- Latin name
- Dipterocarpus turbinatus and other species
- Family
- Dipterocarp family (Dipterocarpaceae)
- Origin
- India, Indonesia, Southeast Asia
- Parts used
- balsam (resin from cuts in the trunk)
- Raw materials
- gurjun balsam essential oil
- Extraction
- steam distillation of the balsam
- Olfactory group
- woody, balsamic
- Position in the pyramid
- base
- Synthetic substitutes
- woody bases, beta-caryophyllene
Gurjun balsam is a resinous substance from tall tropical Dipterocarpus trees in the forests of India and Southeast Asia. It is collected from cuts in the trunk and then distilled into a soft woody-balsamic oil.
How it smells: warm, woody and soft: dry resinous wood, a light spiciness, a faintly sweet and earthy shade. Gurjun sounds calm and unobtrusive, but it makes a woody base fuller and warmer.
Gurjun oil is an excellent fixative: it sounds quiet itself but helps other notes last longer on the skin. So perfumers often place it beneath sandalwood, patchouli or vetiver to deepen and round out the base.
What it pairs with: with sandalwood and cedar — a warm woody base, with patchouli — earthy depth, with frankincense and myrrh — resinous compositions, with vanilla — soft amber fragrances, with pepper — dry spiced wood.
Good to know: gurjun balsam was once used to waterproof boats and as a varnish, because it protects wood well from moisture.
