[Versione in italiano dell’articolo – Idrolato di rosa, benessere da bere]

Hydrolates are one example of how a processing part – usually considered a ‘waste’ – can be important for wellness use.

Let us remember that hydrosol can be used to produce fragrances with some nuances that are less pronounced than if we added pure essential oil.

In addition, hydrolats contain essential oil and can be ingested in small quantities (assessing which plant they are from, of course). This opens up a whole new world, which has also made its way into bartending (mixology) and which we can also experiment with at home.

One of the most widely used waters is rose water, or rose hydrosol, which is sometimes produced on purpose, not as a by-product of distillation. Large quantities of petals are needed to obtain a quality product.

When one talks about Rose, one generally means the Damask Rose, but the Rosa Centifolia is also distilled. It is also interesting to know the country of origin of the essential oil because although it is the same plant, the smell changes from a Rose from Kannauj to a Rose from Morocco, Bulgaria, or Afghanistan.

Rose water is an effective skin tonic and has astringent qualities. It has refreshing, antiseptic, hormone-balancing, and anxiolytic properties.

Hydrosol or “rose water” also has a very wide range of cosmetic applications, for example

• to soothe skin irritations
• is astringent and invigorating
• soothes eczema and allergic skin reactions
• can be used to gently clean children’s skin

We were talking earlier about the fact that hydrosols can be drunk. Of course you have to understand what hydrolate we are talking about (which plant) – rose hydrosol can become a component of sweet preparations for cooking or enriching drinks.

If you like coffee, you could for example add half a teaspoon of rose hydrosol to your cup, and tell me if you like it! With a pinch of cinnamon (the powdered spice) it becomes even more pleasant.

If you like drinks, rosewater goes well with orange juice, and you might also like it with grapefruit juice. Generally, adding a teaspoon of hydrosol is enough to give your drink a new nuance.

The only recommendation: that the hydrosol you use is for food use. Be sure to check before you buy it!