How Sambrani is made?

It is a balsamic resin obtained from several trees of the family Styracaceae. The resin is dried, powdered and sold in the markets, either as a powder or in blocks. Sambrani usage has been in the culture for many years and in fact every South Indian home will have sambrani holders that will be more than 100 years old.

Many countries use sambrani, in Arab countries they use it directly and in some countries they use it in incense. You can also use it instead of sandalwood shavings as a base for making incense cones. To light up sambrani smoke, coal is collected in sambrani holder and the sambrani powder is sprinkled over it.

Sambrani is produced mainly in Asia in several countries like Thailand, Java, Sumatra, Indonesia and Vietnam. The trees by themselves does not produce any resin, they are produced after deep incisions are made in the bark. Farmers who grow benzoin trees usually pick a spot in the forest usually near already existing benzoin trees. They pick seedlings from the best resin producing tree and when the tree reaches eight years they start tapping for the resin. The resin can be extracted for almost 60 years!