Black Pepper Essential Oil is a pale yellow-green or amber liquid. It has a more pleasant, refined scent than clove oil.
The plant is a perennial vine that grows up 20 feet or more in height, with small white flowers. The fruit are red berries that turn black as they mature. However, the peppercorns are picked for distillation before they ripen.
"Pepper" is derived from the Latin piper, which originates from the Sanskrit pippali. Like clove and cinnamon, black pepper is one of the oldest known spices and was used as currency in the Middle Ages. It has been a highly valued spice for thousands of years and was used in Ancient Greece, Rome, and China.
