Le Labo has launched a new incense collection alongside a concrete incense holder, arriving at the start of June. The release brings together three scents and an object designed to age as it’s used.

The incense is made in Kyoto at a twelfth-generation family-owned workshop, handmade using traditional Japanese techniques. Each set includes 35 sticks that burn for up to 25 minutes. The practice draws from Kōdō, the Way of Incense, an ancient art that approaches fragrance as something to be listened to rather than simply smelled. Deborah Royer, Global Brand President and Creative Director of Le Labo Fragrances, puts it plainly: “With this incense, we honour the centuries-old wisdom contained in its practice. In watching smoke ascend, we find a reflection of the self: never fixed, always shifting, a slow burn forever finding form.”

Three scents make up the range. SANTAL 26 is described as aristocratic, gentle, smoky, and leathery. AMBROXYDE 17 is built around a synthetic molecule that gives natural ambergris its arresting quality, combined with musks, woods, and jasmine petals over a base of moss. It’s a close cousin to the brand’s ANOTHER 13. ENCENS 9 centres on frankincense, softened by amber notes and finished with clove.

The concrete incense holder is handcrafted in the US. Due to the nature of the material, each one will develop a patina over time, with slight variations that make every holder distinct. The collection is available at lelabofragrances.com and at Le Labo’s Elizabeth Street store in New York.