What Is Dehn Al Oud? Oud Oil, Tola Sizes and Formats

Defining Dehn Al Oud

Dehn al oud is oud oil: in the Gulf, agarwood, a fragrant, dark and resinous wood, is distilled into oil known as dehn al oud. For the wood itself, see what is oud. In Arabic, the term oud literally means rod or stick, and the substance is used for its fragrance in the Middle East.

The tree secretes a resin as a defence against a fungal infection. As this infection advances, the heartwood becomes very dense and saturated with the fragrant resin, which contains volatile oils.

Distillation and Characteristics

Agarwood oil is produced by steam distillation, generally using low-grade agarwood chips and powder. The extraction process is reported to be tedious and time-consuming, with oil yields that are generally very low.

The final aroma of the oil varies based on the species, geographic origin, and the part of the tree harvested. Burning a small sample is the most popular way of further judging the grade of the agarwood.

In India, different grades of agarwood are distilled separately and then blended to produce a final attar.

Traditional Measurements and Trade

The tola is a traditional South Asian unit of mass, now standardised as about 11.66 grams. This unit remains in use across most gold souks in the UAE and the GCC countries.

A Saudi perfumer lists its dehn al oudh in sizes including quarter-tola (3 ml), half-tola (6 ml), and one-tola (12 ml). Under CITES rules on personal effects, up to 24 ml of oil per person does not require an export permit.

These regulations regarding personal effects are cited in Resolution Conf. 16.10 (Rev. CoP20).

Oud Oil and Perfume Formats

In the Gulf, oud is distilled into oil, burned as chips, or blended into perfumes. While agarwood oil is used for fragrance, perfumes are seldom pure oil and often use an alcoholic or non-alcoholic carrier like sandalwood oil.

Because oud is expensive, there is a market for diluting oil with patchouli or other chemical components.

Catalogue Attars

The Ajmal Dahn Al Oudh Cambodi is listed by the brand as an attar with oud notes. Similarly, the Ajmal Dahn Al Oudh Khas Hindi is an attar featuring oudh notes.

The Swiss Arabian Dehn El Oud Cambodi is an attar with Cambodian oud notes. The Swiss Arabian Dehn El Oud Mubarak is also an attar, blending Cambodian, Indonesian, and Indian oud.

The Arabian Oud Rare Oud is an attar containing oud and sweet notes. For the wider category of perfume oils, see what is attar.

Distinguishing Formats

The Ajmal Dahn Al Oudh Shams is listed by the brand as an Eau de Parfum, despite its name. The format on the label, not the name, shows which kind of product it is; perfumes that list oud are collected on the oud note page.

For origin profiles, see our guides to Cambodian oud and Hindi oud, and the agarwood note page.

Sources

• Wikipedia (EN): Agarwood
• TRAFFIC / IUCN Library: Heart of the Matter: Agarwood Use and Trade and CITES Implementation for Aquilaria malaccensis
• Oud Saray (UAE perfumer): العود والبخور والدخون: ما الفرق بينها؟
• ويكيبيديا (AR): عود (عطر)
• Wikipedia (EN): Tola (unit)
• CITES: Resolution Conf. 16.10 (Rev. CoP20): Implementation of the Convention for agarwood-producing taxa
• Majid Iterji Factory for Perfumes (Saudi perfumer): Oudh category listing