Dark Socotran Frankincense - Boswellia aspleniifolia

Rare Boswellia aspleniifolia - Early Season Incense Resin

This is a rare example of a darkened Boswellia aspleniifolia resin. The frankincense forms over months during the Socotran monsoon season and is first collected when harvest time begins in the spring. Its scent is rich and luxurious when burned, conveying soft and earthy base notes along with deep notes of tropical hardwood. It has refreshing floral hints of greenery: leaves, blossoms, cypress and pine.

White and white-yellow tears are produced by the same tear later in the year. It is arguably purer resin, with a unique and uplifting sweetness that nonetheless lacks the complexity and depth of this darker variety.

Boswellia aspleniifolia belongs to a disputed taxa. Some botanists consider the tree to be one of the many variations of Boswellia socotrana-elongata. Others believe that B. aspleniifolia is a distinct species. Having handled and burned the resin, I can confirm that is does diverge from B. socotrana-elongata in several ways. Its frankincense has a lot in common with B. sacra, but has brighter sweet and tropical notes a higher typical of the more piney-citrus characteristics of B. socotrana. It is perhaps the best of both worlds, and the best that frankincense has to offer.

Socotra, an island in the Indian Ocean, is home to several unique plant species. Among these are several dwarf species that naturally produce frankincense (Boswellia) and myrrh (Commiphora). My local partners harvest the resin with exquisite knowledge and care, monitoring populations and helping to protect trees wherever they can. They adhere to strict local customs intended to preserve forests and the sustainability of the ancient incense resin trade.