Agarwood has often been used for something relevant to traditional culture and religious events that stories on it were liable to be mysterious. The most important characteristic of agarwood is its noble fragrance that is hardly described with scientific measurements. These were the difficulties that have to be overcome when scientific research programs were planned for agarwood. However, from standpoint of scientific researches, agarwood is seemed to be one of the most interesting materials for pharmaceutical, agricultural, plant-biological and ethno-botanical studies; source plants of agarwood are endangered species, mechanisms of accumulation of fragrant resin has not been uncovered, and biological effects of fragrant raised from warmed agarwood were recorded in many ways. Local farmers and botanists have been doing many types of private experiments on trees of agarwood but their results were not published as scientific papers. Ko-Do (Japanese traditional incense ceremony) artists and perfumers described their experiences with fragrance of agarwood but they were lacking scientific background. All these historical accumulation of experiences on agarwood can be translated into scientific explanation, and recent advanced technologies may provide excellent support to do it. Scientific researches currently performed in many ways may establish base part of scientific background for agarwood stories, and future studies are expected to enhance agarwood production and its sustainable use.
Department of Forestry and Environmental Science, University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Sri Lanka.
School of Pharmacy, Curtin University, Australia.
Received 31 August, 2012; Accepted 07 January, 2013
Agarwood is a resin produced by certain species of family Thymalaeaceae due to a self – defence mechanism. Most species of Aquilaria and a few species of Gyrinops, Aetoxylon and Gonystylus are capable of producing agarwood. Gyrinops walla, a member of the family Thymelaeaceae is recorded only in the wet zone of Sri Lanka and very rarely in south west India, has not been previously studied to identify its ability of producing agarwood. Therefore the present study was the first ever to conduct and identify the production of agarwood in G. walla and the quality of its resins. Six G. walla trees growing in two distinctive areas of the wet zone of Sri Lanka were used for the present study. All six trees had natural wounds occurred sometime before the sample collection due to abrasions or fallen branches. The dark coloured tissues of the affected areas were carefully collected without cutting the trees and resins were extracted by solvent extraction method. The extracted resins were analysed using gas chromatography to identify the different compounds. Finally these compounds were compared with that of selected Aquilaria species. The results revealed a strong similarity of resin compounds of G. walla with that of Aquilaria species which are commercially used to collect agarwood. Further studies should be conducted to identify the effects of artificial resin induction methods on G. walla that are already used on Aquilaria species.
Agarwood, a highly valuable and fragrant resin, is used as incense for religious ceremonies, perfumes in the Arab world, ornamental materials and medicinal components in oriental medicine (Chen et al., 2011). This resin impregnated woody tissues produced in the heartwood area are mainly found in certain species of Aquilaria which has been a highly priced commodity for more than 2000 years (Nor Azah et al., 2008). It mainly comes from the damage caused to healthy trunks or branches of the trees of those Aquilaria species in the family Thymelaeaceae by mold. In a natural environment, it often takes several years for a wild damaged Aquilaria species plant to perform agarwood (Gerard, 2007). Aquilaria is an evergreen tree that grows up to 40 m high and 60 cm in diameter. Leaves are 5 to 9 cm long and oblong lanceolate in shape. It bears white flowers that are sweetly scented. In addition to Aquilaria, agarwood products have also been recorded from species of the closely related genus Gyrinops (Eurlings and Gravendeel, 2005) and more distantly related Aetoxylon and Gonystylus (Airy, 1954; Compton and Zich, 2002; Blanchette, 2003). Aquilaria and Gyrinops belong to sub-family Aquilarioideae (Domke, 1934) and are separated by the number of stamens only. Species of the genus Gyrinops are grown as trees or shrubs. Leaves of these species are alternate and coriaceous. Its inflorescence is sessile or shortly pedunculate, terminal or axillary, of fascicles or few-flowered. Flowers are pentamerous and hermaphrodite. The pedicels articulate at the base (Dassanayake and Fosberg, 1981).
