Rose Otto

Rose Damask

(Rose Otto Pink)

Rosa damescena

Rosaceae family

Also known as Rose of Castille—Damask rose is a hybrid of Rose Gallica and Rose moschata. Damask roses are only found in cultivation. They are not found in the wild

Harvested and steam/water distilled from certified organic flowers in Bulgaria. It’s common in Bulgaria to cohobate the rose water, which means running it through the distillation process a second time to enrich the rose water and also to “bulk up” the essential oil. Most of the natural constituent phenylethyl alcohol, which gives much of the “rosy” scent, comes from the cohobation water.

The Grande Dame of essential oils, Rose Otto is forever associated with the heart in all its aspects. Rose essential oil is also well known for her empathy with all matter of the female body, mind and spirit. Generally thought to be cooling and soothing.

Rose is loveable and delightful in every way, and harvestable and edible and olfactorily brilliant and gustatorily delicious—we get rose oil, rose absolute, rose water, candied petals, rose tea, rose sugar, rose powder, and all the spin-offs from those…..There is no surprise at all that she is the Queen of Flowers.

Roses are grown commercially, as crops, with deep respect and reverence in many places, from Iran, where they probably originally from, to Turkey, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Arabian Peninsula, Bulgaria, Morocco, and so forth. I mean no disrespect to any countries I didn’t mention.

Rose is said to be able to open the doors of love and friendship.

This oil is so beautiful, and so precious, there is literally nothing else to say about it –one can say anything. The high cost comes from the low oil content, and there is but one big harvest a year—despite the cohobation, the ratio of oil to flower tonnage and land use is tiny.

Above all, rose is a balm to the soul.

Arctander says

Bulgarian rose otto is a pale yellow or slightly olive-yellow liquid which separates white or colorless blades of crystals at temperatures below 21 C (70ishF) and when further cooled, the oil may solidify to a translucent mass, the crystals growing from the surface due to lower specific gravity.

The odor is warm, deep-floral, slightly spicy and immensely rich, truly reminiscent of roses, often with nuances in the spicy and honey-like notes. The taste is slightly bitter at high concentration, biting-sharp, but becomes very pleasant in extreme dilution.

Bulgarian rose is used to extensively that its high cost is the only limitation on its use in perfumery. Even traces of this oil in many kinds of perfume bases can do wonders when correctly used.

Battaglia says

Antidepressant

Analgesic

Anti-inflammatory

Anti-microbial

Anxiolytic

Antiviral

Bactericidal

Sedative

Rose is associated with skincare, with matters of the heart, whether love or heart arrhythmias, friendship, hormonal/reproductive issues (cramps, menopause etc)

There is a lot of Damask Rose information in The Complete Guide to Aromatherapy; I highly recommend perusing it.

You're the joy that I breathe

              ~  Mother of roses  ~

                              ~ Roots intertwine our souls ~

                                                     ~ Aromas of love ~

----Arturo Michael

Haiku - Between Rose Petals

vermilion wings

perch between rose petals

sips of ambrosia

----Charmaine Chirop

Haiku - Between Rose Petals

vermilion wings

perch between rose petals

sips of ambrosia

--Charmaine Chircop