Sao Tomé Incense

Sao Tomé Incense by Astier de Villatte Box of 125 sticks Burning Time approximately 30 minutes Made in Japan Off the coast of Gabon, in the Gulf of Guinea, nestles the paradisal island of Sao Tomé, with its tourist-free beaches, ancient forests, and timber houses. It is known as Chocolate Island, for the inimitable taste and aroma of the cocoa beans grown on its plantations. The air is filled with the captivating scent of dark chocolate, a delicious hint of bitterness with slightly woody, smoky, and vanilla notes, that delight visitors. To achieve the intense, distinctive and elegant roasted cocoa scents, the perfumer Nicolas Bonneville used a specific bean of unique quality. The base note was then enriched with woody hints of Atlas cedar, smoky amber Labdanum Vulcain reminiscent of church incense, creamy sandalwood for its enveloping, reassuring quality, and a hint of musk to warm the whole creation. The best incense in the world is found on the island of Awaji, due to its favourable climate. For more than a thousand years it has been made here by the Koh-shis or Masters of Aromas, a tradition passed down from father to son. They alone perfectly master the four stages of production: the dosage of exclusively natural materials, precious woods, herbs, plants, vegetable resins, and perfume; the kneading of the dough, pressed and worked for a long time, then left to stand for two weeks to soak up the fragrance; the cutting of the dough, rolled into long, narrow ribbons, to the desired size; then drying in the west wind for three days before bundling the sticks. Precautionary measures: Light the end of the stick with a match, blow out the flame and leave to smoke. Plant the stick in an incense burner or a bowl of sand. Do not use in a flammable environment. Do not leave burning without supervision. Keep out of reach of children and animals.