powerfully. You'll most certainly know you're wearing it, and if you use too much, so will everybody else in the room.

When I consider Incensi, it strikes me as a very likeable, warm, and complex winter scent. I recommend it especially to enyone who enjoys cinnamon in a personal fragrance. You just need to give it some time to put its house in order.

Lovely use of cinnamon and benzoin. A very true Roman-style incense, too -- I can honestly see this stuff billowing out of a censer during a High Mass. Don't come expecting frankincense, though. (A welcome change from every other incense frag in the world.)

A must-have for fans of cinnamon -- bright and clear and crisp without ever being sweet or cloying. One of my very favorite frags for the holiday season, albeit perhaps a bit liturgical for everyday office use the rest of the year.

I love the spiciness of this one. It comes across as a little sweet and aromatic (bay leaf and/or cedar)with just a little musk. I like to scent my home with this one.