About Sombei
Sombei is a modern incense brand creating low-smoke, plant-based, herbal incense for relaxation, focus, sleep, and mindful living.
Rooted in traditional incense-making and herbal practices, we refine time-honored materials and techniques to create incense designed for clean burn, balance, and everyday modern rituals.
Our Story
Rooted in the Mountains
Sombei is rooted in an ancient practice of healing through scent from the mist-covered mountains of Yunnan.
This wisdom was not discovered later in life—it shaped Alden from childhood.
It came from his maternal grandfather,
a village herbal healer who lived deep in the mountains.
A Childhood of Herbs and Smoke
Alden Song, born in 1987 in a small mountain village in Yunnan, spent most of his childhood beside his grandfather.
Without modern tools, the elder healer read the body through scent, humidity, and seasonal change.
Every plant in the surrounding forests had its own nature and balance.
Alongside herbs, his medicine cabinet held handcrafted medicinal incense—
another way he cared for the villagers.
When villagers felt restless or could not sleep,
or during the most damp and heavy seasons,
his grandfather would light different incense.
As the smoke slowly rose,
breathing softened and slowed,
and the body returned—almost unnoticed—to a state of balance.
For Alden, each wisp of smoke was an invisible prescription for breathing.
Scent became a natural way for the body to return to balance.
Distance and Return
In 1999, at the age of twelve, Alden immigrated with his mother to the West Coast of the United States.
Life shifted from mountains to cities, and everything moved faster.
Yet he continued to return regularly to Yunnan.
Each time, his grandfather prepared bundles of fresh incense for him— a quiet way of staying connected across distance.
Those incense sticks carried the breath of the mountains,
the warmth of herbs,
and a sense of being cared for.
Losing and Finding Stillness
Around 2010, Alden entered the internet industry as a software engineer.
Screens, code, meetings, and time zones filled his days.
Anxiety, insomnia, and constant tension became familiar.
It was then that he remembered what he had known as a child:
stillness can be inhaled.
Realizing that his connection to breath, body, and nature had been slowly lost,
he chose to leave his job and return to the countryside.
Back in the mountains, lighting a single stick of incense,
his breathing became clear again.
The Birth of Sombei
In 2022, Sombei was born.
Before beginning, Alden returned to the mountain villages of Yunnan,
working with artisans and small workshops that continue to practice traditional incense making.
Sombei chose collaboration over speed,
supporting both the livelihood of village artisans
and the living transmission of traditional craft.
As young people leave for the cities,
traditional skills and craft remain largely in the hands of the elderly.
Through collaboration, Sombei hopes to open a path for younger generations to return.
Together, they carefully source rare herbs and aromatic materials from nature,
respecting each plant’s scent, texture, and natural rhythm,
without the use of fragrance oils or synthetic additives.
Carrying the Wisdom Forward
Sombei was not created to recreate the past,
but to carry a way of healing through scent into modern life.
Its story begins in the mountains,
and continues wherever there is a need
to slow down, breathe, and return to balance.