Cypress, Blue.

Some woods smell of smoke and honey and late light. Blue cypress is one of them: rich, resinous, woody, smoky, honey-like and grounding, in the words of Mark Webb's Bush Sense. Some compare it to sandalwood, vetiver or guaiacwood, though it reads more balsamic and less sweet.

Unlike the familiar cypress needle oil, this is a wood oil, with all the depth and resonance that brings. It is distilled from the bark and wood of Callitris intratropica, plantation grown completely without chemicals in northern Australia, a renewable resource. Its blue comes from guaiazulene in the bark; oil from the heartwood alone runs clear. Other blue oils come from blossoms, which makes this one a curiosity. It is said to be a fine fixative for blends and perfumes, and emotionally grounding, calming and reassuring.

Details

• Botanical name: Callitris intratropica
• Origin: northern Australia, plantation grown without chemicals
• Method: distilled from bark and wood
• Blends well with: most citrus oils and most florals

How to use

Let it hold the base of a citrus or floral blend, or a perfume you want to linger. Possible reproductive toxicity: avoid during pregnancy and while breastfeeding.

For the hour when the sky turns blue and the house goes quiet, a bottle worth keeping close.