From the recorded eight species, Gyrinops ledermanii and G. versteegii are known to produce agarwood resins. In addition to that, agarwood resin production has been recorded in Gonystylus macrophyllus, G. bancanus (Compton and Zich, 2002) and Aetoxylon sympetalous (Airy, 1954).
Hou (1960) refers to 12 species of Aquilaria and 8 species of Gyrinops while Mabberly (1997) refers to 15 species of Aquilaria. According to Nor Azah et al. (2008), throughout the countries where it is distributed, there are 25 species of Aquilaria and out of that, 15 species are reported to form agarwood. However, according to Ng et al. (1997), nine species out of 15 recorded Aquilaria species, that is, A. beccariana, A. crassna, A. filaria, A. hirta, A. khasiana, A. malaccensis, A. microcarpa, A. rostrata, and A. sinensis produce agarwood (Compton and Zich, 2002). Aquilaria species naturally distribute in Asia from northern India to Vietnam and Indonesia (Blanchette and van Beek, 2005). According to Gunn et al. (2003), Aquilaria and Gyrinops, the two important agar producing genera are normally distributed in at least 12 countries: Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam and Papua New Guinea. However, China also has a few Aquilaria species and A. sinensis is the dominant species among them (Zhang et al., 2010).
Aquilaria species have not been recorded in Sri Lanka and G. walla is the only member of the genus Gyrinops present in the country. It is a medium tall tree which grows up to 15 m in high with straight, slender trunk with a small, rounded crown. The bark is thin, smooth and strongly fibrous and brownish-grey in colour (Dassanayake and Fosberg, 1981). According to Dassanayake and Fosberg (1981) other than in Sri Lanka, G. walla had been recorded only in the extreme southwest of India. However, it appeared to be very rare in India and there are no documentary evidences found to prove its presence. Therefore most probably G. walla may present only in the wet zone of Sri Lanka. Although in his study, Hou (1960) mentioned about the distribution of G. walla in Sri Lanka, its agarwood producing ability was not recorded in the literature in the past. Therefore the objective of the present study was to identify the resin production ability of G. walla and the composition of agarwood resin. In order to achieve this objective, it was expected to compare the analysed compounds of the resins extracted from sampled G. walla with that of selected Aquilaria species.
Studies on the chemistry of agarwood have reported presence of sesquiterpenes, chromone derivatives, sesquiterpene furanoids, tetradecanoic acid and pentadecanoic acid (Djerassi et al., 1993; Ishihara et al., 1991; Ng et al., 1997; Tamuli et al., 2005). The heartwood of Aquilaria is fine, black or brown in colour and fragrant. The sesquiterpenoids and chromone derivatives are the main source of agarwood’s particular aroma (Prachakul, 1989; Takemoto et al., 2008). However, agarwood resins vary in their composition and some resins contain a large amount of sesquiterpene compounds and others contain principally benzylacetone (Yang et al., 1989). The plant synthesises these aromatic terpenes when it is injured by insects, physical cuts, bacterial infections and chemical simulations (Poain and Poain, 2001; Bunyapraphatsara and Chokchaijareonporn, 1996).
The common methods used to induce agarwood make the deliberate wounding of trees with large knives and the hammering of nails into tree trunks. A chemical method has also been developed recently (Zhang et al., 2010).
METHODOLOGY
Sampling and data collection
Two distinctive areas of the Western Province of the low country wet zone of Sri Lanka were selected for sample collection. These two areas, named Labugama and Yagirala are located in Colombo and Kalutara Administrative districts respectively. Both sample locations are bordered to tropical wet evergreen natural forests.
Resin induction studies by using artificial methods have not been previously conducted for G. walla. Therefore samples were extracted from the trees which produced resins due to natural injuries such as abrasions or fallen branches. Among the large number of trees observed for the present study, agarwood resin formation was found only in a few due to the very low occurrence of natural injuries to the trees. Due to this reason, three trees were selected from each area and the amount of resinous tissues that could be collected was very low. The details of the selected two areas, the locations of trees and their sizes are given in Table 1.
