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〜 Nanairo Batake 〜

Herbs and Fragrances - Tonka beans

Plant data

SCIENTIFIC NAME: Dipteryx odorata
FAMILY: Fabaceae / マメ科 / 콩과 / 豆科
COMMON NAME (plant): kumaru; cumaru; Brazilian teak / クマル; トンカ / 쿠마루 / 香豆樹; 二翅豆; 香二翅豆
COMMON NAME (seed): tonka beans; tonkin beans; tonquin beans / トンカビンーズ; トンキンビンーズ / 통카콩 / 黑香豆; 零陵香豆; 薰草豆
MAIN PLACES OF PRODUCTION: Central and South America, Africa
DESCRIPTION: The tree can grow up to 30 meters tall, its trunk gaining a diameter of over 1 meter. Its gray bark is smooth and the heartwood is red. The tree's alternate pinnate leaves are leathery, glossy, and dark green with 3-6 leaflets. The tree's pink flowers bloom from March to May and each of its developed fruit contains only one seed which ripens until June or July. The seed is black and wrinkled on the outside, and have a smooth brown interior.
PICTURES:

Fragrance data

PART OF EXTRACTION: seeds
METHOD OF EXTRACTION: solvent extraction
COLOR: yellow
VOLATILITY: base note
STRENGTH: strong
DESCRIPTION OF FRAGRANCE: Some say it smells like vanilla and cinnamon; Japanese sources often say it has a warm and sweet smell like sakura-mochi.
MAIN USAGE: room fragrance
MAIN COMPOSITION: coumarin, ethyl melilotate

Additional info

The cumaru tree is one of the most long-living species in the amazonian rain forest, having a lifespan of over 1000 years.

The red heartwood of cumaru is considered very durable and useful in cold and dry areas.

The main aromatic compound of the tonka beans is coumarin, with a concentration of several percent in the seed.

chemical structure of coumarin.

In 1940s coumarin was artificially synthesized and used as a flavoring agent in food.

In 1954, the United States FDA banned the use of coumarin (both the pure compound and the tonka bean) in food, based on a research finding that rats given large doses of coumarin developed liver problems. However this ban, though still in place, is generally considered a mistake nowadays, because the amount of coumarin typically consumed via food is far from dangerous.

Coumarin is also found is cinnamon and lavender.

Coumarin is moderately toxic to the liver and kidneys, with a median lethal dose (LD50) of 293 mg/kg, a low toxicity compared to related compounds.

Coumarin gives off blue fluorescence under UV light.

A chemical derivative of coumarin known as 4-hydroxycoumarin are used in anticoagulant prescription drugs. But coumarin itself does not have anticoagulant properties.

Today, the main producers of tonka beans are Venezuela and Nigeria.

Tonka bean powder is used in European cuisine.

Tonka bean absolute is used in French perfumery.

References

Wikipedia

Dominica botanic gardens

blog.hardwood-timberfloors.com

herbco.com

Youtube channel "Foodie Findings"