Our perfumes containing Oud

Oud is derived from the wood of agar tree (Aquilaria malaccensis) that typically grows in Southeast Asian countries especially in India, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines, and Thailand.

When a specific mold infection occurs in the wood, the plant excretes a resinous substance that is dark and highly scented. This resin is often called “black gold” or “liquid gold”.

The term “Oud” refers (improperly) to both the resinous dark wood and the liquid oil distilled from it. Oud is the aromatic resin generated within the heartwood only in response to an injury or infection, while agarwood is the non-infected wood of Aquilaria trees.

It’s assumed that for every 10 oud trees in the wild, only 1 will have mold-infected heartwood. Expert professionals find these old agar trees due to their superior richness of resinous aroma. 

As the resin is excreted only after the specific mold infection, it’s estimated that only 2 percent of these rare trees can produce the aromatic resin. This contributes to oud’s position as the most expensive perfumery ingredient in the essential oil market.