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Some would say that patchouli is the most distinctively fragranced herb in the botanical kingdom.
The first whiff of its rich, exotic scent never fails to become fixed forever in the olfactory memory.
Patchouli (pogostemon patchouli) is native to Malaysia where it was used as a traditional medicine and perfume there.
It was also used in China and Japan. Patchouli was first described by botanists in the Philippines in 1845.
Patchouli is a bushy, 3-foot tall plant with small furry leaves and is a tropical member of the lamiaceae family.
Distant relatives include lavender, basil, marjoram, rosemary and many other herb plants associated with more temperate regions.
Patchouli seems to have moved south and suffused itself in the mysterious aromas of a steamy jungle.
Today patchouli is farmed throughout tropical Asia. True patchouli has hairy stems, flowers seldom, and is propagated by cuttings.
A second species, Pogostemon heyneanus, known as Java patchouli, has smooth stems and flowers reliably. Java patchouli has an inferior aroma and may show up as an adulterant in the whole leaf form or the distilled oil.
Plants available from herb nurseries labeled as Pogostemon cablin often turn out to be Pogostemon heyneanus.
Patchouli is usually grown on small forest plots by individual farmers who harvest and dry the leaves, then sell them to distilleries that buy the leaves from various farmers and combine them into one steam distillation.
Newly distilled patchouli oil has a fresh, slightly harsh aroma. As the oil ages it mellows considerably, becoming sweeter and more balsamic. Patchouli is an oil that, like fine wine, improves with age.
High quality patchouli oils emit a suave, fruity, wine-like top note when uncapped.
Patchouli oil is dark yellow.
The perfume industry considers the dark oil color undesirable so usually they redistill the oil or adulterate it with cedarwood oil.
Patchouli's musty, sweet, spicy smell evokes strong emotional reactions from both men and women.
Some associate the scent with that of moist earth, while for others, the memories of the hippie generation of the 1960s. Patchouli has a reputation as being considered a aphrodisiac.
Traditionally, patchouli was used to perfume fabrics in India.
In Victorian times, the English loved shawls imported from India that were permeated with the scent of patchouli which came from their being packed in patchouli leaves to ward off insects.
Patchouli has also been used as an anti-depressant, anti-inflammatory.
It is considered a sedative in low doses and a stimulant in high doses, and an aid for dry, cracked skin.