In addition to that, authentic samples of Aquilaria crassna agarwood oil were obtained from Wescorp Agarwood Ltd. (Wescorp Group, WA, Australia) to compare the resin compounds of G. walla.
Resin extraction
The stem colour of G. walla is off white to pale yellow. However, the tissues which produced agarwood resins due to injuries become dark in colour. Those tissues can be seen when the wounds of the stem or the branches are closely observed. Figure 1 shows the cell structure and agarwood resins formed in the tree stem. The wounds of the trees occurred on the main stem from the ground level to 2 m were observed to collect the samples for the present study. Due to the low availability of the resinous areas, it was careful to extract the dark coloured tissues using a sharp chisel and a hammer without felling the trees. Collected tissues with resins were size reduced manually using a sharp edge cutter. Sample of 1g equivalent was placed in a scintillation glass vial and 10 ml of dichloromethane was added. Extract was collected after 12 h. This process was repeated up to three times.
Combined extract was then evaporated using a rotary vacuum evaporator at room temperature and stored away from light until further analysis.
Gas chromatography analysis
A known weight of each extract was dissolved in ethyl acetate to make a 10 mg ml-1 solution. 1 μl of this solution was then injected to the gas chromatography instrument (GC2010, Shimadzu Scientific, Japan) using an auto sampler (AOC20i, Shimadzu Scientific, Japan). A 5% phenyl-polysiloxane coated 30 m × 0.25 mm × 0.25 μm column (AT-5, Alltech, USA) was used for the separation. Injector chamber was kept at 250°C with helium as carrier gas maintained at a linear velocity of 30 cm sec-1. Oven was programmed to increase from 120 to 250°C at the rate of 5°C min-1 and held for 5 min at 250°C. Flame ionisation detector was held at 300°C. Standard alkane series of C8 to C40 (Sigma-Aldrich, USA) was used for the determination of retention indices. Chromatograms and indices obtained from authentic agarwood samples of different Aquilaria species (Nor Azah et al., 2008; Wetwitayaklung et al., 2009; Chen et al., 2011) were used for comparison of the data of the present study.
Moreover, authentic agarwood oil samples obtained from Wescorp Agarwood Ltd. were analysed using gas chromatography mass spectroscopy and compounds were identified and Kovat’s retention indices were established for a similar column and instrumental conditions. The compound analysis was triplicate for G. walla samples collected for the present study and A. crassna authentic samples obtained from Wescorp Agarwood Limited for the purpose of analysing the significance of the compounds statistically.
RESULTS
As shown in Figure 2, the resin contents (w/w) of G. walla samples varied from 4.48 to 10.93% with the mean value of 7.59%. Among them, all three samples collected from Yagirala of Kalutara District, that is, sample numbers Y4, Y5 and Y6 had comparatively higher resin percentages to that of Labugama sample site. However, agarwood resin development pattern in the G. walla plant tissues was not identified because artificial resin induction had not been done and only the naturally wounded areas of the selected trees were used for the present study.
Gas chromatography analysis revealed that the resin of G. walla contained aroma compounds commonly found in commercially available agarwood (Tables 2 and 3). Sesquiterpenes of guaiane and eudesmane skeleton were also present in G. walla resin. Many fatty acids were also found to be common between the authentic and test samples.
The comparison of retention indices of G. walla with the authentic agarwood oil samples was found to be corresponding (Table 2). Previously published data on A. crassna (Wetwitayaklung et al., 2009), A. sinensis (Chen et al., 2011) and A. agallocha (Nor Azah et al., 2008) are shown in Table 2. Apart from A. crassna, information for all tested compounds of G. walla was not found for other Aquilaria species in the literature. However, when thesignificance of the retention indices of G. walla resin compounds was statistically tested with authentic A. crassna oil samples obtained from Wescorp Agarwood Limited, it was found that all compounds other than selina-3,11-diene-9-one and guaia-(10),11-dien-15-al were not significant (Table 2). Apart from those two compounds, the retention indices of the tested compounds of G. walla were similar to that of the tested Aquilaria species. This proves a strong similarity of agarwood between G. walla and Aquilaria species.
