Re: distilling into carrier oils and base notes (poplar)

[Guest guest]

I've had super good luck distilling into black poplar (Populus

trichocarpa)infused carrier oils - creating " Pacifc Northwest Attars. " Not many

native basenotes here in the Pacific Northwest but the poplar is exquisite -

sweet and round with notes of vanilla, beeswax, evergreens, cinnamon, damp earth

lush spring growth. Poplar also supports floral notes like a silk hammock -

buoying them without overwhelming their delicate light.

*****************************

 

Hi jess,

 

I remember you talking about your Pacific Northwest Attars before, have you

begun to sell those yet?  The idea is exciting, and I love poplars!  I picked up

a sample of poplar absolute a while back, but wasn't terribly impressed.  It

sounds like it translates well into an infused oil though!

 

Thanks,

 

[Guest guest]

>

> I've had super good luck distilling into black poplar (Populus

trichocarpa)infused carrier oils - creating " Pacifc Northwest Attars. " Not many

native basenotes here in the Pacific Northwest but the poplar is exquisite -

sweet and round with notes of vanilla, beeswax, evergreens, cinnamon, damp earth

lush spring growth. Poplar also supports floral notes like a silk hammock -

buoying them without overwhelming their delicate light.

>

> *****************************

>  

> Hi jess,

>  

> I remember you talking about your Pacific Northwest Attars before, have you

begun to sell those yet?  The idea is exciting, and I love poplars!  I picked up

a sample of poplar absolute a while back, but wasn't terribly impressed.  It

sounds like it translates well into an infused oil though!

>  

> Thanks,

>

Dear ,

I will start selling my Pacific Northwest Attars this winter, at local Portland

shops. If all goes well with my health I should be opening up for online sales

this holiday season.

The poplar absolute that I sampled was also unimpressive - it smelled kind of

soapy-sweet and lacked the complexity of the Black Poplar I use (Populus

trichocarpa). Generally the White Poplar is the one they extract in Canada, and

I dont like it nearly as well. It also lacks the exquisite coloring of black

poplar which is vivid orange-red. There are 8 aromatic poplars from what I

understand, including the wicked-good Spice Poplar found in Montana - blood red

balsam that smells like cherries and cinnamon (I ain't lyin'!)

WE triple infuse our fractionated coconut oil with buds we harvest during late

winter, before they open. It has taken 6 years to figure out how to get a clean

, gorgeous poplar smell. WE have found that removing the water is critical, and

have also started infusing with an air-lock on the infusing jug so that we can

see when any kind of aerobic respiration is taking place and give the bottle a

vent. Venting any escaping gasses seems to eliminate a good deal of the

off-notes that occur when you infuse an organic material with water in it.

Dried buds do not work. Alcohol tinctures are also great - working on a poplar

absolute by extracting with alcohol and then evaporating the alcohol off -

hoping to have perfected this process by Winter 2012 so that you guys can try

some.

Black poplar smells of beeswax, vanilla, evergreen branches, slight cinnamon and

all kinds of notes I cant even place. It blends seamlessly with all conifer

oils, all florals, and does outrageous things to citrus oils - especially

orange. LAvender folds into like a baby coming home to mama. It has powerful

antibacterial properties, as it is a balsam, and can be added to other oil

infusions to stretch their shelf-life. It is the first tree to leaf out in the

early spring and so the smell signals the end of our long winters....truly my

number one plant comrade. It functions similarly to ylang, which is as a base,

middle and top note all in one.

Kindly,

Jess Ring