Hydrosols contain the water-soluble components of distilled plant material.
Hyangii products are never diluted with water so you will never see it listed anywhere in the ingredient deck. The first ingredient in all water-based Hyangii products (C3, M1, M3, H3) is either 2-3x concentrated aloe juice or undiluted hydrosol (usually of neroli, rose, rosemary).
Most people are familiar with aloe juice, but what is a hydrosol? It is NOT water with essential oils solubilized in it, it’s not floral extracts or flavour added to water, it is also not plant material infused or boiled in hot water —that would be an infusion or decoction. Hydrosol is co-product of the steam-distillation, the process used to produce essential oils.
Steam distillation of plant material results in two types of products of different solubilities: one is non-ionic and oil-based, the other ionic and water-based. The oil is not a fatty oil, however. It is a small, low-molecular weight, non-ionic substance commonly known as an “essential oil”.
The aqueous portion contains the water-soluble components of plant material and is known as a hydrosol. Hydrosols are much gentler and less concentrated than essential oils are, and therefore are safe to use as a first ingredient.
Using hydrosols as the first ingredient, instead of water, is what gives Hyangii’s aqueous products their lovely scent without using essential oils which can be irritating to some. Using hydrosols maxmizes our exposure to water-soluble components of botanicals that are absent in carrier and essentials oils, and lends synergy that is unique to a thoughtfully executed a plant-based formulation. Why dilute with water when we can benefit from botanical waters instead?