The percentage areas of the tested compounds of G. walla resulted after gas chromatography analyses are shown in Table 3. The descriptive statistics were also calculated and added to in the same table. Among these compounds, jinkho-eremol had the lowest mean value while selina-3,11-diene-14-al had the highest mean value. The largest standard error values were given by selina-3,11-diene-9-one and selina-3,11-diene-14-al respectively (Table 3). The standard error values of other compounds of the tested samples were comparatively smaller.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION
For the first time, the present study identified the ability of G. walla for producing agarwood. In addition to that, the present study also confirmed the quality of agarwood produced by G. walla is similar to that of certain Aquilaria species available in the market.
In his study on Aquilaria agallocha, Gibson (1977) stated that every tree does not produce agarwood. Although not properly estimated, it was also rare to observe the formation of agarwood in all naturally grown G. walla trees in the present study. The reason could be that the lack of injuries occurred under the natural conditions.
The sample sizes that could be collected were small and therefore solvent extraction was used for the present study. However, various techniques have been used for agarwood oil extraction in the past such as hydro-distillation, solvent extraction, and supercritical fluid extraction (Naef, 2011). Each technique has advantages and disadvantages. The classical method that is currently used in commerce for the agarwood oil extraction is hydro-distillation. This method consumes 7 to 10 days and high energy for extraction (Wetwitayaklung et al., 2009). The supercritical fluid carbon dioxide extraction is known as non-flammable, non-toxic, chemically stable and less energy consumption method. It provides some advantages over classical method, since super critical carbon dioxide has low viscosity, high diffusivity, good transport properties and gives faster extraction and high yields (Anklam et al., 1998). Nevertheless, agarwood oil is most frequently extracted by hydro-distillation methods because it is safer to operate and environmentally friendly (Liu et al., 2008).
All six samples tested in this study using gas chromatography analysis have shown similar compounds according the gas chromatographic trace. Majority of these compounds were unidentified due to the lack of references. In future, however, a gas chromatograph coupled with a mass spectrometer will be used to identify the remaining compounds.
According to Yoneda et al. (1984), oxo-agarospirol and jinkoh-eremol are found in all types of agarwood. Even though the presence of these compounds was lower in the analysed G. walla samples of the current study, they are important markers in identifying agarwood aroma. These compounds are known to produce characteristic camphor like aroma with woody and floral notes (Ishihara et al., 1991). However, these resins tested were found to lack agarofuran, vetivae sequiterpenes and chromone derivatives, which are key components of the resin formed in Aquilaria species (Naf et al., 1993). More sample analysis is needed to achieve a proper conclusion, however, in this regard.
In order to explain the the reason of significant difference of seline-3,11-diene-9-one and guaia-(10),11-diene-15-ol from that of authentic A. crassna samples, more G. walla samples should be examined. However, according to Yang et al. (1989), agarwood oils vary in their composition: some oils contain a large amount of sesquiterpene compounds and others contain principally benzylacetone. A study conducted on agarwood oil by Takemoto et al. (2008) also proved that the constituents of agarwood oil vary between trees. The results of the present study are similar to the aforementioned studies and the resin compounds and the oil contents vary from one tree to the other. According to Takemoto et al. (2008), it is the variation that occurs naturally due to the biological characteristics of trees. Nor Azah et al. (2008) stated that the colour of the oil may also vary depending on the oil extraction method. However, a colour difference was not visually observed for the agarwood resins extracted in the present study. The reason could be the use of single method for extracting oils from all samples.
Takemoto et al. (2008) did an analysis of volatile components of agarwood oils using SPME-GC-MS. Solid phase microextraction (SPME) is suitable for analysing volatile compounds, absorbing compounds in the headspace of the sample vial, and desorbing them directly into GC injection port. In addition to that, Bhuiyan et al. (2009) did the essential oil analysis successfully for A. agallocha using the same methodology.
