Plants. Place. People.
Made where we live
São Miguel sits alone in the middle of the Atlantic. Volcanic ground, frequent rain, high humidity and mild temperatures all year. Gardens run into pasture and pasture into forest. The place matters here for a simple reason: these products begin in it.
The ground
Volcanic soil, plenty of rain and mild winters. Lavender, rosemary, thyme, sage and lemongrass all settle in easily here.
The same day
We cut in the morning and load the still while the plant material is still fresh.
One plant at a time
A hydrosol is water and one plant. An oil is one plant. Nothing is blended in afterwards.
From plant to bottle
How a batch actually happens
Growing
Most of what we bottle grows in our garden and raised beds. Some plants, like eucalyptus and pine, are gathered from the island itself.
Harvesting
Cutting is done by hand, usually early, and only as much as we can process that day.
Steam distillation
Fresh plant material goes into the still. Steam carries the aromatic compounds; what condenses separates into the hydrosol and a small amount of essential oil.
Drying
Herbs and Jiaogulan leaves are dried slowly in shade with good airflow, then sorted by hand before packing.
Bottling and labelling
Everything is filtered, filled, capped and labelled by us. Batch sizes follow the harvest, so availability changes through the year.
From the workshop
No stock photography. These are our actual products, straight from the still and the herb garden.
