Dear Ouddicts:
i look forward to the education, dissemination of knowledge and helping to enrich each other's lives with all that we bring to share with other like-minded scent fanatics.
sorry for the length of this entry. ill keep future posts shorter.
background info on me:
why share this? b/c i find context is very important.
i am in my mid 30s and work in the wine industry. my background was academics (never did i think i would do anything but work in academia had you asked me when i was doing my honors undergrad). my first real job (outside pizza delivery, working at the university, dog sitting....) was in wine education (teaching wine classes as part of the prestigious WSET) in the earlier part of my professional life, then i was on retail/restaurant side (focus on the art and science of food and wine pairing and helping average consumers to gain appreciation and have a helping hand to navigate the waters). in the past 9 years i work as a supplier. We operate a couple of boutique wineries in the only pocket desert in Canada (yes we don't live in igloos and we actually have the northern most desert- sonoran desert starting in mexico- ending some 40 km into the Canadian border.)
feel free to look up okanagan valley and in particular township of osoyoos and oliver on the map to learn more. is truly a remarkable place.
note: wine, tea, coffee, oud, cheese... they are all the same by the way. they are all gifts from mother nature for us to enjoy and take pleasure from. they all have a world of their own, filled with nuances, subtleties, variations and provide ample amount of intelectual and hedosnitic pleasures. keep their consumption to moderation, be mindful of the dark side to all of them, and you should be set to enjoy the gifts of nature for life.
my aesthetic:
while i refuse to be put in a box that defines me and my interest(s), i have to say i tend to value artisanal products that carry with them a sense of place and time (pure and unadulterated). in the wine world we call this Terroir: wines that cant be from anywhere other than where they were grown. the unique combo of top soil, sub soil, elevation, exposure, lattitue speak louder than the aesthetics of the maker. in fact in my world there is no such thing as a winemaker, only a wine grower. we are fully aware of all the ways we can make a wine taste or smell "better" but we refuse to do so, as that is disrespect to mother nature and will tarnish that sense of place it becomes a commodity, a product without a soul and a mean to an end.
lets take oud for example. while i can appreciate a very complex oud that was "made" that way (thru all sorts of tricks or use of many different techniques) i value more the oud that has been allowed to show its true nature. in other words while i love a good stew, there is something fascinating and beyond hedonistic pleasure in that perfect cut of sashimi. the sashimi chef's job is to not mess up the integrity of the fish, NOT to enhance it, layer it, add his or her own ego to it. so no heavy handed oils for this one, eventhough they may provide ample hedonistics pleasures, they will be devoid of pleasing the left brain.
back to the backgorund:
i was born and raised in a family with huge focus and geekiness in tea (we had plantations and small size tea factory on the caspian sea north of iran) and high art of cusine and all that comes with it (pickling, fermenting and preserving summer and fall crops). i lived in dubai briefly (first exposure to oud but in form of bakhoor and heavily scented barny, floral, super sweet hindi and cambodi oils that is till think were adulterated with rose oil and other essential oils) before my family moved to british Columbia canada when i had just turned 17.
many of my friends are chefs and sommeliers. i also partake in the tea circle (have few grower friends with their holdings in Asia) and actually challenged the TAC tea sommelier exam and passed with distinction.
i got sucked back into oud only a few months ago or so, but kid you not, since then i have at least spent 5-8 hours every (literlaly EVERY) single day and on weekends perhaps 10-12 hours reading, researching, cross-referencing and otherwise jumping both feet int he deep end of this treasured gift to us humans.
i relate to the work, passion and otherwise dedication of WS (kyarazen) very much. i look forward to help contribute to the community and follow in his foot steps. ditto the work of Taha, Ensar and the likes.
i share this b/c i understand for many is difficult to comprehend how a guy in his mid 30s only started oud few months ago can have had such vast of an experience and background. i do not mean to come across as a know it all. in fact i see myself as a student of all of these arts for life. the more i know the less i know. i am a tiny little bug on a windshield.
i have managed to gather samples in form of incense sticks, kneaded incense, oils, chips, bakhoor, etc. across 5-10 different suppliers from all the corners of the earth. i think i probably have north of 60 different oils and probably around half of that in different origin, grade and different supplier's chips/chunks.
i look forward to share my findings and experiences with you all and to learn from you.
here is to less arguments, deceit, and agenda ridden posts and more to raw, sincere passion and knowledge share.
peace and love to all of you
cheers
Rasoul
