In ancient China, there were "Four Great Fragrances" with agarwood being the most esteemed. Agarwood has a spicy, bitter taste, occasionally mixed with a cool floral scent and a nutty aroma, creating a richly layered fragrance. Moreover, agarwood is popular for its ability to regulate qi, relieve pain, calm the mind, and aid sleep.
So, how do we distinguish the different types of agarwood? It starts with understanding the state of resin formation:
Kinam
The finest among agarwoods, named for the aromatic changes caused by microbial and insect erosion. Kinam is relatively soft, with very apparent oil glands. Its fragrance is sweet, cool, and rich. It is said that one is fortunate to smell Kinam in a lifetime
Raw Agarwood
Extracted from living agarwood trees, which generally need to be over thirty years old. Freshly harvested raw agarwood has a cool, sweet scent with floral and fruity notes but contains a high moisture content.
Earth Agarwood
Refers to all agarwood harvested from the soil. Agarwood trees may be buried underground due to earthquakes, landslides, and other external forces, and after hundreds or thousands of years, they are unearthed, undergoing a process of soil degradation and carbonization. It has a subtle scent when raw and a sweet, rich aroma with a full sense of qi when burned.
Ripe Agarwood
Collected from withered agarwood trees, it comes from aged wood whose bark has decayed, leaving only the heartwood and branches intact. Its advantage is a more mellow fragrance, but it may have a degree of moldy smell.
Sinking Agarwood
Also known as "submerged agarwood," it refers to agarwood with a high resin content that sinks in water. High-quality sinking agarwood is highly flammable due to its oil content, and when burned, boiling oil droplets can be seen, and the wood color is darker. It has a faint scent at first but becomes richly aromatic when lit.