Subject: I couldn't be happier!
Hi! I am so sorry that I haven't written sooner as I have been having the time of my life with your oils! Only recently have I started to educate myself on aromatherapy and essential oils and can say that I am very happy with your products. There are so many sites that I have viewed that I didn't feel they were giving me the whole truth, but as it turns out I finally found your site and needless to say those feelings were gone. With all of the testing that you do on your oils, in addition to actually caring about our feedback tells me that you stand by your promises. Thank you so very much!
As if being as impressed with these oils as I am isn't enough, I really have to acknowledge how fast your delivery was--around 4 days I think and I live in NJ! You definitely have a repeat customer in me as I have just placed another (smaller) order today for some more. I have been using them on everyone that will allow me too! I think that I am in LOVE with Neroli and have been using it as a perfume! This time I ordered the dilutional version. The clary sage has been wonderful for helping me sleep and as I have an EXTREME amount of stress in my life and I was looking for alternatives to medications. I use them all day long and have even started spraying lavender on my two boys' pillows at night, since they both have a difficult time in calming down. And as for colds, I have to say that the eucalyptus is really working.
Thank you once again and I will continue to order from Kobashi. As a matter of fact I have been like your walking advertisement from over here in the states and telling everyone about the quality of your oils not to mention the affordable prices. I wish you health and happiness.
P.S. Thank you so much for the extra bottle of rose otto...I have made much use of it in my facial care! It was very nice of you. I am so thankful to have found your company. Now I just wish I could learn about all of this much faster and help as many as I can.
Sincerely,
Rudi
I am looking forward to my next order of oils. My previous order was recieved very promptly and the oils are the best I've ever tried (I've collected from all over the world!) The prices are very reasonable, especially for such high quality. Thank you so much for providing such a wonderful product and service. I wish your staff a very happy and prosperous new year from way down south USA!
Mississippi Michelle
I have just made my second purchase of oils from you and I am wondering if you can tell me where I can get one of those plug - in aroma stones that I saw in your testimonial site that you recomended to another customer?
Love your oils! Still nothing beats a hot sauna with Eucalyptus water! I also love to try different ones dropped on our pillows some nights and we all sleep like babies. Can't wait til my new oils come!
I also had a question about your oils. . . How long of a shelf life do they have? I have had some of the ones I bought from you about a year now and they still seem great, but I was just curious for future reference if I should throw them away after a certain amount of time or do they last forever??
Best regards,
Becky Moreau
Becky
Dear Becky
When you purchase oils direct from Kobashi they are not opened by anyone and we only bottle up to 6 months of stock at a time, so your oil will always be fresh.
All our products have best before dates:
The only preservative we use for essential oil and carrier oils is to nitrogen purge them. We are also beginning to add mixed Tocopherols to the more sensitive carrier oils such as Hemp, Flax and Starflower oils. (These oils are also kept frozen or refrigerated.)
Shelf life is one of those mysterious events.
Wine is a example which we are all aware of. Some essential oils can last indefinitely. Citrus, Pine and Juniper berry oils generally are best used within two years from manufacturing. Refrigeration of Citrus oils may not be helpful due to wax fallout; the wax helps to stabilize the oil.
We nitrogen purge all our more sensitive oils, making them less likely to go off. Nitrogen is an inert gas which is in the air we breathe. (Content in clean air 78% Nitrogen,21% Oxygen, 0.04% Carbon Dioxide,1% Argon and other noble gases, for example, argon, neon, krypton and xenon + The percentage of water vapour in air can change, some days are more humid than others, but the percentage of the other gases remains almost constant.). (Nitrogen N2 28 Majority component of air (~78%)) Oxygen oxidizes (breaks down) many aspects of the oil. Nitrogen is lighter than oxygen, but when nitrogen is forced into the space in the bottle above the oil it purges the air which contains Oxygen. Caps must be put immediately after purging.
You will need to put the oil on a testing strip, in a burner/vaporizer or in a carrier to get the full aroma.
Some oils like Frankincense, Patchouli, Spearmint, and Vetivert can get better with age. Lavender is generally better after a year. All oils have their own natural chemical uniqueness.
Light can also break down the oil. This is why we place the oils in amber glass. Amber is good at stopping light. Although this is probably the least crucial.
Water also breaks down the oil. This is why it's important that water should be separated as much as possible after distilling of the oil. The separated water form the distillation of oil is called a Hydrolat. Hydrolats are important products in their own right. Hydrolats generally have a best before of less than 18 Months. Hydrolats being mostly water make a suitable place for bacteria, yeast and fungi to grow. We test our Hydrolats for all in an incubator at 27 to 30 degrees C for seven days with Total Bacterial Count Agar and Rose Bengal Agar for yeast and fungi. We have a number of Hydrolats in stock. Essential Oils are very rarely attacked by bacteria, viruses, yeast or fungi. In fact they have their own unique chemical compositions, which have variable levels of resistance to different strains.
EXAMPLE:
There is a best before Batch No: 41129
Best Before: 10/2006 Origin: Kazanluk, Bulgaria.
Best kept refrigerated after opening.
The protection from water, oxygen and light is used to extend the life of your oil as long as possible. This does not mean you cannot vaporize the oil on water or put them in a bath base in the bath.The oxidizing process takes a while.
Your nose and emotions can be one of the most sensitive aroma analyzers. Use the method at http://www.kobashi.co.uk/exercise1.shtml
I believe this will help you to not throw out good oils because of a date on the bottle. Quite frankly 'best before' legislation is to protect you from buying old stock. On the other hand it helps companies when you throw something out; generally people replace it with a new one.
PS
Oils that are marked with a best by with less than 30Months. Note: have been nitrogen sealed so could last much longer. Also note once opened best by is not an exact science. Saying that we have had oils at home way past sell by that are fine. In fact years ago we never put sell by, as cosmetic regulation only stated a need for products that last for less than two years. We put them on the bottles anyway, because a few people ask where are they.
New legislations now states if a product has a shelf life of more than 30Months, then it must have a once opened symbol with the amount of months it is best used within and not a best before date.
LATIN NAME Aloe barbadensis.
INGREDIENTS: Certified organic whole leaf 1:1 aloe Vera juice (99.5%). Less than 1% ( in total )of the following natural, food grades sources: Xanthan Gum (corn starch thickening agent), 0.1% Citric Acid (oxidation inhibitor), 0.1% Potassium Sorbate (mold inhibitor). 0.1% Sodium Benzoate (bacteria inhibitor),
Shampoo, Soap, Bath products and Creams and lotions: Preservative: vitamin C (ascorbic acid), potassium sorbate, benzyl alcohol & phenoxyethanol, Natural Vit. E: g d a & Tocopherols.
Without these preservatives mold and bacteria would start growing within a week.
We do not use Parabens.
All Kobashi Oils are as fresh as possible. Our warehouse is underground in the south Devon climate which is always cool. We also refrigerate and nitrogen purge any sensitive oils.
