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Jasmine Attar
Jasmine, translate in Arabic yasmin means "Gift from God" an appropriate name for such a beautiful
fragrant flower. Jasmine Attar oil is in common use. Its flowers are
either extracted by the labor-intensive method of enfleurage or through
chemical extraction. It is expensive due to the large number of flowers
needed to produce a small amount of oil. The flowers have to be gathered
at night because the odour of jasmine is more powerful after dark. The
flowers are laid out on cotton cloths soaked in olive oil for several days
and then extracted leaving the true jasmine essence. Some of the countries
producing jasmine essential oil are India, Egypt, China and Morocco. Its
chemical constituents include methyl anthranilate, indole, benzyl alcohol,
linalool, and skatole. Many species also yield an absolute, which is used
in perfumes and incense.
Jasmine tisane is
consumed in China, where it is called jasmine flower tea (茉莉花茶; pinyin: mò
lì huā chá). Jasminum sambac flowers are also used to make tea, which
often has a base of green tea, but sometimes an Oolong base is used.
Flowers and tea are "mated" in machines that control temperature and
humidity. It takes four hours or so for the tea to absorb the fragrance
and flavour of the jasmine blossoms, and for the highest grades, this
process may be repeated as many as seven times. Because the tea has
absorbed moisture from the flowers, it must be refired to prevent
spoilage. The spent flowers may or may not be removed from the final
product, as the flowers are completely dry and contain no aroma. Giant
fans are used to blow away and remove the petals from the denser tea
leaves. If present, they simply add visual appeal and are no indication of
the quality of the tea.
The French are known
for their jasmine syrup, most commonly made from an extract of jasmine
flowers. In the United States, this French jasmine syrup is used to make
jasmine scones.
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Jasmine Attar |
Jasmine attar is extracted from Jasmine Auriculatum, which is a rare, unique
smelling flower in the Jasmine family, available only in North India. The
jasmine attar is used in the unique development of jasmine perfumes and
creams as it is believed to have stress releasing and mood uplifting
properties. This oil is derived from the popular Jasminum grandiflorum
variety of plant.
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