The Balsam of Peru is a leguminous tree from Central and South America, belonging to the Fabaceae family and about 12 m tall, with alternating evergreen leaves.
The flowers are white with yellow stamens in clusters. The fruit is a 7–11 cm long legume containing a single seed.
Peruvian balsam is obtained by making incisions in the trunk; it is a syrupy, yellowish liquid with a very pleasant smell reminiscent of vanilla.
Unlike other natural resins, the extraction process begins with the so-called 'heating' of the tree, which consists of applying heat to a horizontal incision in the tree until the balsam artisan verifies that it is ready for extraction and subsequent distillation.
Historically, Peruvian Balsam Essential Oil has been valued for its properties as: Anti-inflammatory, Antibacterial, Dermal regenerator, Balsamic.