Ink Review: Sailor Jentle Grenade

Have you ever have such a good experience with a product that you just want to tell your friends about it?  I was working on my thesis, and I filled up my Visconti with Sailor Jentle Grenade.  The moment I started writing, I felt compelled to write a review.  I guess that is considered an epitome of an addict.

Thanks to Gentian, a fellow stationery enthusiast, I received a sample of Sailor Jentle Grenade.  I have been interested in Apricot in the same series recently, so I am glad to try it out before making commitment.

Grenade impresses me in how smooth it is.  The pen just glides on paper effortlessly.  It is not a straight red, but more of a darker red with a bit of green tint after it dries.  The color actually reminds me of pomegranate, that sparkling and crystallizing red.  The drying time of this ink is average, though it might take a bit longer to dry on premium paper, such as Rhodia.  On normal paper, the ink is readily absorbed by paper.  It is a well-rounded ink in that it does not feather on normal paper, though these is a slight bleedthrough.

Since I have several samples of red on hand, I decide to do a comparison with a calligraphy nib.  From the writing sample below, you can see that Grenade is a darker red than the rest.  In person, Grenade has striking similarity as Sunset by Caran d’Ache (though it appears different in the sample below).  The difference is that when looking at both colors at a distance, Sunset appears red, while Grenade presents a fuchsia undertone.

When compared to the other two samples, Grenade resembles the color of Merlot.  The most straight forward color out of this group would be Noodler’s Dragon’s Napalm; the color remains constant as it dries.  J. Herbin’s 1670 Hematite dries with a glowing neon tint, which might not be visible in the scan.

If you are search for a well-behave ink that is saturated, lovely shading, and affordable, Sailor Jentle Grenade would be a great addition.

Meanwhile, here is another review on Grenade by the Captain.  Gentian tests out a sketchbook with her usually detailed and beautiful drawing with Grenade.