According to the analysis conducted and the comparison of retention indices of the present study, it can be concluded that agarwood resins produced in G. walla are similar to that produced by commercially used Aquilaria species.
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Agarwood are harvested from the wild and because it is extremely difficult, if not impossible, to see whether a tree contains agarwood or not most of the Aquilaria trees are chopped down indiscriminately.
Since thousands of years, there has been an ever motivating expedition for agarwood exploitation across Asia as traders continuously search for untouched forests containing Aquilaria trees. The trees were fetching high prices and as a result, the news about agarwood harvesting spread like ‘gold fever’. Large amounts of money were offered to the forest natives, the traditional producers of agarwood.
For some years the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) has listed all Aquilaria species in its Appendix II to control the import and export of agarwood.
Fake Agarwood
Agarwood trading becomes more and more lucrative in the market due to its rare existence and value. Fake agarwood products start to flood the market. These products are in fact made from non-infected Aquilaria wood which has been impregnated with cheap oil and coloured by human interventions. It requires a trained professional to differentiate real agarwood from these fake agarwood using smell and physical observations.
Some fake sellers sell resinous wood piece of Excoecaria Agollocha tree in agarwood market and call it agarwood. Excoecaria Agollocha also known as fish poison has a milky sap which is poisonous. Although it belongs to the same botanical class as agarwood producing trees but it is under a different classification.
A renowned Arab Caliph once said: “If I were a merchant, I would only trade in Oud perfume, so that if I did not make a profit, I would have profited from its sensational scent.”
Oud (agarwood or agar) comes from trees found in India, Cambodia, Vietnam, Yemen, Thailand and Ethiopia. It is a certain fungal infection that comes from Aquilaria trees, which is peeled off the tree. The chips are initially pale and light in color; the heartwood turns dense and dark as a result of the growth of a dangerous mold.
Oud has a very strong and unique scent that is available in chips, which are lit and burned. The scented smoke is called Bakhoor. Oud is also available in an oil form, which is placed in small perfume bottles. People apply the oil on certain areas such as behind the ears and on the wrists for a long-lasting scented effect.
Oud oil is produced by mashing agarwood and placing it in distilling pots and covering them with several inches of water. The lid is then closed and the pot is heated until the water boils. The boiling water ruptures the cells of the wood and the vapor of agarwood oil and steam rises to the top of the pot and escapes, released through a tube leading to a condenser. The condenser cools the vapor and is itself repeatedly cooled by water.
After soaking, the barrels of agarwood mash are emptied into distilling pots and placed over wood fires for distillation. The heating process may look primitive, but the fires are tended by skilled workers who control the temperature quite carefully.
As the vapor passes through the condenser and is cooled, it reverts to a liquid form and is collected in a vessel where the oil and water separate. The water is drawn off leaving the agarwood oil.
Several distillations will generally occur, with the first producing the highest grade of agarwood oil and the last, the lowest. These distillations may continue over a week’s time. After distillation, the remaining mash from the distilling pot is left in the sun to dry. It will then be ground up and used to make joss sticks (incense). Before being bottled, the agarwood oil is filtered to remove dirt and impurities.
Bakhoor, the scented smoke, is made from placing the Oud chip on a bed of natural coal or lighted charcoal, which allows the wood to burn and puff the fragrance of the authentic Oud. Once the chip is burned out, it should be thrown away.
Traditionally in Saudi Arabia, when Oud is lit, the Oud burner is passed around from one person to another as part of Saudi hospitality. An old odd fact about Bakhoor is that when a host is tired of his visitors and wants them to leave, he/she would burn a chip of Oud and walk around the room. Guests would then know that this is a polite signal for them to leave.
Oud in its oil form (dehan) is a considerable investment. It is sold and measured in 12-milliliter bottles called tola. Prices for one tola range anywhere from SR300 to SR8,000. Anything below this price might be a copy or a Chinese imitation.
According to Um Mohammed, a Saudi woman who mixes Oud and has been selling it for a living for over 30 years, says there are other kinds of Oud aside from oil and Bakhoor. There is a special mix called Mabthouth..
