Discussions and Distinctions on Agarwood and Kynam / Kyara
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An excerpt from the Ouddict forum:
It’s my understanding, from discussions with several of the companies in Japan that I’ve had *in person* - that part of the distinction of Kyara is a very high oil to resin balance. It’s what makes them potentially sticky (I say potentially as no all Kyara is “wet” or “sticky” … grades, etc)
It’s the same phenomenon that makes bead woods more valuable. That room temp aroma is from a higher % of Oil.
The Gulf Market tends to focus more on Resin Density.
The Asian Market in general - and the Japanese Market specifically - looks for a high % of both, with emphasis on Oil > Resin.
Resin, alone, smells flat. It’s the Oil that adds nuance and complexity. It’s why “Japanese woods” tend to smell so lively, and why woods graded on that manner are more highly prized.
It’s not to say that the Gulf Market doesn’t have room temp aromatic woods. It’s just not emphasized as much - and those nuances are usually entirely lost on charcoal. They dance at lower temps - hence the Kodo and Electric methods of indirect heating at lower temps. It’s to FOCUS on the top notes. The wood shouldn’t bubble like it does on charcoal. You’re doing it wrong if it does, by that standard. Off or burnt notes - so common on charcoal - are considered an offense to the wood.
Note that solvent extracted post distillation woods and even most CO2’s (I say most, not all) end up smelling flat and devoid of top notes. It’s due to the resin content - and often to lower grade woods being used. Resin smells flat. It’s why we burn resin dense woods (also because resin doesn’t come over in any meaningful quantity in distillation) and why the best oils come from high oil density woods with some levels of resin. It’s the high oil density. It’s why to a point, incense woods yield way more oil - it’s the OIL density.
These same principles are true in Kyara / Kynam + compounds that only exist in Kynam and not in regular Agarwoods.
It’s why I use the phrase :
“All Kynam is Agarwood,
Very little Agarwood is Kynam”
The Japanese, btw, only consider Kyara to come from Sham, which is a reference to a Kingdom’s territory that hasn’t even been around in 500 years.
Today we say “Vietnam”, but Sham encompasses modern day Vietnam, and parts of Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, and Southern China (in which Hainan is included). These woods were all exported through costal PORTS of Vietnam - hence why they’ll say today “Kyara comes from Vietnam”.
Other regions with Kyara-like formations - Brunei, Malaysia, Sumatra etc - would be termed “like Kyara”, but would never be called Kyara. That definition has expanded more in artisan circles and in some regards in a Chinese circles as the supply has dwindled. Including things that 100 years ago would never have been called Kyara. Heck … not even 20 years ago.
I brought to market Samundari - which is an Agallocha Kyara-like wood. From what I can tell, not a whole lot of Indian woods circulated in Japan. They tend to not like Malaccensis as much - and by default - Agallocha - as they do Crassna, Sinensis, and subspecies like Beccariana and Microcarpa.
Note that Japan has lots of indonesian wood - but they accept only very narrow odor profiles. Those profiles are primarily that of Beccariana and Microcarpa. It’s why “Japanese Indo” woods tend to be very floral smelling.
Filaria and Gyrinops in Japan are NOT considered Agarwood, btw. That’s an Arab thing, and a modern thing, at that. They’d literally laugh at me when I’d show them woods from Sri Lanka or the Philippines. We’d head some and they’d all grimace 😆
I’ve shown dozens of owners and executives in Japan superb Gyrinops and Filaria (some Cumingiana, as well) - woods that would make our mouth’s here water - and every single one has said they are not Agarwood. They’d all make a sour face at me. It was cute.
So one big thing to keep in mind here is that we are borrowing from a multiplicity of disciplines and definitions here. Which in many ways adds to the complexity of nailing down a singular definition for things.
In this regard - flexibility and familiarity with different cultural standards and definitions is to our benefit.
It’s my understanding, from discussions with several of the companies in Japan that I’ve had *in person* - that part of the distinction of Kyara is a very high oil to resin balance. It’s what makes them potentially sticky (I say potentially as no all Kyara is “wet” or “sticky” … grades, etc)
It’s the same phenomenon that makes bead woods more valuable. That room temp aroma is from a higher % of Oil.
The Gulf Market tends to focus more on Resin Density.
The Asian Market in general - and the Japanese Market specifically - looks for a high % of both, with emphasis on Oil > Resin.
Resin, alone, smells flat. It’s the Oil that adds nuance and complexity. It’s why “Japanese woods” tend to smell so lively, and why woods graded on that manner are more highly prized.
It’s not to say that the Gulf Market doesn’t have room temp aromatic woods. It’s just not emphasized as much - and those nuances are usually entirely lost on charcoal. They dance at lower temps - hence the Kodo and Electric methods of indirect heating at lower temps. It’s to FOCUS on the top notes. The wood shouldn’t bubble like it does on charcoal. You’re doing it wrong if it does, by that standard. Off or burnt notes - so common on charcoal - are considered an offense to the wood.
Note that solvent extracted post distillation woods and even most CO2’s (I say most, not all) end up smelling flat and devoid of top notes. It’s due to the resin content - and often to lower grade woods being used. Resin smells flat. It’s why we burn resin dense woods (also because resin doesn’t come over in any meaningful quantity in distillation) and why the best oils come from high oil density woods with some levels of resin. It’s the high oil density. It’s why to a point, incense woods yield way more oil - it’s the OIL density.
These same principles are true in Kyara / Kynam + compounds that only exist in Kynam and not in regular Agarwoods.
It’s why I use the phrase :
“All Kynam is Agarwood,
Very little Agarwood is Kynam”
The Japanese, btw, only consider Kyara to come from Sham, which is a reference to a Kingdom’s territory that hasn’t even been around in 500 years.
Today we say “Vietnam”, but Sham encompasses modern day Vietnam, and parts of Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, and Southern China (in which Hainan is included). These woods were all exported through costal PORTS of Vietnam - hence why they’ll say today “Kyara comes from Vietnam”.
Other regions with Kyara-like formations - Brunei, Malaysia, Sumatra etc - would be termed “like Kyara”, but would never be called Kyara. That definition has expanded more in artisan circles and in some regards in a Chinese circles as the supply has dwindled. Including things that 100 years ago would never have been called Kyara. Heck … not even 20 years ago.
I brought to market Samundari - which is an Agallocha Kyara-like wood. From what I can tell, not a whole lot of Indian woods circulated in Japan. They tend to not like Malaccensis as much - and by default - Agallocha - as they do Crassna, Sinensis, and subspecies like Beccariana and Microcarpa.
Note that Japan has lots of indonesian wood - but they accept only very narrow odor profiles. Those profiles are primarily that of Beccariana and Microcarpa. It’s why “Japanese Indo” woods tend to be very floral smelling.
Filaria and Gyrinops in Japan are NOT considered Agarwood, btw. That’s an Arab thing, and a modern thing, at that. They’d literally laugh at me when I’d show them woods from Sri Lanka or the Philippines. We’d head some and they’d all grimace 😆
I’ve shown dozens of owners and executives in Japan superb Gyrinops and Filaria (some Cumingiana, as well) - woods that would make our mouth’s here water - and every single one has said they are not Agarwood. They’d all make a sour face at me. It was cute.
So one big thing to keep in mind here is that we are borrowing from a multiplicity of disciplines and definitions here. Which in many ways adds to the complexity of nailing down a singular definition for things.
In this regard - flexibility and familiarity with different cultural standards and definitions is to our benefit.