Bikou Kobunboku Incense (180 Sticks)

Incense weight: 80 grams
Number of sticks: Approximately 180 short sticks. This may vary slightly though as the quantity of incense is based upon weight, not the number of sticks
Stick length: Approx 13 cms
Burn time per stick: Just over half an hour per stick 
Manufacturer: Baieido, Japan

Baieido says: Bikou means : "Delicate incense" Bikou Kobunboku is a subtler version of the traditional Kobunboku formula. Very soft and fresh, with just a hint of cassia and other Chinese herbs with both sandalwood and aloeswood.

Bikou comes in two types, regular and less-smoke. Smoother and softer is the way we describe this Kobunboku formula.

About sandalwood: An evergreen tree of the Santalaceae family found predominantly in India. Within India, the area by the southwest coast known as the Mysore region is referred to as Sandalwood City, and this is regulated by the Indian government. It is extremely famous for its production of superior quality Sandalwood as well as its high price. The heartwood of the Sandalwood tree has been valued from ancient times for carving Buddhist statues and ritual objects. Its aroma is proclaimed of in ancient works as; 'pure, powerful, emanating tranquility, when burnt it is superior to other incense aromas.'

More About Baieido Incense
Baieido is one of the oldest traditional incense producers in Japan and has been producing a range of pure and high quality incense for over 300 years. The company has a long history, which can be traced back to the Muromachi period in Japanese history (1338 to 1573). The founder of Baieido, Kakuuemon Yamatoya, became a wholesaler of medicinal herbs in Sakai city during this time. It was a well known trading port, where demand for good quality incense was high. By 1657, Kakuuemon Yamatoya was specialising in selling incense ingredients and incense sticks and was able to call himself Jinkoya Sakubei. Jinkoya meant ‘aloeswood trader,’ and it was a name that only authorised medicinal wholesalers, who specialised in incense, in Sakai were able to call themselves.

Later the name of the business changed to Nakata Baieido, still making incense with methods that had been handed down for generations. Baieido is now recognised as one of the highest quality incense manufacturers in the world today blending the finest aromatic woods and resins to produce a natural, mild, low-smoke incense stick of superb quality and aroma. Since Jinkoya’s incense work, the time-honoured traditions and incense formulas have passed on down through the centuries and the company continues to make incense to the oldest recipes. Baieido take pride in using both traditional incense stick making processes alongside more modern manufacturing techniques and new technology. 

About Japanese Incense - High quality, pure 
Japanese incense (speaking in general terms) is refined, pure, light smoke and rich in natural ingredients such as sandalwood. They don't usually have the thin wooden stick centre that is often found in Indian and other incense sticks. They are normally pure incense right the way through the stick. They are often designed with meditation in mind. Due to the high quality manufacturing processes the incense goes through they can be a little bit more expensive than other incense on the market.

To find out more read:
The History of Japanese Incense