“Mabthouth is an Oud paste that is made by crushing Oud wood and adding different scents from Oud dehan and flower oils. Then, the paste is shaped into balls,” she explained. “This paste gives a different smell than what a normal Oud chip would give. As soon as you put the Mabthouth on the flaming coal, you will smell different kinds of Arabian scents all together.”
There are different kinds of Mabthouth that are produced every year. Um Mohammed said that she takes each mixture under study before displaying and offering them to clients. Price range for Mabthouth goes from SR100 to SR500 per box.
Um Mohammed takes small poor quality pieces of Oud (wood chips), crushes them into tiny morsels and mixes them with different oils. When burned, this mixture gives off a better scent than the poor quality pieces when burned alone. This is only done to improve the quality of Oud.
Only natural materials are used to manufacture Arabian Oud mixtures. Um Mohammed uses musk, patchouli, oak, jasmine flower, rose flower, saffron, cedar, amber, bergamot, sandalwood and, of course, agarwood..
Saudi women use a certain method of Bakhoor burning: They walk around the house holding the burner to scatter the smoke in every room. They also wave their abayas and clothing above the smoke so that it picks up the scent and stays there for long. Other Saudi women use Oud and Bakhoor as body perfume by applying dehan on their hair. They put some of the dehan on the tip of their fingers and run it through their wet hair, or they just wave their hair on the smoke coming out of the Bakhoor burner.
Imam Bukhari reported that Oud is known to be an excellent scent for strengthening the body and the mind. According to him, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “Treat with Indian incense (Oud Al-Hindi) for it has healing for seven diseases; it is to be sniffed by one having throat problems and put in the mouth for one suffering from pleurisy.”
Oud is also used to traditionally treat asthma, chest congestion, colic, nausea, kidney problems, thyroid cancer, lung tumors, and post childbirth. It is also a general tonic in China, India and Japan.
There are at least 3 common methods to extract oil from agarwood.
Hydro Distillation
Hydro distillation is the gentler process for obtaining essential oils. In this method, Agarwood chips are fully submerged in water, producing a ‘soup’, and the still is brought to boil. The resultant steam of which contains the aromatic plant molecules being captured and condensed. The oil will normally float on top of the ‘hydrosol’ (the distilled water component) and may be separated off. When the condensed material cooled down, the oil and hydrosol is separated and the decanted oil to be used as essential oil..
This method protects the oil so extracted to a certain degree, since the surrounding water acts as a barrier to prevent it from overheating. Hydro distillation can be performed at a reduced pressure (under vacuum) to reduce the temperature to less than 100°C, which is useful in protecting the plant material as well as essential oil. In spite that the hydro-distillation is, the most common method to extract and isolate the essential oils because for perfumery, the high temperatures can destroy the most delicate fragrance molecules, so hydro-distillation is preferred, but it is a time consuming process and needs a large amounts of plant material.
Steam Distillation
Steam distillation seems to be the best method for the extraction and isolation of essential oils from the plant materials (Kister, 1992). The desired plant material is placed onto a still. A still is a specialized piece of equipment that is used in the distillation process. It consists of a vessel into which heat is added and a device that is used for cooling. The plant is first placed into the vessel.. Next steam is added and passed through the plant. The heat from the steam helps to open the pockets of the plant that contain the plant’s aromatic molecules or oils.
Once open, the plant releases these aromatic molecules and in this state, the fragrant molecules are able to rise along with the steam. The vapors carrying these molecules travel within a closed system towards the cooling device. Cold water is used to cool the vapors. As they cool, they condense and transform into a liquid state. The liquid is collected in a container and as with any type of oil/water mixture, it separates. The oils float towards the top while the water settles below. From there, it’s a simple matter of removing the oils that have been separated. These are the highly condensed, aromatic oils used in aromatherapy.
