Customer Question:
Some Oud producers put the oil under the sun or expose it to the open air to ostensibly speed up the aging process or improve the oil. What do you think of these methods?
Answer from Aroma Sublime:
If there is a problem with a certain oil, then certain tricks like this can be applied to potentially improve the oil.
Most of the time we prefer to deal entirely in oils that are top grade every step of the way; from tree, to still, to aging process; and so tricks like this would not be required and might remove desirable nuances from an exceptional oil, flattening and simplifying the scent.
By sunning or airing out an Oud oil you lose the most volatile and ethereal components of the oil. This can be extremely destructive to a premium oil with no problematic notes or flaws and an exciting symphony of interesting top and heart notes.
Very commonly, If the top notes, especially, of a lower quality Oud oil are unpleasant, the oil can be “improved” with these techniques. You will also lose some of the pleasant top and heart notes as well, however, and might reduce the oil to a bunch of simple Oudy base notes.
I would not say that it’s wrong to use these tricks, but rather that it must be cautiously applied case by case.
For a top quality Oud with no obvious vices, I would recommend patient aging for at least one year in a closed container kept in total darkness and without extreme temperature fluctuations. Of course, there is no problem taking it out occasionally for a sniff.
On the other hand, If you have a medium- to low-quality Oud with some less desirable notes you can try to clean it up a little using air or sun exposure.