Which image makes you want to try a sample?
When you say incense, do you mean resin, the memory of a place, a smoky impression or a woody perfume? Write down that expectation before choosing a sample. It will help more than a general ranking. Frankincense, elemi and incense have separate entries in the Atlas: exploring nearby terms can lead to useful compositions without assuming one material explains every image. A fragrance naming one of them does not require you to recover your remembered smell exactly.
Hwyl and French Lover: one note, two lists
Aesop’s Hwyl Eau de Parfum places frankincense, vetiver and cedar in the base after a heart of cypress, suede and geranium. Frédéric Malle’s French Lover Eau de Parfum also lists frankincense in the base, beside patchouli and vetiver; pimiento, angelica and juniper appear at the top. This pair can help you choose between two herbal and woody settings. It is not a measurement of their resemblance. While sampling, describe what makes you want to return to one blotter rather than trying to count how similar the two must be.
Elemi: compare its partners, not just its name
Elemi appears at the top of Hwyl beside thyme and pink pepper. In Parfums de Marly’s Althaïr Eau de Parfum, it joins bergamot and mandarin at the top; the heart names orange blossom, cinnamon and cardamom, followed by Bourbon vanilla, guaiac wood and praline in the base. Those lists raise a different question: do you prefer exploring herbs, or citrus with spice and gourmand notes? Shared elemi does not establish how prominent that note will feel in your own perception of either perfume.
Gypsy Water: preserve the word incense
Byredo’s Gypsy Water Eau de Parfum lists incense, orris and pine needle in the heart. Bergamot, juniper berries, lemon and pepper appear at the top; amber, sandalwood and vanilla in the base. Its record keeps the word incense rather than replacing it with frankincense assumed to be identical to the other examples. Open it if the citrus-conifer connection interests you. The cypress-pine-oud guide continues that question through other woody compositions, keeping the precise labels useful for preparing a sampling session.
A method that does not reduce everything to smoke
On two labelled blotters, record the overall impression first, then a difference that matters to you. You may prefer a perfume whose herbs hold your attention even though incense started your search. Return after a break, then try your favourite on skin. In the Finder, keep frankincense, elemi or incense according to your request and add a second note actually published in the records. The links to resins and amber broaden the reading; they do not make all those terms the same material or reveal a formula.
Sources and references
These links provide the references used for this article. A reference does not verify every fragrance listed elsewhere in the catalogue.