Supercritical CO2 Extraction
When CO2 (carbon dioxide) is subjected to high pressure, the gas turns into liquid. This liquid CO2 can be used as a very inert, safe, “liquid solvent.” which will extract the aromatic molecules in a process similar to that used to extract absolutes (above). The advantage, of course, is that no solvent residue remains, since at normal pressure and temperature, the CO2 simply reverts to a gas and evaporates. CO2 extraction has given us essences of some aromatics that don’t yield essential oils, Rose Hip Seed and Calendula, for examples.
Agarwood is the most rare and precious wood on the planet, prized for its rich, wonderful and healing fragrance.
Agarwood has also been used in nearly every religious tradition around the world and revered for thousands of years by many cultures as the most treasured incense ingredient.
Agarwoods ability to invoke a deep sense of relaxation makes it extremely useful in any aromatherapy session, but is especially effective where anxiety and depression are present.
Agarwood Aquilaria malaccensis in herbal uses
Is Agarwood Aquilaria malaccensis a herb? How is it application?
Internally for digestive and bronchial complaints, fevers, and rheumatism (bark, wood). Because of its astringent nature, the powdered wood of the aloes tree provide an effective skin tonic and is recommended by Ayurvedic physicians as an application for restoring pigment in leucoderma.
Powdered aloeswood provides an antiseptic so gentle it is used for ear and eye infections as well as on open wounds..
Agarwood Grading
Agarwood quality is being selected and graded according to the basic specifications / Criteria of Grading system that is being used in the Agarwood business.
The few basic specifications are The Oleoresin content, The Colour, and The Aroma/Smell.
Based on the above specifications Agarwood quality is graded into various types and qualities which have been approved and accepted by major customers in the Middle East Countries which are the main export market for Agarwood.
Agarwood as an alternative eco investments. According to the University of Minnesota, new scientific processes and microbiologic research mean high quality Agarwood can be produced in under two years. In the forests of Southeast Asia an evergreen known as the Aquilaria tree grows. Roughly 1% will become infected by a fungus, which spreads from deep within the heart of the wood. As natural properties resist the fungus, a dark brown – often black – thick resinous core is formed. This resin is known as Agarwood which, for centuries has been one of the most prized and valued aromatic resins in the world.
Value of Agarwood: Sweet Smell of Success
Agarwood is not just valued for the wood itself but also for the properties found in its unique, aromatic resin. Once processed, Agar provides a scent unlike any other in the world and is a staple for luxury perfumes, soaps, incense, spiritual and religious ceremonies and more. For many in the Middle East there is no acceptable substitute for the use of Agar in their ceremonies. Chips are burned for their distinct fragrance and wood gifted to show wealth..
Agar has also been in demand for medicinal purposes for thousands of years throughout Southeast Asia. In the West leading manufacturers of perfumes, soaps and fragrances are onstantly seeking out reliable sources. No less than Yves St. Laurent insist on Agar Oil as an additive for their more premium brands. In Japan, Agar incense is used regularly during Koto or Incense ceremonies. Oil distilled from agarwood can cost as much as US$30,000 per kilogram depending on the grade and demand.
Uses of Agarwood
Incense
Soaps
Perfume
Medicinal
Solving the 1% Agarwood Problem
Only 1% of Aquilaria trees contain the rich Agar resinous core so valued throughout the world. Adding to the problem is the fact that since 1995 Aquilaria malaccenis, the primary source of Agarwood, has been protected by the Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. Now, imagine a solution whereby every single tree contained the rich resinous core, the maturation period was enhanced dramatically and the process by which each tree was harvested met all environmental guidelines and regulations. This would represent an exciting opportunity.
Have you ever put on perfume in the morning only to find that the fragrance disappeared or changed by the afternoon? This is because commercial perfumes are mass produced from cheaply manufactured synthetic aroma chemicals, and rarely contain any genuine aromatics.. The average $80 bottle of perfume can cost as little as $5 to produce. Are you actually getting what you’ve paid for?
Aloeswood oil is 100% pure, natural, and authentic fragrance essence. Too thick to spray, Aloeswood is a luscious oil that feels like fine velvet when rubbed onto the skin. Agarwood does not contain one molecule of synthetic aroma chemicals, and is certifiable the core essential fragrance you are seeking in any perfume. Due to the pure nature of Ouds and its limited supply, the production rate is more costly. Read also about the Quality of Agarwood Oil.
