Botanical Name: Zingiber Cassumunar

Origin: Thailand

Plai essential oil, (Zingiber Cassumunar) is a member of the ginger family and I became aware of this oil four years ago, maybe five! Therapists would telephone and inform me a competitor was selling Plai, the super oil of oils, the one that Thai villagers swore by, wholeheartedly believing it could cure just about anything.

Apparently excelling in the reduction of inflammation and ridding people of any muscle aches. Clearly amazed by these claims, the quest began to source this and as I write I finally have a source for Wild Crafted Plai.

Plai essential oil is obtained by steam distillation of the rhizome and the colour of the liquid is clear/pale yellow. Looking in my reference books, the four major constituents are Gamma Terpinene, Terpin 4OL, Sabinene and DMPBD (shorter text for (E)-1-(3,4-dimethoxyphenyl) butadiene). Collectively these constituents account for in excess of 85% of the oil.

The aroma of Plai is very pleasing. Instantly you detect the warmth associated with Ginger but its far less aggressive and attention seeking. Aside from the warmth, your sense of smell will detect a sweet, tangy stickiness comparable perhaps to smelling a good bottle of Melisa crossed with the middle notes of Citronella.