Our housemate asked me for an incense he can burn over his wood stove, something earthy/woody, a bit spicy, and he’s a really big fan of hive scents so I put together this little blend for him:
2 t juniper berry, 1 t cardamom, 1 rough t sage, 1/4 t balsam fir wood, 1/8 t sandal wood, 1/2 t opopanax, 1 t propolis, 1/2 t bees wax, and a touch of honey dissolved water. To better bind everything together I put this mix over the wood stove for just a moment at a time kneading between to melt the wax and some of the resin. It’s let to dry and though he’ll probably use this right away I bet some curing time would add some complexity.
But on a quick test heated over the stove it smells delicious and extremely sweet. It hits you with caramel notes from the juniper berry and opopanax, the brightness of the cardamom, the musk of sage and sandal, with undertones of bees wax and freshly uncapped honey.