Robert Seidel founded The Essential Oil Company in Portland, Oregon in August of 1977. He came to essential oils through forestry, a love of the outdoors and one question about a tree that nobody around him could answer.
A forester first
In 1969 Mr. Seidel began his journey, not in distillation, but at the New York State Ranger School at Wanakena. There he received hands on training in the field, a Certificate in Forest Technology and an Associate in Applied Science in Forest Technology.
His schooling did not stop there. He went on to Paul Smith's College, where he continued his education and received an Associate in Applied Science Degree in Forestry.
In 1971 Mr. Seidel attended Syracuse University and the SUNY College of Environmental Sciences and Forestry simultaneously. At the end of his two year stay he had received a Bachelor of Science in Forestry from Syracuse University and a Bachelor of Science in Forestry and Resources Management from SUNY at Syracuse.
The fragrance of the forest
Even with all his education, Mr. Seidel wondered about the natural fragrances of the forest. Was there a way to capture the scent of the forest and make something worthwhile from it? Everyone he turned to for answers told him it could not be done. Even his professors were skeptical. They had never heard of anyone attempting what he was suggesting. That did not discourage him. He found out that there was a whole community around the world producing the products he was dreaming about, through distillation.
In his own words
Transcript, lightly edited.
How did I get into essential oils? Well, it began many years ago when I was in forestry school. I was studying forest technology and resources management at New York State Ranger School and I came upon a tree called a balsam fir.
The balsam fir has blisters on the bark, and when you pop the blisters this gorgeous resin comes out, just an incredibly wonderful smelling resin. I spent time asking my teachers and professors if there was any way I could isolate the aroma. This was back in the sixties and we were in forestry school, and forestry was all about making wood, lumber and paper. So I was repeatedly told that there is no way to isolate that gorgeous essence. Of course, what that did was cause me to study to find out if there was a way, and I actually did eventually.
I continued my forestry career at Paul Smith's College, New York State Ranger School and Syracuse University. Then I moved out west, working with the wood industry, and I started building my own distillation units. I started with a small pot and pan and a condenser from an air conditioner in a car. I did it on the stove, and I was cooking Douglas fir. And that worked. I used a fan to cool down my condenser and I sprayed it with water. Eventually I started building bigger units and extracting essential oils, and it was really wonderful.
So I started my business dealing in essential oils. Now, if you can imagine, this is before the internet. How would you find somebody that, say, produces rose oil when you're in Portland, Oregon?
Well, what I did was spend lots of time at university libraries going through telephone books, international telephone books. I started making telephone calls around the world and I actually found people who were producing essential oils. I started buying from those people, putting the oils in small bottles, and reselling it. This was a concept that really, back in 1977, was in its infancy. There were maybe one or two other companies that were doing just that.
1977: The Essential Oil Company is founded
The Essential Oil Company imports and distributes essential oils and other natural products that come from all over the world. The company also distills essential oils itself and supplies the industry with distillation equipment. It represents artisans in Portugal who manufacture hand hammered copper alembic distillers for making hydrosols and oils. These stills have traditionally been used for distilling spirits. Mr. Seidel has designed several stills for distilling essential oils and hydrosols. The Essential Oil Company also represents manufacturers of small, medium and large scale distillation equipment.
Visiting the source
Mr. Seidel imports many of his products from overseas, and he holds them to a very high standard. Regular visits to his suppliers in Asia and Europe keep those relationships current and let him check the quality of what is supplied to him.
When asked how the distillation process has changed since he founded the company, Mr. Seidel said, "Not much really. The process is pretty much the same, but the product has come a long way. It's a lot better quality nowadays."
The oils his company sells bring the fragrances of the world home. Even Mr. Seidel, the "Guerrilla Distiller," has a hard time picking his favorite.