One swipe of Oud oils will keep you emanating a rich, intoxicating aroma all day. Experience fine line of Oud, and you will never go back to using commercial perfume again!
Different types grades, quality, properties and smell of Agarwood oil from India. Article by Trygve Harris
India Super Hindi – Sweet succulent woods and warm balsam start this delicious descent, all full and rich. It seems all consciousness comes to a head and the soft sweet undertone supports a heady balsamic heaven. This oil holds together well, changing perhaps less than the others as the minutes tick by. These are the highest most divine notes, and this oudh has them all. Super long lived, 24 hours later my teeth still tingle, and the balsam happy notes are still singling their joyous soft melodies.
India Birrin – Sharp smoke and acids leap to the forefront of this fecal and fecund oil.. This oil, more than any of the others, evokes the interior of the body. Rank and robust, the combination is nevertheless exciting and a little bit surreptitious. This is the rawest and most volatile of the oudhs. He is like a wild young man, completely out of control. But even though he might make you uncomfortable, there is something alluring and seductive about him, even if you feel a little weird about it afterward. Try as you might to stay away from him, I’m willing to bet you sneak a taste when no ones looking.
Different types grades, quality, properties and smell of Agarwood oil from Laos. Article by Trygve Harris.
Lao Sompat — rich ripe fruity top, with underlying dirty, earthy balsamic, teeth tingling mouth watering characteristic so indicative of lao oud, followed by an ethereal subtly sumptuous, ecstasy fomenting bliss. As this oil evolves, a rooted, deep dark forest sense enters, with an almost vetiver-like (almost) sense of roots, mud and water, further along peppery notes come out, with the sharpness almost immediately ceding to the warm black pepper tones, and a bit of barnyard behind it. By this point, the oudh makes a nest in the back of the throat, creating an entire vibrating orgasmic world between the throat and the top of the head. After this a tobacco note begins to show, and with the road now open, this oudh just opens and flows, like the highway as you drive through the desert at dawn.
Lao Keo — fruity, fecal, lots of higher, top notes, with a fertile, ripe, fermenting edge, rounding out with the deeper notes in more of a mid level, black cherry aspect. As this oil evolves, we come across a grim sweetness, not really sweet, but like a slightly overbearing yet happy drunk. Further along, a liquor fueled, rolling sense creeps in, with the deep earthy notes being hijacked by this alluring, siren song. There is a rich rotten underlying note, which is exciting in a way things are not supposed to be, according to society’s structure, so it’s a hidden kind of excitement, a forbidden kind of excitement..
Lao Super — smooth, subtle, sophistication with all the deep harmonies present in a multi-layered symphony. There’s barn and there’s pepper, but these notes play like oboes and cellos, with the violin-like tobacco flower. Something of a musty unused attic plays the timpani. And deep rich loamy earth presents the bass, a fertile breeding ground for the strong bright and true unfolding of honeyed melodies. This oil can easily go into obsession when you bury your face in him. You might not want to come up for air! As I immerse myself in this most dominant of oudhs, my teeth tingle, and it’s almost impossible to take. The notes don’t easily unravel themselves; they play in a tight and taut formation but with a steady underscore of earth and roots,, fertility and fecundity.
Lao Boyah — This is the one we have called “cultivated” in the past. Boyah is agarwood distilled from uninfected, or white, wood. If your agarwood is solid at room temperature, then it’s boyah. While Boyah is not technically Oudh, it is agarwood. Boyah can be any quality, and this Lao Boyah is really a nice one. He smells like oudh, except a little more spastic and wilder, with the notes going crazy, all dirt, mud, fecal and pepper screaming over each other but it makes that throat-top-of-the-head connection. The body is bright and all aspects become integrated. As he wears in and on, this agarwood unfolds very tightly, revealing many if not all of the same notes found in Sompat.
Vietnam Agarwood 