Pterocarpus santalinus L. Essential Oil, 50 ml

Red sandalwood essential oil, Pterocarpus santalinus, 50 ml

Red sandalwood comes from Pterocarpus santalinus, a slow-growing tree of the pea family native to the hills of southern India. Despite the shared name, it is unrelated to the white sandalwood used in classic perfumery, Santalum album. Its heartwood is best known as a source of a natural red dye, and oil from the wood is a much rarer material. The product card gives the INCI name Pterocarpus Santalinus Wood Essential Oil and India as the country of production. The 50 ml bottle is meant for evaluation, test batches and limited editions.

What you get in the bottle

The card describes a warm, rich woody scent with subtle spicy and slightly powdery notes, denser and more resinous than classic sandalwood, with an earthy, leathery side. The oil itself is dark brown to reddish amber, oily and dense. In practice this is a base note: it lingers for a long time and anchors lighter materials rather than leading a composition.

Three ways to explore it

Solid perfume

A beeswax and jojoba base lets the woody note warm up slowly on skin and shows how long it lasts.

Aftershave balm

Men's grooming is a natural fit for a leathery wood note. A light emulsion with a small dose gives a refined, quiet scent.

Oriental home fragrance

In candles and reed diffusers, red sandalwood pairs well with patchouli, frankincense, vanilla and amber notes.

Practical formulating

Add the oil to the oil phase below 40 °C. As a guide, body products use 0.3 to 1 %, facial products less, and perfume oils follow the composition. The safety assessment sets the final level. Because the oil is dark and dense, weigh it rather than counting drops, and check whether it tints pale creams.

Cold weather and viscosity

Dense wood oils thicken in the cold. If the bottle has been stored somewhere chilly, let it reach room temperature before dispensing, and swirl it gently so the oil is uniform.

Blending partners

Bright citrus such as bergamot and mandarin lifts the dense base, while frankincense, patchouli, vetiver and vanilla push it in an oriental direction. With delicate florals like freesia or lily of the valley, keep red sandalwood to a trace, or the wood takes over. At the trial stage it is useful to build two versions, a light citrus-woody one and a dark oriental one, and see which fits your brand better.

Card details

Country of production India. INCI Pterocarpus Santalinus Wood Essential Oil. Dark brown or reddish amber, oily and dense. Pack size 50 ml.

Test formula: aftershave balm, 100 g

Heat 78 g of water with 4 g of glycerin to 75 °C. Separately heat 8 g of jojoba oil, 4 g of shea butter and 4 g of a cetearyl alcohol based emulsifier to the same temperature. Combine, blend and cool. At 40 °C add 1 g of preservative, 0.4 ml of red sandalwood oil and 0.2 ml of vetiver oil, and mix well. Emulsifiers are available in wholesale emulsifiers, and jojoba in wholesale liquid oils. When the product moves into regular production, the 500 ml container is available, and other woody oils are listed under wholesale essential oils.

Storage

Keep the bottle tightly closed, in the dark and away from heat. Woody oils are fairly stable, but light and warmth slowly change their scent.

Logging trials

Note the dose and base for each sample.

FAQ

Is red sandalwood the same as sandalwood?

No. Red sandalwood belongs to the pea family, while white sandalwood belongs to the sandalwood family.

Will the oil colour my product?

It is dark, so pale creams may pick up a tint. Check this on a trial batch.

How should the oil be stored?

Tightly closed, in a cool, dark place.