The problem with Michelangelo is… he doesn't soak!
Ha! Fair point. Well, I'm practically the poster child for non-fermented oud, especially Indian oud (I haven't gotten more flack for anything like I have for that).
So I totally agree with you there... and by the way, maybe handing Michelangelo a laser cutter might have been a more apt analogy. Having said that, as you know I only use soaking as the preliminary step for what is to come next. So going along with the analogy, maybe the question should be: would Michelangelo be able to sculpt his David with a laser cutter?
As for soaking in and of itself, I adamantly maintain my position. I have done too many side-by-side distillations
myself using the very same wood to believe the opinion of anyone that suggests soaking help. Heck, if you ask me, if soaking helps a distiller get a higher yield then to me its actually a sign they're
distilling wrong. Me personally, I'd pick non-soaked distillation over soaked distillation any day and simply play with the other variables to ensure a longer cooking period.
Case in point: Pencerahan which was cooked for 100 days straight, with a net yield of about 15g/kg. That's pretty decent considering there were no schmancy yield boosting techniques incorporated. Could I have soaked the wood prior to commencing with distillation, sure. Should I have? I say, WHY? Aside from the fact that it would warp the aroma, 100 days of cooking inside a pot
encompasses practically all standard soak periods, so what's the point?
As a side, I asked Adam when he was visiting a couple days ago why he soaks the wood he's used for so many of his 'zero barn' oils (Malinau Extreme, Royal Vietnam etc). He admitted that he does the soaking simply because of the 'wow' factor
("3 months of soaking and not even a whiff of pickles, socks, cows, or excrement!").
I agree, it does have a certain wow factor. But at the end of the day, what is the point? Adam himself was disappointed by the yield of many of these super-long-soaked batches.
To me, the only benefit to soaking is when it opens up locked doors in the resulting oil. Like Oud Mostafa. That beastliness that gets you down on your knees, and takes over. That beast is a thing of beauty.
Then again.... is it the soaking? Is it the copper apparatus, glassware, or ceramic pots?
...Or was it the wood?
I noticed that Kruger uploaded the "Ensar & Taha" video. Near the end you mention that in the end "the wood has the upper hand, every time". I couldn't have said it any better myself. At least that is the case with oils extracted from high grade wood. For lower grade wood, lots more acrobatics required to bedazzle i.e. DISTRACT the audience. I'm sure you know exactly what I'm talking about... after all, that's the case 99% of the time.
Bottom line: for me, soaking is just a means to an end (which is the step after the soak). Otherwise, I promise you I'm a foot soldier in the front line of the anti-soaking army.
Like I've told distillers repeatedly (even told them, sure, you can distill soaked and unsoaked side by side if you don't believe me), told Adam, and told countless other folks, soaking doesn't increase the yield in and of itself. I firmly believe folks are wasting their time. There's folks who soak till white wood turns black with mould, others who soak in alcohol (wasting precious oil into the solvent), and Adam even tried soaking in lactic acid despite my telling him I've tried it and that 'scientific report' backing it is plain wrong, so don't bother - which yielded a very weird vinegary smelling oil and there was no increase in yield. Having said that, I do like to wash the wood in lactic acid to kill microbes and fungi, if available.
There's other methods that can be used in this (losing) battle we're fighting against the rising cost of raw material. Sadly, each one comes with its own can of worms.
By the way, I understand you've done some unsoaked Indian ouds too? If so,
how did you manage to convince the distiller?!
It was pretty tough for me. At first he was quite suspicious of my technique proposal. He threw the same old yield argument at me. However, after consistently getting between 74-83g per Gen3 batch from a 7kg pot, i.e. a very handsome yield (Chamkeila, Lalitya, and some future releases e.g. Meghalaya and Nagaland), he now listens to any and all suggestions and advice I share (ahem.. instruct).
Cumingi-
WHAT?!? Bro, you just killed all the appeal and mystery this wood had for me!
'Cumingiana'… LOL… I get reminded of Billy Crystal in "Analyze This" trying to pronounce 'consigliere' in front of a gang of mobsters. I normally wouldn't go into taxonomy when dealing with these oils because to me that strips them of their natural mystery and wonder. Have you ever heard of a chef who refers to his Roma tomatoes as
Solanum lycopersicum? Let's face it, we're not scientists and we'll never be scientists. The minute we become scientists, we cease to be artists. That's just my take. Call me ignorant if you like!
That cracked me up!
I must confess, it frustrates me that I do have to rely on some science even though oud is clearly an art to me. Left-brained folks
must hang their coats at the door to appreciate oud to the fullest. Or when we're talking about distillers, for them to truly create art masterpieces. The 'problem' with science is that not everything that looks good on paper will smell good on the wrist. Or stir the soul.
For me, the only reason species matter is because their resin properties are different (e.g. Filaria thinnest, Crassna softest, Micro Becca and Malaccensis hardest). Since my yield boosting technique depends on the nature of the resin (how many a batch I've wasted in experimenting, to find the 'sweet spots' for each specie!), I am forced to wear my Left-Brain Coat for a few days. Simply because, unlike you, I wasn't fast enough to collect crazy good wood when it was relatively cheaper and therefore have to try my best to counter the effects of rising wood cost on oil price. Case in point:
Xiang Liao Ling vs
Sultan's Succor. And mine is still (slightly) more expensive.
...and I detest every minute I'm wearing that coat.
In the classic Chinese Oud tradition, agarwood is divided into two huge families – 'Hoi An' agarwood (惠安) which encompasses all of Indochina including India and Ceylon, and Sin Xo (星洲) comprising of Malaysia & Indonesia. Any further categorization was deemed unnecessary. I'm of course deeply influenced by this methodology as the Chinese school is the one I've embraced since the beginning.
If you go even further back to the classic Japanese Rikkoku categorizations, they might even substitute non-agarwood species for some of the scent profiles, so long as they display the same overall 'characteristics'. I was boggled to see a high end Shoyeido set where the 'Sumatora' chip wasn't even agarwood!
Double
Lovely little 'Thaqeel' you had there! Smelled like the notes from a Caron perfume captured in wax. Let me know if you ever manage to get that stuff into a bottle!
Don't count on it! I may just have to dilute it in alcohol. Its practically raw resin. I know that's a distillation permutation I'll never try with Filaria again.