Agarwood Oud Fragrances

Common name: agarwood, oudh, agalocha Plant family: Thymelaeceae Genus: Aquilaria Species: About 15 species of the genus Aquilaria

Agarwood is considered to be considered be the most expensive wood in the world

The resinous, aromatic heartwood primarily produced by trees of the species Aquilaria is known by various names. Agarwood, aloeswood, eaglewood, gaharu, agalocha, and oudh are Arabic names for the resin. Endangered Species The capacity of trees to grow and reproduce is severely hampered. Agarwood has been used to produce high-quality incense for generations. Like the Arabs, Indians, and Japanese, the Chinese describe its smell as sweet, deep, but balanced and utilize it in religious and celebratory events. Going back to medieval times, many ancient pharmacopeias include agarwood, which Chinese doctors still use to treat colds and digestive issues. The oil extracted from agarwood is used in Arab countries as a perfume. Agarwood is a resinous heartwood found in trees named Aquilaria, Aetoxylon A. symeatalum, and the Gonystylus genus of the Thymelaeceae family. However, species in the genus Aquilaria are mainly known for producing agarwood, and it is a fast-growing evergreen tree. 

Agarwood or Oudh is formed as a reaction to fungal or bacterial attacks

When trees become infested with a parasitic mold, they produce fragrant protective oil in damaged regions, roots, branches, or trunk parts, which hardens and turns dark brown to black over time. Before infection, the heartwood center section of a tree, deeper in color than sapwood, is comparatively light and pale in hue. Usually, harvesters would only chop the diseased branches of the tree in the hopes of the tree producing more softwood. Aquilaria tree showing the darker infected interest - agarwood by lamcs52 Aquilaria species that make agarwood are found throughout Asia while naturally occurring in South and Southeast Asia. The Indian subcontinent has been the primary source of agarwood for many centuries, but as trees became scarce in the mid-20th century, extraction intensified in Indochina. It was then expanded to include Indonesia and Malaysia. Agarwood plantations may now be found in Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Laos, Myanmar, Papua New Guinea, Thailand, and Vietnam, among other nations. Lamcs52's Aquilaria with darker agarwood may grow in a variety of soil types, including sandy soils. Most seedlings thrive in dark, damp environments, although giant adult trees occasionally sprout in the forest and survive full light. Some species thrive on steep, rocky, exposed slopes, as well as in hot, dry climates. The trees can grow to be 6-20 meters tall. The alternating leaves are 5-11 cm long and 2-4 cm broad, with a short acuminate apex and whole border. The blossom is beautiful.

At least fifteen species of Aquilaria trees are known to produce agarwood

This tree can grow to about 40 m or 131. 23 ft in height with a diameter of 80 cm. It is the best producer of agarwood resin and oil in Indonesia. Agarwood is sold in various forms, including wood chips, powder, oil, and completed goods, including fragrances, incense, and medications. Countries in the Middle and the Far East, particularly the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, where agarwood is known as oudh, and Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Japan, are the top importers. METHOD OF EXTRACTION Hydrodistillation, steam distillation, and supercritical CO2 extraction are the three processes for distilling agarwood oil. Hydrodistillation and steam distillation are the most popular distillation techniques. Another factor that influences oil distillation is the age of the tree.

Older trees have a higher resin content

 Old resin, like wine, improves with age. The initial distillation yields the highest grade agarwood oil. The wood is then subjected to a second distillation, after which it is classified according to the number of times it has been cooked. The three-dimensional smoke quality of hydrodistilled oil is claimed to be lacking in steam distillation oil. After both distillation processes, the oil is filtered, exposed to the sun, and matured for some time. The nicer the oil smells, the older it is. When is it appropriate to produce synthetic substitutes? Synthetic replacements are often developed when sustainable natural products are unavailable and/or are prohibitively expensive.

As agarwood cannot be synthesized, chemical substitutes are already available for perfume 

These represent the less profitable end of the market and are cheap. Furthermore, many products fall well short of mimicking natural goods. Sesquiterpenes, the primary chemical component responsible for the distinctive odor of agarwood products, can theoretically be produced. However, they are very complex structures prohibitively expensive to produce, rendering them financially unviable. As a result, the distinction between oudh oil and manufactured oudh smells is discernible. The scent of oud is exquisite, woody, and balsamic, with a warm aura of woody and bittersweet overtones. The synthetic oud, on the other hand, has a woody, leathery scent.

Why is agarwood so expensive?

The high cost of agarwood oil is due to the poor yield of the plant material and a usual labor-intensive extraction method. Oil is made from low-quality softwood, which requires a minimum of 20 kg to create 12 ml of oil.