Sandalwood - Plantation Grown EO

Smells more like cedarwood than sandalwood. I have tried most of the others. I was very pleased with the sandalwood rare and the others that I have tried, but thought I would save some money on the plantation sandalwood. There is nothing of the sweet warm tones of the other sandalwoods, Very woody. Don't think I will use it at all. Response from the Oil Room: Thank you for your observation. The Santalum album oils come from trees grown in different countries – Sandalwood, Rare (India); the organic Sandalwood from Sri Lanka we carried in the past, and this plantation-grown Sandalwood from Australia. Even though they are all the same species, their aromas will differ because of the difference in terroir – climate, soil, altitude, etc. – also whether or not the oil has had a chance to age. And please note that we offer samples for every oil we carry – that is so that one can experience/evaluate the aroma before purchase of a larger amount, especially useful with precious and/or costly oils. Sandalwood oil is renowned for how beautifully the aroma improves with age. We fully expect our plantation-grown Sandalwood to do exactly that, but still have its own unique Sandalwood aroma. If all of us who love the sublime beauty of true Sandalwood oil can, for a while, make do with the other Sandalwood oils that have come to market, there may one day be supplies of our favorite Sandalwood to enjoy once again. In the meantime, we hope you will come to appreciate your oil as it ages and that you won’t be disappointed in the end.

Review by DaveH 2/28/2017

I have enjoyed Mysore sandalwood for a few years. I decided to try a sample of the plantation gown sandalwood and I am so pleased. Its hard to tell how great the scent is until you put it on your skin....I am addicted...I love it..When I was in India in 1970 I brought home as much sandalwood as I could ...This is very very close to the Indian scent...I highly recommend trying it...

Review by Jillybean 2/4/2017

I am a sandalwood freak. Back in the early 80s I was able to get a very high end oil from France, but over the years it became more difficult to obtain. I was an early Eden customer and 10 to 15 years ago bought several ounces of Indian oil which was amazing, culminating in one oil that was called Sandalwood Superior. In the ancient days of eBay, I was also able to score several intact apothecary oils that were more than 50 years old. I have smelled a huge number of sandalwood's in the last 10 years, and nothing will ever be the same as these fabulous old oils. This plantation oil is the closest thing that I have found in forever. Yes, of course it needs to age a few years but it is already quite beautiful. It is priced in a very reasonable range in my opinion.

Review by Docstrange 10/1/2016

I, too, am disappointed and wholeheartedly agree with reviewer #1.. When they said that it may have been harvested too soon, that was my first thought upon smelling straight from the bottle.. Either it was harvested too soon or it may need maturation time, the latter being my sincere hope as I would love for this to become that deeply quintessential sandalwood I imagined upon purchasing.. I have since repurchased my go-to sandalwood extra from EB..

Review by evangeline 9/28/2016

I'm over 60 years old and I well remember what real Mysore sandalwood was like. As the real thing became more and more scarce, I continued to purchase "East Indian" sandalwood which usually meant Indonesian santalum album. While it was not the Mysore of renown, it was still quite good. As that now has almost completely disappeared from the market, I turned to first the Australian spicatum and, later on, the Hawaiian paniculatum. For some years now I have been aware of the Australian santalum album endeavor and have anxiously awaited for it to arrive on the market. I must say that I am really quite disappointed, especially after reading the description given by Eden for this product. It has nothing of the buttery, woody top notes of the Indian and, while not bad in drydown, it really lacks the balsamic powdery scent that should be in the oil. Perhaps this 1st harvest is too soon and the trees (and oil) need to be given more time to age but for my nose, this is not anywhere near the oil of yore.

Review by tortar 8/28/2016