Nha Trang 101

A small stretch of Vietnamese coastline that has produced some of the most legendary oils and the greatest specimens of agarwood and kinam the world has ever known.

This oil was distilled over a decade ago in the heart of Taiwan, where Vietnamese oud is treasured above all else. For Taiwanese collectors and distillers, Nha Trang sits at the very top, the ultimate region, the one that all others are measured against.

Capturing a kinam like aroma in an oil is a specialised craft known to very few distillers. It demands not only exceptional raw material but a deep understanding of the distillation process itself. The margin between success and failure is razor thin, and the results speak for themselves.

In the skunk works of Taiwan, some time ago, the finest vintage materials were put together by a legendary former artisan, a man who had developed techniques like no other.

The key to distilling great oud oil lies in the source material. With Nha Trang being the most desired material from the already rare region of Vietnam, it is seldom available today. Very few hold the kinam like vintage batches suitable for crafting a kinamic oil. An oil like this can't be born from just a good distillation; rather it requires the forethought and planning from several years prior to curate the right material from this elusive region.

This precious and limited oil was distilled from wood that is scarce today, material we would not even consider using for distillation now. The quality of wood used for oils in the past far eclipses what is generally available today. Were we to attempt to replicate these vintage distillations with equivalent material, the cost would easily be tenfold what they are now.